Steel ball hinges are mainly composed of the following components:
Outer ball: This is the outermost component of the ball hinge, usually a spherical shell with a spherical surface inside. The basic structure of the outer ball can be divided into three parts: inner hole, spherical surface and outer surface. The two outer balls are fitted together through the spherical surface to achieve rotation.
Inner ball: The inner ball is the innermost component of the ball hinge and is used in conjunction with the outer ball. The inner surface of the inner ball is a sphere that can fit with the spherical surface of the outer ball. The outer surface of the inner ball is a cylinder that can be used in conjunction with the outer sleeve.
Outer sleeve: The outer sleeve is the connecting component between the outer ball and the inner ball, usually an outer cylindrical structure. The inner hole of the outer sleeve fits with the spherical surface of the outer ball, and the outer surface fits with the inner sleeve.
Inner sleeve: The inner sleeve is a component that fits with the outer sleeve, usually an inner cylindrical structure. The outer surface of the inner sleeve is combined with the outer sleeve, and the inner surface is used in conjunction with the inner ball.
Retainer: The retainer is an auxiliary component in the ball joint assembly, mainly used to fix and maintain the position of the inner and outer balls. Common retainer structures include spherical, steel ball and spring retainers.
Upper bearing plate and lower bearing plate: These components are used to fix the ball joint to ensure its stability and load-bearing capacity in the structure.
Ball crown lining and PTFE sliding plate: These components are used to realize the plane sliding part of the ball joint and meet the rotation requirements of the bridge through sliding friction.
These components work together to enable the steel ball joint to achieve flexible rotation in multiple directions, suitable for various mechanical and engineering fields.
