A pillow block bearing is a type of plain bearing housed in a cast mounting bracket that provides external housing for the bearing. It is designed for low torque, low load situations and clean environments. The plummer block is similar but designed for higher loads and corrosive environments. Both types of bearing housings are bolted to a stable surface and feature special seals to protect the bearing from contaminants. By using a ball bearing on a rotating shaft, the duty cycle of the shaft is greatly increased.
A plain bearing is a type of bearing housed within a cast mounting bracket that also serves as an external housing for the bearing. Typically fabricated from a gray cast iron, the pillow block bearing housing has provisions to allow the housing to be bolted snugly. The inner bearing component of the pillow block housing is commonly a soft metal material, such as white metal, while the outer housing may be a single or split housing. Primarily designed for low torque, low load situations, this bearing is also designed to be used in clean environments within an industrial environment.
While the term is often used interchangeably in some parts of the world, a pillow block bearing and a pillow block bearing are not the same device. Unlike the pillow block housing, the pillow block does not contain an internal bearing. The plummer block is a bearing housing designed to operate under higher loads and in corrosive industrial environments. A common feature of both bearing housings is that the housing is designed to be bolted to a stable surface through the use of bolt mounting holes cast to the base of the body assembly.
Used to support a rotating shaft, the pillow block bearing provides a stable and secure housing for the often expensive bearing. Special seals, located at the inlet and outlet of the bearing housing, protect the bearing from contaminants such as dirt and dust. A split housing is often used to facilitate bearing replacement and much easier shaft maintenance, while a non-split or one-piece housing is also used in some applications. In some applications, the non-split style of pillow blocks is used in areas that offer less access and lower shaft speeds. This is commonly due to needing less frequent maintenance with a slower rotating shaft bearing.
By using a ball bearing on a rotating shaft, the duty cycle of the shaft is greatly increased. The bearings prevent the shaft from deforming and oscillating during rotation, thus damaging any connective unions and weakening the very structure of the steel shaft. While the modern bearing housing uses a replaceable soft metal bearing shell within a cast iron or cast steel bearing housing, early versions of the device occasionally used a cast bearing within the housing. These types of bearings were often short lived and required frequent service.
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