*




Tuesday, September 1, 2015

   Smallest Steel Ball Bearing: Minebea breaks Guinness World Records record

TOKYO, Japan -- Minebea Co. , Ltd. announced today that its steel ball bearing was awarded the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title of smallest commercially available steel ball bearing on August 28, when a representative from Guinness World Records Ltd. 'certified' its outer diameter at just 1.4978mm,
according to the World Record Academy .
A ball bearing with 1.5mm in outer diameter (with a mechanical pencil).
  Photo: A ball bearing with 1.5mm in outer diameter (with a mechanical pencil). ( enlarge photo )

The Guinness World Records' record for the smallest radio controlled car is a 25 mm long model (1/90 perfect scale) of a Mercedes Benz Smart car developed by Michihiro Hino, Tokyo, Japan in 2002. Specification: -RC equipment: 45MHz belt PSD system Toy-RC 2ch -Battery:Micro-nickel hydrogen rechargeable battery. -By continuation operation time: full charge,it is about 15 minutes.

  Guinness World Records also recognized the world record for the smallest remote-controlled model helicopter; it is the Nano Falcon XS made by Silverlit Toys Manufactory Ltd. (China) which measures 5.85 cm (2.30 in) long, 4.55 cm (1.79 in) high, 1.73 cm (0.68 in) wide and has a rotor size of 5.91 cm (2.33 in).

Minebea has long sought to demonstrate its ability to produce the tiniest mass-produced bearing in the world. In 2009, it successfully broke the 2mm barrier to pave the way for this ultra-small ball bearing.

   The dimensions of this record-breaking bearing are 1.5mm in external diameter, 0.5mm in inner diameter, and 0.65mm in width, with six steel balls and supporting retainers. Despite its compactness, the precision complies with the JIS code.
    The company remains committed to producing new technologies that leverage its precision component expertise to benefit society.

    Yoshihisa Kainuma, Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer of Minebea , said: "We are really delighted to learn that our miniature ball bearing, a cornerstone of Minebea, was 'certified' as the world's smallest mass-produced steel ball bearing by GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS. This achievement can be attributed to the unfailing efforts of our engineers and all others involved in the product.
    Minebea's mission statement—Passion to Exceed Precision—entails two meanings: a passion for achieving further precision and another passion for embarking toward uncharted territories. This award embodies the former passion. We will redouble efforts to create even more products that enrich people's lives."

    Ikuko Koyama from the Karuizawa plant said: "The ball bearing's 1.5mm external diameter was achieved thanks to our team's efforts throughout the production process. I am really excited that bearings, which are often overlooked, are getting their chance in the spotlight.
   We boldly attempted to miniaturize bearings to a size never before seen and were able to bring them to market. It's made me realize that hard work pays off and there is nothing that cannot be achieved."

    The record-breaking ball bearings are used in the tourbillon mechanism in the highest-grade mechanical watches in Japan. The design, development and manufacture of tourbillon mechanisms are considered one of the most difficult parts of watchmaking.
    Their delicate axels were traditionally supported by jewels such as ruby, but Minebea 's miniature ball bearings are small enough to be used for an application considered epoch-making among the independent watchmakers in Switzerland. This has opened up a new market for the company, with the potential for wider use and more applications.

    The Takumi Nippon Project is supported by Guinness World Records Japan K.K. to stimulate and incentivise engineers, researchers and craftspeople in Japan. It recognizes their insatiable intellectual curiosity and challenging spirit and works to communicate it to the world. Minebea's ball bearing is the first record-breaker to be recognized by the project for demonstrating Japan's superior industrial technologies to the world.

     Related world records:  
Smallest Working Drill: New Zealand Man sets world record (VIDEO)

Smallest Laptop Charger: Zolt Laptop Charger Plus breaks Guinness World Records' record (VIDEO)

Smallest steam engine: German scientists set world record

Smallest Christmas card: University of Glasgow

Smallest 1080p HD image sensor: OmniVision

Smallest Telemedicine Microscope: CNSI

Smallest Digital Camcorder: Muvi Atom

Smallest satelitte messenger - SPOT

Smallest humanoid robot - BeRobot


View Site in Mobile | Classic
Share by: