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Human Power and Propulsion

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The concept of using ball bearings to reduce friction in rotating components was not new. The sketch by Leonardo da Vinci (1452 to 1519) shows the cup-cone concept as used to provide a play-free pivot for a shaft. The diagram of a ball race (below) is at a different scale. This unit, fabricated in 1780, provided reduced friction for the rotating sail-house on a windmill. The balls are of cast iron, 57 mm in diameter, and 40 were used in the race which had an outside diameter of 860 mm.

The advent of the bicycle in the late 1800's and its demand for low friction bearings introduced mass-production techniques to the manufacture of small ball bearings.

From: Rolling Bearings and their contribution to the Progress of Technology,"
FAG Kugelfischer Georg Schafer KGaA, (1986)