Linear rolling guides, used in production machines for the realisation of linear motion, demand in industrial practice early damage identification to prevent production outages and losses. Therefore, the article aims for early damage diagnostics that use the principle of a load-free diagnostic part integrated into the carriage of the linear rolling guide. This principle was employed for developing an innovative method of damage identification to a guiding profile or rolling elements. The proposed innovative method is based on analysing vibration acceleration measured on the diagnostic part in the context of carriage position. In addition, a unique connection of an acceleration sensor to the diagnostic part through a mechanical component with defined parameters of stiffness and mass was designed. The innovative method was verified by laboratory testing on a designed functional sample of the diagnostic system. The computed reliability of the proposed diagnostic method reached 98%.

On the basis of an analysis of the number of goods that are transported and handled in maritime transport, the ports for cargo ships may be considered as places with concentrated emissions. Reducing the emissions in ports can be achieved by shortening the stay times of cargo ships. The time that ships spend in ports may be reduced to the time that is required for the effective handling of the goods. One of the solutions for effective handling is using equipment with linear rolling systems. To prevent the idle time of cargo ships and the unnecessary increment of emissions in ports because of the possible failure of the linear rolling systems, their reliability and failure prediction are greatly required. Unfortunately, the common diagnostic systems of linear rolling systems in transportation practice still fail in particular cases of great external loads. Therefore, an original solution of the diagnostic system was designed on the basis of a load-free diagnostic part with a vibration sensor that is integrated into a carriage of the linear rolling system. A functional sample of the diagnostics was produced, and the vibrations that were measured on a loaded carriage and on the diagnostic part were compared in laboratory conditions under significant external loads. Encouraging results were reached by a time-domain analysis of the measured data. On the diagnostic part, the damage appeared clearly, while, on the loaded carriage, there were no observable signs of damage.

Linear rolling guides are used for realizing a translational motion of mechanical elements or assemblies e.g. in industrial robots, handling or CNC machines. Their reliability is highly desirable to meet the requirements of Industry 4.0, and hence the accurate load identification of linear guides...

Linear rolling systems are frequently used in industrial practice for the linear motion of machine parts or mechanical assemblies. Their reliability and prediction of possible failures are, during a production process, highly required to preve...