How Do Air-Cushioned Ball’s Work?

A ball is simply a round figure with many different purposes. It’s used in many ball sports, in which the sport of the ball follows precisely the movement of its own ball as it’s hit, thrown by players. Balls can even be employed for simple activities, like juggling or catch. And yet, ball sports are among the oldest sports there is, dating all the way back to earliest ball games ever played.

Because of this history, ball sports have a rich tradition of technological innovation. The first ball was simply a spherical object, much like a bowling ball, or a volleyball, which rolled across the field in a circular motion. However, over time, ball manufacturers noticed that the circular motion of rolling balls was extremely boring, and so they invented friction bearings, which provide smooth but friction-free rolling. This new concept of ball movement was later on incorporated in other products and became the first modern ball.

Friction bearings take ball play to a higher level by providing more complex dynamics to balls, especially in their sphere of influence. In essence, friction provides balls with a certain amount of “stickiness” as they roll along the surface of a fluid. This stickiness makes balls feel more responsive, controllable and predictable. Thus, ball games such as tennis, table tennis, and racquet ball have developed a great deal as a result of adding friction to their ball plays. Even golf has added some of these features by making its clubs more ball friendly, by reducing the number of curves in the shaft and more recently by introducing a ball bearing that generating clubhead speed in a smoother fashion.

The art of balling continues to evolve with the use of new materials. New materials enable manufacturers to make balls with more rigidity, which in turn, enables manufacturers to create more spherical balls that produce more controlled flight characteristics. New materials such as PVC and polycarbonate have revolutionized the concept of ball creation. PVC and polycarbonate are highly conductive and can support extreme temperatures and high pressures. They are also lightweight and have very little compressive strength.

A bearing, by definition, is an inner ring, a shaft, or a cage used for resisting a force that acts between two points. Bearing technology, however, has greatly improved over the years. Ball bearings are usually made from steel, cast iron or a combination of all three. Steel ball bearings are known for their high compressive strength and ability to meet high thrust loads. Cast iron bearings are known for their high temperature abilities and corrosion resistance.

Another variation of balls is the high-performance or high-energy (HE) balls. High energy balls fly straighter and further than their lower energy counterparts. Because they are so far off the ground, they are called by different names such as super-high-energy (SHE) and high-energy rubber balls. The best way to describe them is as giant tooth balls. These balls travel faster than high energy balls but, because of their incredible drag, tend to slow down as they travel even further. This type of ball is best suited for use with air-cooled, oil-lubricated machines that run at higher RPMs.