Typically the bellows are made from stainless steel which is an excellent transmitter of torque. The coupling is made of aluminum which makes these devices exceptionally lightweight and durable. Bronze is also sometimes used. The walls are thin enough to allow the coupling to flex while remaining relatively rigid. Read More…
Leading Manufacturers
DieQua Corporation
Bloomingdale, IL | 630-980-1133Our shaft couplings are the best around! Not only do we provide you with exceptional levels of customer service but we also provide you with manufacturing and a repair service that you can count on. We are also capable of providing you with special designs. That’s right! Our design team will work closely with you in order to ensure that you are getting the product that will fit your specific requirements perfectly! Call or email us today for more information!
Ruland Manufacturing Company, Inc.
Marlborough, MA | 800-225-4234Ruland’s carefully made shaft collars, rigid shaft couplings & zero backlash motion control flexible shaft couplings, including beam, Oldham & bellows couplings, are available in both inch & full-metric dimensions. Our line has expanded to include metric shaft collars, metric rigid couplings & step bore rigid couplings. For 70 years, we have supplied custom-made products to meet special needs.
Hersey Clutch Company
Orleans, MA | 508-525-2533Hersey Clutch has been in business since 1963. With that kind of background and experience we have becomes leaders in application engineering. We specialize in finding solutions to our customer's problems regarding industrial power transmissions, brakes, clutches, couplings, universal joints, gearboxes, speed drives, friction material, crane electrification and more. Let us help you today!
US Digital
Vancouver, WA | 800-736-0194US Digital designs and manufactures flexible shaft couplings for motion control, automation and robotics. We ship standard products directly to domestic and international customers. We also offer optical encoders, inclinometers and switching power supplies plus other products.
Ringfeder Power Transmission
Westwood, NJ | 888-746-4333Ringfeder is a component and system provider with a global presence. Serving all industries including packaging, automation, energy, mining and transportation and defense. Ringfeder offers premium products including locking devices, shaft couplings and dampening technologies. Included in the coupling line are torsionally rigid disk, elastomeric and backlash-free servo-insert and metal bellows couplings.
Bellows Couplings - Helical Products Company, Inc.Bellows couplings are cylindrical with flexible rings acting as the coupling. On either side are solid metal ends that connect to shafts or other components. They are typically quite short in length and range in diameter size from 1/8 inch to a full inch; custom or specialty sizes are available but do not greatly vary in construction or function. Like shaftwheel couplings, they are constructed to reduce vibration when used in applications with high rotations per minute (rpm). Mostly used in industrial machinery, bellows couplings create a quiet, smooth operation in systems with high levels of torsional integrity like encoder drives, closed loop servo systems, motion control instrumentation, robotics, CNC machine tools and precision positioning.
Bellows Couplings - Helical Products Company, Inc.Mechanical flexible couplings are made of loose fitting parts that move in a sliding and rolling manner; bellows couplings fit this category because they have a coil that allows them to move. Unlike other mechanical flexible shaft couplings, these generally need no lubrication. They offer a near-infinite life span and are virtually maintenance free. Their connection is hidden within the fit-length of the hub, enabling exact transmission of angular motion and torque.
Bellows couplings operate at high speeds anywhere from 12,000 to 32,000 rpm and absorb eccentricity and angularity. They are oil- and chemical-resistant, have thin and lightweight yet strong walls and offer easy and simple mounting and dismounting. Bellows couplings exhibit high torsional stiffness and zero backlash. The most common methods of construction for flexible couplings such as these include electroforming, chemical deposition, mechanical forming and welding.
Electroformed bellows couplings are made by adding layers of metal on a mandrel until the desired thickness is reached and the mandrel is melted away to leave behind the bellows. Chemical deposition is a similar method except that the materials are added by electrodeposition. Mechanical forming includes roll-forming or extrusion. Welded bellows couplings are made by welding a series of rings or washers on both their inside and outside.