What type of bearing has components designed to minimize friction?

The type of bearing designed specifically to minimize friction is the anti-friction bearing. These bearings incorporate rolling elements, such as balls or rollers, which create a reduced contact area between the moving parts. This rolling action significantly lowers the friction that occurs when components move against one another compared to sliding surfaces typically found in other types of bearings.

Anti-friction bearings are widely used in applications where smooth operation is essential, such as in electric motors, turbines, and various machinery components. The design of these bearings maximizes efficiency and decreases wear over time, which is critical in power transmission systems, allowing them to operate at optimal levels with less energy loss.

In contrast, spherical bearings, friction bearings, and thrust bearings serve different purposes or have designs that do not particularly focus on minimizing friction to the same degree as anti-friction bearings. Spherical bearings are more about accommodating misalignment, friction bearings rely on sliding contact, and thrust bearings are designed to support axial loads but do not inherently reduce friction as effectively as anti-friction types.