This is truly a fascinating topic, and it has developed some great discussions over the years. Jens does indeed have the key knowledge on this somewhat mysterious feature, but pending his notes I wanted to say what I can recall.
This feature is of course entirely decorative, and Philip Tom suggested that the open channels holding these 'pearls' or bearings would ultimately compromise the integrity of the blade, therefore noted that these swords were probably parade or ceremonial in purpose.
The sound making effect is also likely associated with jingles and rattles as often seen in the votive weapons of temples and associated with religious ceremony, particularly in Buddhist and Hindu tradition. The pierced fretwork on the blade supports of Hindu khandas and firangi may represent the holes that were often on ceremonial weapons to attach jingles and various festoons also important as protection from evil and demons during these proceedings.
I recall some research years ago concerning a weight and sliding ball allegedly being part of a huge claymore acting to enhance the force of cut on the weapon. This clearly romanticized notion I found had appeared in some other 'heroic' literature, but research and discussions revealed no useful purpose for such a feature , in fact seemed quite the contrary, with a sliding weight most likely to pull the sword right out of the wielders hands. I think my first clue should have been the writers description of the weight being of ten pounds! on a claymore that would have been ludicrous!
While I found some reference to 'steel apples' on European blades (I believe that term and description was in a book on the Bowie knife, and fell along with the use of meteoric iron in fashioning 'the Iron Mistress') I have not ever discovered supported evidence of blades with sliding weights. This mysterious concept even appeared in the bizarre case of the 'Hollow Sword Company' where these blades allegedly contained mercury intended to move in the direction of the cut, within the blade for ostensibly the same purpose.
The closely connected spheres of Persia, India and China are the only soundly repesented instances I found of this feature, and its purpose seems to have been primarily apotropaic followed by traditional symbolism.
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