Designfax – Technology for OEM Design Engineers was launched as an exclusive eMagazine in October 2005 following 25 successful years in print. Subscribers to the weekly publication (48 issues a year) are high-level OEM product design engineers and engineering managers who operate in a broad range of manufacturing industries, including automotive, aerospace, appliances, medical equipment, transportation, computer process controls, industrial equipment, and more. Primary content focuses on the latest exciting applications and products for Electrical/Electronic, Mechanical, Motion Control, Fluid Power, and Materials engineering, including articles on powerful software programs that serve as a primary engineering tool. Take a look at what Designfax offers and then subscribe.
| September 10, 2019 | Volume 15 Issue 34 |
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 | High Thermal Conductivity Ceramic
Insaco machines CVD Silicon Carbide, a super-hard ceramic that features very high thermal conductivity. Specified by customers for semiconductor, aerospace and medical applications. Since 1947, Insaco has been custom fabricating precision parts from all technical ceramics including sapphire and quartz. Engineers are available to discuss material features / limitations and feasibility of design concepts.
Learn more at www.insaco.com. |
 | Download our Smart Guide to Design for Manufacturability
Learn How to Reduce Time and Cost:
- Injection Molding Basics -- the basics of molds and the plastic injection molding process
- Best Practices -- learn the secrets to optimizing wall thickness, drafts, runners and gates, ribs and more
- Features to Incorporate -- discover the features that can be incorporated into your design to enhance your part, potentially saving time and money
- Avoiding Pitfalls -- following these best practices will help you avoid costly mistakes in your tool
Get your Smart Guide today. |
 | World's smallest autonomous racing drone proves to be a design challenge
Scientists at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands have created the world's smallest autonomous racing drone. The main challenge in making the 10-cm drone was using only a single, small camera and a highly restricted amount of processing. The main innovation was the design of robust, yet extremely efficient algorithms for motion prediction and computer vision.
Read the full article. |
 | First all-electric Porsches: Taycan Turbo and Turbo S
Move over, Tesla. The big kids are coming out to play. The world premiere of the first all-electric Porsches happened on Sept. 4, and the Taycan Turbo and Turbo S are, well, electrifying. The Turbo S (which doesn't have a turbocharger at all!) will do 0 to 60 in under 3 sec. There are lots of high-end features, with a focus on fast charging and sustainability too.
Read the full article. |
 | Most flexibility in the smallest amount of space
Titanium bellows are designed for applications that require a high-strength material, lightweight construction, and media compatibility. Whether invasive medical devices or aerospace critical equipment, BellowsTech has the welding expertise and the variety of sizes and configurations to ensure high-quality, repeatable results. With the flexibility to customize, BellowsTech can manufacture and weld custom fittings, flanges, and weld rings to its bellows to make customer installations easy and seamless.
Learn more. |
 | Fiber-reinforced composites for automotive design get a new spin
Thanks to their unidirectional carbon fiber optics and a high-quality surface offered by the polycarbonate matrix, Covestro-branded Maezio continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites bring a new tool to the automotive designer's toolbox for designing unique appearances. One case in point: pretty neat aluminum rims with carbon fiber blade inserts.
Read the full article. |
 | A perennial reader favorite: Copper foam
Copper foam from Goodfellow combines the outstanding thermal conductivity of copper with the structural benefits of a metal foam. These features are of particular interest to design engineers working in the fields of medical products and devices, defense systems and manned flight, power generation, and the manufacture of semiconductor devices. This product has a true skeletal structure with no voids, inclusions, or entrapments. A perennial Designfax favorite.
Learn more. |
 | 3D Printing: Breakaway support material for complex FDM parts
SABIC's AMS31F is a breakaway support filament for use with ULTEM AM9085F filament. The material maintains rigidity during printing and provides exceptional pliability during post processing to enable easier removal of structural supports at room temperature, which can reduce the time required to produce finished parts. Both AMS31F and ULTEM AM9085F filaments are compatible with Stratasys Fortus Classic printers and other industrial printers.
Learn more. |
 | Problem-Solving Tips: Screw tightening control methods
Although the main role of screws (bolts) is fastening objects using the axial force generated from tightening in actual work, there are many people who control the torque by tightening with a torque wrench, because it is difficult to directly monitor the axial force, and so guarantee the axial force that way. However, there are other methods of control for tightening screws (bolts), such as using "elastic region tightening" and "plastic region tightening."
Read this NBK technical blog. |
 | Onshape includes PennEngineering PEM hardware
Onshape, a next-gen cloud CAD and data management platform that speeds up product development, has partnered with PennEngineering, a global leader in the fastening industry, to include PEM hardware as a built-in standard for its 3D CAD models. Onshape will initially include PEM brand self-clinching nuts and self-clinching standoffs, and plans to add additional PennEngineering products to its Standard Content library in the future. PEM fasteners are typically used when a component must be readily replaced and where loose nuts and hardware aren't accessible during the final assembly process. By embedding a threaded nut into a piece of metal mechanically, it saves time and reduces post-manufacturing assembly processes. This efficiency is especially important when producing large quantities of parts.
Learn more. |
 | Replace traditional fasteners: 50+ retaining ring applications
The benefits of a Rotor Clip Retaining Ring are simple: The ring is made from less material than traditional fasteners, eliminating machined shoulders, threads, cover plates, and heat-formed studs -- so you save. Using a retaining ring to fasten your assembly instead of a traditional fastener not only reduces your costs, but also saves the environment. Fewer parts and less material means cost savings for you and less waste for the planet. This quality part offers lot traceability. Want to know what you can do with a Rotor Clip Retaining Ring?
View more than 50 application examples. |
 | Custom gearmotor lifts up to 10,000-lb boat
A boat lift manufacturer contacted the engineering team at Bodine Electric Co. to assist in the development of a new high load-capacity vertical boat lift. The application demanded that the gearmotor be suitable for long-term use in a harsh waterfront environment, deliver high starting and running torque, positive locking capability when not running, and be powered by the 24-VDC battery/solar cell systems included on the lifts. The gearmotor efficiency also had to be high to permit many lift cycles from the charged batteries.
Read the Bodine application blog. |
 | Fun! Harley-Davidson electric balance bikes for kids
Pedal bikes with chains are so 2018 for kids 3 to 7 these days. Well, that's not really true, but at least they have some neat alternatives. Harley-Davidson recently bought StaCyc, Inc., a maker of super-cool electric-powered two-wheelers for little ones. Revamped and rebranded as kiddie Harleys, you can now get a no-pedal electric-powered balance bike for that rider-in-training in your life. The IRONe12 (3 to 5 year olds, 12-in. tires) and IRONe16 (5 to 7 year olds, 16-in. tires) include quick-charge Li-ion batteries, ultra-low adjustable seat heights, twist throttles, tapered footrests, and lightweight aluminum frames. Progressive drive modes help with speed and control. Ride time is 30 to 60 min.
Learn more. |
| | Most popular last issue |
 | Cool Tools:
Fluke revamps industrial thermal camera line
Fluke has retooled its entire line of industrial thermal cameras with more premium features packed into every model, providing higher value for the customer and allowing the company to reduce the number of cameras it offers to simplify the buying process. From an industrial pocket thermal imager to a line-up of 640 x 480 resolution infrared cameras, these tools take professional inspections to the next level.
Read the full article. |
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| | Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action | New Spirawave® Wave Spring Series
Smalley's Nested Spirawave Wave Springs are now available as standards. These flat wire springs are coiled in parallel with multiple turns to produce high loads, and are ideal for applications requiring high forces in tight spaces. When replacing single-turn wave spring stacks with one nested spring, misalignment and uneven loading are eliminated, simplifying assembly. Standard or custom, Smalley will provide you the right part, in the right material, with No Tooling Charges™.
See them in action. |
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3D printer makes 19-ft-long metal parts!
Meet EBAM®, Sciaky's revolutionary large-scale metal 3D-printing technology. EBAM stands for Electron Beam Additive Manufacturing. Designed to additively manufacture large-scale parts and prototypes from high-value metals like titanium, tantalum, Inconel, niobium, and other alloys, the EBAM300 is the only 3D printer on the market that has produced a metal structure exceeding 10 ft in length -- it builds to 19 ft, in fact. It is also one of the fastest industrial 3D printers commercially available, with a deposition rate up to 25 lb per hour.
View the video. |
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What is electroforming? How does it actually work?
Electroplating may have been around for centuries, but only Servometer excels at manufacturing dynamic, convoluted bellows electroforms. Watch Servometer's five-step electroforming manufacturing process and learn how they are able to deliver electroformed components that feature extreme tolerances, complex geometries, lightweight construction, structural strength, and how they can be applied to a variety of applications.
Watch the video. |
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