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.
| May 21, 2013 | Volume 09 Issue 19 |
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 | New Design Tips Volume Available
Protomold's monthly Design Tips are a popular and useful resource for designers and design engineers. We've compiled over 90 tips for designing injection molded parts in nine handy, downloadable volumes. You'll find useful tips and guidelines on everything from selecting materials to designing parts cost-effectively. In our new Volume Nine you will find topics including: designing clips, elimination of unnecessary material, text, crush ribs, bridging tooling, and injection molding gears.
Get your free tips today! |
 | Rogan's Liquid Silicone Rubber Molding Capabilities
In business since 1934, Rogan Corporation is a leader in the injection molding industry, producing thermoplastic and LSR (Liquid Silicone Rubber) components and assemblies. Manufacturing LSR components is a rapidly growing segment of the business. Rogan is one of a few select manufacturers that offer Bondable LSR overmolding. This process involves the injection molding of a bondable-grade silicone directly onto plastic or metal parts, creating a single integrated component. LSR's heat, chemical, shock, and vibration resistance along with its sound-dampening characteristics have made it an ideal fit for integral seals and gaskets, waterproofing complex geometries and electronic interconnects, integral membranes, diaphragms, valves, and switch covers. (Picture has .008" thick fins bonded to a plastic tube.)
Our state-of-the-art Class 100,000 clean room enables Rogan to meet the increasing demand for LSR molding and assembly for the medical device market. |
 | Virginia Tech announces 2013 football helmet ratings
Virginia Tech has released the results of its 2013 adult football helmet ratings, designed to identify differences between the abilities of helmets to reduce the risk of concussion. The ratings program was created in 2011 based on research that included analysis of over 2 million head impacts recorded in high school and collegiate football games. The process used for evaluating helmets involves mapping the on-field exposure to laboratory tests.
Read the full article. |
 | Robotic insects make first controlled flight
Inspired by the biology of a fly, with submillimeter-scale anatomy and two wafer-thin wings that flap almost invisibly 120 times per second, Harvard researchers have demonstrated the first vertical takeoff, hovering, and steering of a truly insect-size robot. The RoboBee, an aspiration for the researchers for years, represents the absolute cutting edge of micromanufacturing and control systems.
Read the full article. |
 | Wheels:
Big-truck steering without strain or pain
Just a couple of months after the launch of the new FH tractor truck series, Volvo Trucks is presenting yet another world-class technical innovation. Volvo Dynamic Steering combines conventional hydraulic power steering with an electronically regulated electric motor fitted to the steering gear.
Read the full article. |
 | Mike Likes:
Your chance to hang with NASA engineers, courtesy of Littlefuse
Circuit-protection specialist Littelfuse has just announced its 2013 Speed2Design promotion, where 20 lucky engineers will get the opportunity to go behind the scenes to spend time with NASA engineers at two premiere NASA facilities. Littelfuse will host Speed2Design TechTalk events at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA, on August 15 and Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, on October 24. Over the next few months, Littelfuse will randomly select 10 winners from those who enter the promotion to participate in each Speed2Design event, providing a travel voucher, lodging, and event expenses.
Click here to learn more. |
 | Silicone potting compound with UL 94 VO rating
Henkel Corporation has introduced Loctite SI 5640, a two-part, self-leveling silicone potting compound designed for electrical and electronic potting applications that require UL 94 VO compliance. Designed to ensure the integrity of electrical components by sealing against corrosion and outdoor contaminants, this low-viscosity, flame-retardant silicone offers strong adhesion to plastics and resists 85C/85 percent RH aging conditions. Gelling in just 5 min., the potting compound delivers high throughput in automated processes that require fast cure times. Designed for use on outdoor electrical devices such as electrical meters, signage/displays, speakers, HVAC components, appliances, solar panels/wiring, wind turbines, and LED lighting.
Click here to learn more. |
 | Lever-actuated shaft collars
An expanded line of lever-actuated shaft collars that can be opened, moved, and re-clamped by hand for use in larger, non-rotary applications has just been introduced by Stafford Manufacturing. Staff-Lok Shaft Collars feature an integral hinge with a conformal cam lever for clamping, and a knurled nut for adjusting the clamping preset, which makes it easy to move by lifting the lever, moving the collar, and clamping it by hand. Eliminating the need for tools, this line of lever-actuated collars has been expanded to include larger body (up to 4 1/4 in. OD) and bore sizes.
Click to learn more. |
 | High-torque electric motor for trucks and buses
UQM Technologies has added a new system in its growing line of production-ready, automotive-validated electric propulsion systems for vehicles. The UQM PowerPhase HD 950T provides 950 Nm of torque and is designed for heavier commercial trucks and buses that require higher torque. This is an additional offering to the PowerPhase HD 220 announced last year, giving customers choices of various levels of torque and horsepower to meet their requirements.
Click here to learn more. |
 | Low-cost TPE grades for all types of nylon overmolding
A newly formulated TPE (thermoplastic elastomer) developed by STAR Thermoplastic Alloys & Rubbers expressly for overmolding onto Nylon 6,6 claims savings to be as much as 70 to 80 cents per pound over competitive materials. This is the first step by STAR to offer a universal series of low-cost TPE grades for all types of nylon overmolding. With hardness ranges from 50 to 80 Shore A, applications for STAR Nylon grade 66 OM TPE are targeted for products where an extra strong hard base material and a soft-touch overmolded outer surface are required, such as tool handles, casings for enclosures, and bike and other recreational equipment grips.
Click here to learn more. |
| | Most popular last issue |
 | Wheels:
World's smallest production V8 optimized with precision honing
Gary Conley's 30-year quest to manufacture a true production V8 engine in quarter-scale almost went up in smoke twice: once in 2001 when a foundry fire claimed all his critical molds, and later when oil smoke proved a stubborn problem during run-offs of the engine. Conley overcame the first setback with years of sheer determination. The second issue required a Sunnen MB 1660 honing machine, abrasives, and some Sunnen know-how.
Read the full article. |
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| | Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action |
Thinnest electro-mechanical actuators put some lift in keystrokes
The thin-film polymer actuators from startup Strategic Polymers may give rise to more tactile keyboard strokes on smartphones, tablets, and other HMI screens, and they can even be used as speakers. The highly flexible actuators can bend 180 degrees and offer a unique combination of high strain and high mechanical modulus brought about by the high electrostrictive response of the electro-mechanical polymer (EMP) material.
View the video. |
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