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What can replace a coil spring? You've got better options!

Traditional coil springs can limit mechanical designs. Wave springs offer a space-saving alternative, providing equivalent force and deflection in up to half the operating height while reducing assembly size and weight. There are four wave spring types that can replace a coil spring. Learn how each variant delivers unique performance capabilities to optimize space, efficiency, and reliability.
Read this informative NEW Smalley technical article.

Next-gen metal bonding: 3M Scotch-Weld 8500 Series

Replace traditional fasteners and streamline assembly with 3M Scotch-Weld Acrylic Adhesive DP8507NS. Engineered for direct bonding to bare or slightly oily metals with minimal surface prep, this high-performance adhesive withstands paint bake cycles up to 200 C (392 F), resists corrosion, and holds strong down to -40 C. Upgrade durability, aesthetics, and design flexibility. Bonds many plastics too!
View the video.

3 things you need to get right when 3D printing gears

When businesses decide to 3D print their own gears, they can reduce lead times and costs associated with replacements, prototypes, and small-batch production runs significantly. According to the experts at igus, however, "achieving industrial-grade reliability requires more than just a digital file; there are several fundamental technical basics you must master first to ensure your gears can withstand the rigors of real-world use."
Read this informative igus tech tip.

DURACON polymer with 30% recycled content

Daicel Corporation's High Performance Polymers SBU has launched four new DURACON^® POM grades featuring 30% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content. Unveiled at CHINAPLAS 2026, the lineup includes Standard, Low VOC, Sliding, and Tough options. Leveraging advanced compounding expertise, Daicel maintains quality and mechanical performance comparable to standard virgin resin grades for demanding global industrial and automotive components.
Learn more.

Renishaw unveils revolutionary LIBERTAS™ 3DP tech

Renishaw's new LIBERTAS software technology addresses two of the most persistent challenges in metal AM: poor downskin surface finish and the need for support structures. Users have greater freedom to manufacture complex geometries.
Read the full article.

Innovate like a PRO: Protolabs' new AI-enabled manufacturing platform

ProDesk by Protolabs accelerates innovation for product development and procurement teams. It features real-time, AI-powered quoting with design for manufacturability (DFM) analysis across injection molding, CNC machining, and 3D printing. The platform enables seamless team collaboration and customizes quotes with instant feedback on materials, lead times, secondary operations, and finishes prior to production.
Learn more.

SDP/SI Shaftloc Fastening System

Shaftloc is a unique, reusable locking device for securely mounting mechanical components like gears and sprockets onto shafts without the need for keyways, set screws, or adhesives. Its simple, two-piece design offers a cost-effective alternative to traditional fasteners, providing high clamping force and vibration resistance. Installed with standard tools, Shaftloc is perfect for designers seeking flexible, hubless mounting solutions. Available in four styles.
Learn more from SDP/SI.

How Autodesk Research uses Markforged 3D printing

In advanced R&D, "good enough" doesn't cut it. To pioneer its Performance-Aided Design (PAD) workflow, Autodesk Research partnered with Markforged to close the gap between digital simulation and reality. Using sensors and digital twins, PAD replaces delayed field reports with real-time feedback. To test this high-stakes system, Autodesk built massive UAV platforms -- including a 300-lb aircraft. Facing extreme dynamic loads and weather, these drones provide the ultimate torture test for rapid design iteration.
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Top Tech Tip: How do you 3D print STL files?

Learn the basics of 3D printing STL files -- the files that serve as the digital foundation for 3D printing -- and a whole lot more from the experts at Xometry. These files have advantages, of course, but did you know they have disadvantages too? Also learn about STL tools and programs, and how to reduce file size or even repair a file you are having trouble with.
Read the Xometry article.

When metals can't survive: Machined ceramics as an alternative

Technical Ceramics are so hard and wear resistant that they cannot be machined with conventional tools -- but they can outlast and outperform other materials in demanding or harsh applications. INSACO's proprietary diamond grinding process and specialized techniques developed over many decades allow the company to produce and document parts to exacting specifications consistently. Learn all about the alternatives you have when metals just can't take it.
Read the INSACO article.

Radio Flyer cuts ebike prototype time radically with Fuse X1 large-format SLS 3D printer

Radio Flyer cut prototype lead times for its Flyer Loop cargo ebike frame from two months to two days using Formlabs' new Fuse X1 SLS large-format 3D printer. "We can now print an entire Flyer Loop cargo ebike overnight and be gluing it together the next day," said Agostino LoBello, product development engineer at Radio Flyer. "I can iterate three times as often with nine times less labor." The Fuse X1 delivers production-quality parts with 50% lower costs and triple the throughput of comparable industrial systems, featuring automated powder handling and a compact, easy-to-install design. [Credit: Image courtesy of Formlabs]
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Compact industrial sand 3D printer

ExOne has launched the S-Print Pro, a compact industrial sand 3D printer that brings production-grade binder jetting to smaller foundries, pattern shops, and print service providers. Aimed at businesses competing on cost and flexibility, it handles low-volume casting, spare parts, and custom components. The system processes furan binder with silica sand, CeraBeads, or silicon carbide.
Learn more about this capable machine.

Engineer's Toolbox: How to pin a shaft and hub assembly properly

One of the primary benefits of using a coiled spring pin to affix a hub or gear to a shaft is the coiled pin's ability to prevent hole damage. Another is the coiled pin absorbs wider hole tolerances than any other press-fit pin. This translates to lower total manufacturing costs of the assembly. However, there are a few design guidelines that must be adhered to in order to achieve the maximum strength of the pinned system and prevent damage to the assembly.
Read this very informative SPIROL article.

Get reliable labeling done right

Videojet Technologies has released the Videojet 9310 label applicator, designed to simplify everyday labeling on rigid and flexible packaging. Using Intelligent Motion technology, it digitally controls label tension and alignment to ensure consistent placement with minimal manual adjustments. The system features a simple label path, an intuitive touchscreen, and flexible mounting options to reduce downtime and keep production moving.
Learn more.

Your phone is now your smartest hydraulic tool

Commissioning a proportional valve traditionally requires cables, laptops, and complex software. The new Bosch Rexroth 4WRAE valve changes that. Featuring integrated digital electronics and Bluetooth connectivity, it pairs with the "easy2connect" app. Technicians can now visualize performance, adjust settings, diagnose errors, and force solenoids directly from their phones, simplifying setup for IO-Link or analog systems.
Learn more.

Researchers use acoustic voxels to embed sound with data

Columbia Engineering researchers, working with colleagues at Disney Research and MIT, have developed a new method to control sound waves using a computational approach to inversely design acoustic filters that can fit within an arbitrary 3D shape while achieving target sound-filtering properties.

Led by Computer Science Professor Changxi Zheng, the team designed acoustic voxels -- small, hollow, cube-shaped chambers through which sound enters and exits -- as a modular system. Like Legos, the voxels can be connected to form an infinitely adjustable, complex structure. Because of their internal chambers, they can modify the acoustic filtering property of the structure; changing their number and size or how they connect alters the acoustic result.

Acoustic Tagging. By optimizing the structure of acoustic voxels, Columbia Engineering researchers can control the acoustic response of an object when it is tapped and thereby tag the object acoustically. Given three objects with identical shapes, they can use a smartphone to read the acoustic tags in real time by recording and analyzing the tapping sound and thereby identify each object. [Credit: Changxi Zheng/Columbia Engineering]

 

 

 

 

"In the past, people have explored computational design of specific products, like a certain type of muffler or a particular shape of trumpet," says Zheng, whose team presented their paper, "Acoustic Voxels: Computational Optimization of Modular Acoustic Filters," at SIGGRAPH 2016 on July 27. "The general approach to manipulating sound waves has been to computationally design chamber shapes. Our algorithm enables new designs of noise mufflers, hearing aids, wind instruments, and more -- we can now make them in any shape we want, even a 3D-printed toy hippopotamus that sounds like a trumpet."

He adds, "We also have proposed a very intriguing new way to use acoustic filters: We can use our acoustic voxels as acoustic tags, unique to each piece we 3D print, and encode information in them. This is similar to QR codes or RFIDs, and opens the door to encoding product and copyright information in 3D printing."

Last year, Zheng's team used computational methods to design and 3D-print a zoolophone, a xylophone-type instrument with keys in the shape of zoo animals. The zoolophone represented fundamental research into vibrational sound control, leveraging the complex relationships between an object's geometry and the surface vibrational sounds it produces when struck.

In this new study, Zheng's team came up with a computational approach that would enable better design for manipulating acoustic propagation of many products, such as automobile mufflers and instruments.

"With 3D printers today, geometric complexity is no longer a barrier. Even complex shapes can be fabricated with very little effort," Zheng notes. "So the question is: Can we use complex shapes to improve acoustic properties of products?"

They proposed using acoustic voxels, single, modular acoustic filter shapes, whose acoustic filtering behavior can be precomputed using numerical simulation. They developed a new algorithm that allowed them to assemble the acoustic voxels -- like Lego bricks -- into complex structures to produce the targeted acoustic filtering properties.

The creation of acoustic voxels has also led Zheng's team in a completely new direction: acoustic tagging to uniquely identify a 3D-printed object and acoustic encoding to implant information (like a copyright) into an object's very form.

Acoustic filters work by manipulating sound waves; acoustic voxels have given the team a way to exactly control that manipulation.

A unique voxel assembly produces a unique acoustic signature. Two objects may have the exact same exterior appearance, but if their hollow interiors contain different voxel assemblies, each object, when filtering a sound wave, produces a sound unique to that object. The researchers recorded the sound made by objects with different voxel assemblies and used an iPhone app they created to accurately identify each object.

Acoustic tagging could be a valuable complement to QR codes and RFID tags, both of which entail operations entirely separate from manufacturing. If fabricators can build ID information directly into the object, they will save the time, effort, and expense of individually labeling parts, especially useful when building larger structures from many separate pieces. Acoustic tagging could also encode copyrighted originals, such as 3D-printed figures from individual artists like Jeff Koons or companies like Disney or Marvel.

Zheng's current acoustic voxels project is for fabricating sizable objects producing audible sounds, and his team has been able to demonstrate how information and identification can be embedded into the acoustics of an object, requiring no additional procedures or labor after fabrication. They are looking ahead to how they might use acoustic voxels to computationally control ultrasound waves.

Says Zheng, "We are investigating some of the intriguing possibilities of ultrasonic manipulation, such as cloaking, where sound propagation can be distorted to hide objects from sound waves. This could lead to new designs of sonar systems or underwater communication systems. It's an exciting area to explore."

The work was funded in part by the National Science Foundation and Adobe.

Source: Columbia Engineering

Published August 2016

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