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hyperMILL 2024 CAD/CAM software suite

OPEN MIND Technologies has introduced its latest hyperMILL 2024 CAD/CAM software suite, which includes a range of powerful enhancements to its core toolpath capabilities, as well as new functionality for increased NC programming efficiency in applications ranging from 2.5D machining to 5-axis milling. New and enhanced capabilities include: Optimized Deep Hole Drilling, a new algorithm for 3- and 5-axis Rest Machining, an enhanced path layout for the 3D Plane Machining cycle, better error detection, and much more.
Learn more.

One-part epoxy changes from red to clear under UV

Master Bond UV15RCL is a low-viscosity, cationic-type UV-curing system with a special color-changing feature. The red material changes to clear once exposed to UV light, indicating that there is UV light access across the adhesive material. Although this change in color from red to clear does not indicate a full cure, it does confirm that the UV light has reached the polymer. This epoxy is an excellent electrical insulator. UV15RCL adheres well to metals, glass, ceramics, and many plastics, including acrylics and polycarbonates.
Learn more.

SPIROL Press-N-Lok™ Pin for plastic housings

The Press-N-Lok™ Pin was designed to permanently retain two plastic components to each other. As the pin is inserted, the plastic backfills into the area around the two opposing barbs, resulting in maximum retention. Assembly time is quicker, and it requires lower assembly equipment costs compared to screws and adhesives -- just Press-N-Lok™!
Learn more about the new Press-N-Lok™ Pin.

Why hybrid bearings are becoming the new industry standard

A combination of steel outer and inner rings with ceramic balls or rollers is giving hybrid bearings unique properties, making them suitable for use in a wide range of modern applications. SKF hybrid bearings make use of silicon nitride (twice as hard as bearing steel) rolling elements and are available as ball bearings, cylindrical roller bearings, and in custom designs. From electric erosion prevention to friction reduction and extended maintenance intervals, learn all about next-gen hybrid bearings.
Read the SKF technical article.

3M and Ansys train engineers on simulating adhesives

Ansys and 3M have created an advanced simulation training program enabling engineers to enhance the design and sustainability of their products when using tapes and adhesives as part of the design. Simulation enables engineers to validate engineering decisions when analyzing advanced polymeric materials -- especially when bonding components made of different materials. Understand the behavior of adhesives under real-world conditions for accurate modeling and design.
Read this informative Ansys blog.

New FATH T-slotted rail components in black from AutomationDirect

Automation-Direct has added a wide assortment of black-colored FATH T-slotted hardware components to match their SureFrame black anodized T-slotted rails, including: cube connectors (2D and 3D) and angle connectors, joining plates of many types, brackets, and pivot joints. Also included are foot consoles, linear bearings in silver and black, cam lever brakes, and L-handle brakes. FATH T-slotted hardware components are easy to install, allow for numerous T-slotted structure configurations, and have a 1-year warranty against defects.
Learn more.

Weird stuff: Moon dust simulant for 3D printing

Crafted from a lunar regolith simulant, Basalt Moon Dust Filamet™ (not a typo) available from The Virtual Foundry closely mirrors the makeup of lunar regolith found in mare regions of the Moon. It enables users with standard fused filament fabrication (FFF) 3D printers to print with unparalleled realism. Try out your ideas before you go for that big space contract, or help your kid get an A on that special science project.
Learn more.

Break the mold with custom injection molding by Rogan

With 90 years of industry experience, Rogan Corporation possesses the expertise to deliver custom injection molding solutions that set businesses apart. As a low-cost, high-volume solution, injection molding is the most widely used plastics manufacturing process. Rogan processes include single-shot, two-shot, overmolding, and assembly. Elevate your parts with secondary operations: drilling and tapping, hot stamping, special finishes, punch press, gluing, painting, and more.
Learn more.

World's first current-carrying fastening technology

PEM^® eConnect™ current-carrying pins from Penn-Engineering provide superior electrical connections in applications that demand high performance from internal components, such as automotive electronics. This first-to-market tech provides repeatable, consistent electrical joints and superior installation unmatched by traditional fastening methods. Features include quick and secure automated installation, no hot spots or poor conductivity, and captivation options that include self-clinching and broaching styles.
Learn more about eConnect pins.

New interactive digital catalog from EXAIR

EXAIR's latest catalog offers readers an incredible source of innovative solutions for common industrial problems like conveying, cooling, cleaning, blowoff, drying, coating, and static buildup. This fully digital and interactive version of Catalog 35 is designed for easy browsing and added accessibility. Customers can view, download, print, and save either the full catalog or specific pages and sections. EXAIR products are designed to conserve compressed air and increase personnel safety in the process. Loaded with useful information.
Check out EXAIR's online catalog.

5 cost-saving design tips for CNC machining

Make sure your parts meet expectations the first time around. Xometry's director of application engineering, Greg Paulsen, presents five expert tips for cutting costs when designing custom CNC machined parts. This video covers corners and radii, designing for deep pockets, thread depths, thin walls, and more. Always excellent info from Paulsen at Xometry.
View the video.

What can you secure with a retaining ring? 20 examples

From the watch dial on your wrist to a wind turbine, no application is too small or too big for a Smalley retaining ring to secure. Light to heavy-duty loads? Carbon steel to exotic materials? No problem. See how retaining rings are used in slip clutches, bike locks, hip replacements, and even the Louvre Pyramid.
See the Smalley design applications.

Load fasteners with integrated RFID

A crane, rope, or chain may be required when something needs lifting -- plus anchoring points on the load. JW Winco offers a wide range of solutions to fasten the load securely, including: lifting eye bolts and rings (with or without rotation), eye rings with ball bearings, threaded lifting pins, shackles, lifting points for welding, and more. Some, such as the GN 581 Safety Swivel Lifting Eye Bolts, even have integrated RFID tags to clearly identify specific lifting points during wear and safety inspections and manage them digitally and without system interruption.
Learn more.

Couplings solve misalignments more precisely with targeted center designs

ALS Couplings from Miki Pulley feature a simplistic, three-piece construction and are available in three different types for more precisely handling parallel, angular, or axial misalignment applications. The key feature of this coupling design is its center element. Each of the three models has a center member that has a unique and durable material and shape. Also called a "spider," the center is designed to address and resolve the type of misalignment targeted. Ideal for unidirectional continuous movement or rapid bidirectional motion.
Learn more.

What is 3D-MID? Molded parts with integrated electronics from HARTING

3D-MID (three-dimensional mechatronic integrated devices) technology combines electronic and mechanical functionalities into a single, 3D component. It replaces the traditional printed circuit board and opens up many new opportunities. It takes injection-molded parts and uses laser-direct structuring to etch areas of conductor structures, which are filled with a copper plating process to create very precise electronic circuits. HARTING, the technology's developer, says it's "Like a PCB, but 3D." Tons of possibilities.
View the video.

Crash-test dummies get real, complete with paunches and showing some age

Large array of crash test dummies at Humanetics, representing different age group and body size demographics, including the latest obese (red) and elderly (yellow) models. [Image: Humanetics]

 

 

 

 

By Shantell M. Kirkendoll, University of Michigan

As the American population gets older and fatter, the crash-test dummies used to test the cars people drive are changing too.

Recently, engineers at manufacturer Humanetics created dummies that reflect today's drivers: a 273-lb obese dummy that is 106 lb heavier than the traditional model and a prototype for an elderly dummy based on a 70-year-old woman who is also overweight.

The changes come years after Michigan Medicine trauma surgeon Stewart Wang, M.D., told car safety engineers that "crash-test dummies look nothing like my patients."

"You can't talk about injuries without talking about the person -- it's individuals who are hurt," says Wang, who is a sought-after collaborator on car safety as the director of the University of Michigan (U-M) International Center for Automotive Medicine (ICAM).

"The condition, size, and shape of an individual is hugely important in how severe their injuries are in any given crash," he says.

A study from the University of California, Berkeley, published in 2013, found that obese drivers are up to 78 percent more likely to die in car crashes. Those who survive have unique injuries based on size.

With input from U-M trauma experts, elderly and obese dummies are being used to help car manufacturers create safer vehicles for today's drivers.

 

 

For example, in frontal crashes, obese drivers tend to "submarine," or slide under the lap belt; their lower bodies are also poorly restrained because their lap belts have much more slack. As a result, they suffer more severe lower-extremity injuries at a much higher rate. Once they suffer such injuries, their obesity makes treatment more difficult and delays recovery.

"The typical patient today is overweight or obese -- they're the rule rather than the exception," Wang says.

Developing dummies
Wang has seen firsthand the devastating and often fatal injuries that occur during car crashes, and he helps translate complex medical information into concepts that automotive engineers can use.

His research has helped bring automotive safety research and engineering into the modern era, with insights based on detailed analysis of live patients from real-world crashes rather than laboratory testing of cadavers.

Teams at ICAM gain tremendous insight from hundreds of thousands of CT scans, which can quickly be used for 3D printing of prototypes once they're shared with engineers. This has revolutionized the way dummies are made -- and what they look like.

The obese dummy has a body mass index of 35. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers anyone with a BMI of 30 or higher obese.

The new elderly dummy has a BMI of 29, and its torso and chest have been substantially redesigned, sagging a bit more than the military physique of the crash-test dummies safety testing usually relies on.

As the structure of the chest changes from the 20s to the 80s, the risk of chest injury goes up fifteenfold, Wang says.

"Few would have envisioned that people would drive into their 80s, but we have to look at that," says Chris O'Connor, president and chief executive officer at Humanetics, which is based in Plymouth, MI. "As the population changes, we must have test equipment that resembles consumers today."

Car safety down the road
The future of car safety may include adaptive restraint systems that allow coordination of seat-belt tension, power of the airbag, and when and how much the airbag inflates.

"There's no new single safety device that will markedly improve driver safety," says Wang, but he's interested in seeing how well recently introduced center airbags work in the real world. These airbags inflate between the front seats to prevent passengers and drivers from striking each other in side-impact crashes.

Both experts are hopeful that autonomous vehicles can mitigate crashes through automatic breaking systems and other features. But over the next 30 to 40 years, there will still be a mix of traditional and autonomous vehicles, and injurious crashes will occur regularly, they say.

VIDEO: With input from U-M trauma experts, elderly and obese dummies are being used to help car manufacturers create safer vehicles for today's drivers.

To date, the Asian and European markets have largely driven pedestrian safety concerns because those regions have smaller roads and more walkers. But pedestrian deaths are rising in the United States.

One-fourth of road deaths in the Ann Arbor community where Wang works involve pedestrians. The future design of vehicles may include modifications that keep pedestrians from being pinned under a vehicle.

"Our drive is the same as automakers: If fatalities get down to zero, that's our goal," says O'Connor. "So 35,000 vehicle fatalities in the U.S. is not acceptable to any of us. It's important for us to create a product that can be used to design safer cars."

Published January 2017

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