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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.

Sometimes science is a blast: Researchers build cannon to test seals in coal mines

Missouri S&T associate professor of explosives engineering, Dr. Kyle Perry, monitors students Frank Schott (middle) and Ethan Steward (right) loading a cannon with projectiles to test concrete coal mine seals. [Photo by Tom Wagner/Missouri S&T, ©2019 Missouri S&T]

 

 

 

 

Mining and explosives engineering researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) began testing concrete seals used to close coal mine tunnels this month by loading a cannon with projectiles, shooting them at the seals, and testing their impact. The research could help to improve the design of seals and keep miners safe.

Dr. Kyle Perry, Missouri S&T associate professor of mining and nuclear engineering, is the lead researcher on the project. Working with him is Ethan Steward, a master's student in explosives engineering from Chelsea, South Dakota. Steward and Perry spent about five months building the 8-ft cannon they're using in the study.

"We started loading the cannon with light things that a miner might leave behind such as a hard hat, water jug, and hand tools," says Perry. "The hard hat and jug didn't do anything to the seals, but the hand tools took a good chunk out of the concrete, and the roof plates put pretty good gouges into the seal."

The researchers use three different cameras to document what happens as the cannon fires the projectiles at the seals. They then slow down the videos to study them. They have a regular camcorder and two Go-Pros that can get closer to the blast because of their small size. Strain gauges on the seals also tell them what the seal experiences during each blast.

"The videos help us tell what objects are impacting first," says Perry. "We can start relating the projectile to the strain the seal is experiencing. There's a lot going on and there's smoke, which makes it hard to see sometimes."

Steward says the seals are rated to withstand certain pressure levels, and designers know what pressure they can handle underground. But he says the seals have never been tested before for projectile impact. They hope to learn how the concrete seals withstand blasts from objects left behind in tunnels such as equipment, hard hats, chunks of steel, and tools.

"What we don't know for sure is if these projectiles can damage the seals enough to make them fail for the pressure they are rated for," says Steward. The research should tell seal designers if they need to adjust their designs to strengthen seals to withstand impacts.

Missouri S&T researchers are using several video cameras to document the cannon firing at the concrete seals. [Photo by Tom Wagner/Missouri S&T, ©2019 Missouri S&T]

 

 

 

 

Strata Worldwide, a mining safety services provider based in Atlanta, built two concrete seals for project testing -- one a 120-psi (pounds per square inch) design and one a 50-psi design.

Perry says if an explosion happens in a sealed-off area of a mine, the seals need to withstand the pressure and any projectiles that hit it without serious damage because there's a chance of a second explosion.

"If another explosion makes the seal fail, that could put the miners in jeopardy," says Perry. "I'm more worried about hitting the seal so hard that it fractures and cracks."

Perry says a fractured seal could leak methane from the sealed areas and create a potentially explosive environment for miners in active mining zones. The researchers hope to determine the size and speed a projectile would need to travel to damage the seal.

S&T received a $249,000 grant from the Alpha Foundation for the Improvement of Mine Safety and Health, an organization formed as a result of one of the worst mining disasters in U.S. history -- the one that killed 29 miners at the West Virginia Upper Big Branch Mine in 2010. The S&T Experimental Mine was chosen because of its large-scale testing facilities and expertise.

The testing should be complete by the end of the year, and the research will conclude by April 2020.

Source: Missouri University of Science and Technology

Published August 2019

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