Click this link if you cannot read the issue below: Designfax - Tech for OEM Design Engineers
May 03, 2016Volume 12 Issue 17


Image - Constant Section Rings from Smalley
Constant Section Rings from Smalley
Smalley offers over 1,000 Constant Section Rings from stock in both carbon and stainless steel in diameters ranging from .375" to 10". Smalley can also produce these heavy-duty rings with different end configurations to meet your application requirements. Custom designs are available from .165" to 120" diameters. Free samples available for testing.

Click here to learn more.


In this issue of Designfax

  • World's smallest commercial hexapod
  • 'Terminator' 3D printer now available to the masses
  • Can you make valuable electronics out of coal?
  • Wheels: Ford rolls out pothole-mitigation technology
  • Mike Likes: Make your own bearings
  • Injection Molding Tips: 6 ways to cut machining costs
  • Enclosures: Pelican Air protective cases 40% lighter
  • Motion: High-load hexapod for simulation, stabilization
  • Avionics: High-speed data handling
  • Motion: First industrial motor-powered caster
  • Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action
    • LEGO makes $300 Porsche 911 set
    • Overmolding in SolidWorks tutorial
  • Most Popular Last Issue
    • 20-kW wireless car charging surges forward
    • Wheels: Porsche four-cylinder engine history
    • Record-breaking steel metallic glass
  • New Products
    • Electrical, Mechanical, Motion
    Cover Image: Ford rolls out pothole-mitigation tech in 2017 Fusion Sport

News

Volvo Cars calls on automotive industry to standardize electric car charging

NanoSteel delivers new advanced automotive steel to General Motors

Roof racks are a big drag on car fuel economy according to Berkeley Lab

New Space Technology Hall of Fame inductees include medical device thermoplastic and water-hunting radar



Image - Micro DC Motor Packs Big Power
Micro DC Motor Packs Big Power
MICROMO introduces the new 2668 CR small DC motor from FAULHABER, which offers considerably more power than comparable drives. The 2668 CR is the most powerful copper?graphite commutated micro DC motor in its size class on the market. Thanks to a bigger NdFeB magnet and high copper content in the winding, it supplies a rated torque of 70 mNm. The 2668 CR motor is 26 mm in diameter and weighs just 189 g. Furthermore, it reaches full power extremely quickly with its high pulse torque.

Click here to learn more.


Feature articles
New Scale developing world's smallest commercial hexapod
New Scale Technologies is developing the world's smallest commercial hexapod under a Phase 1 Small Business Innovative Research grant awarded by the National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health. At less than 25 mm in diameter, it is the first hexapod (or Gough-Stewart platform) small enough for use in a hand-held microsurgical instrument.
Read the full article.
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This valuable resource from Proto Labs includes a quick-reference guide.


Image - 'Terminator' 3D printer now available to the masses
'Terminator' 3D printer now available to the masses
Inspired in part by a scene in 'Terminator 2,' the new MI additive manufacturing machine from Carbon3D uses Continuous Liquid Interface Production (CLIP) technology to harness light and oxygen to grow objects from a pool of resin instead of printing them layer by layer. Now you can have it in your shop or office, but it'll cost ya.
Read the full article.

Image - Can you make valuable electronics out of coal?
Can you make valuable electronics out of coal?
MIT's Jeffrey Grossman thinks we've been looking at coal all wrong. Instead of just setting it afire and ignoring the molecular complexity of this highly varied material, he says, we should be harnessing the real value of its complex chemistry to make solar panels, batteries, or electronic devices.
Read the full article.

Image - Air Operated Conveyors: Turn ordinary hose, tube, or pipe into a conveyor!
Air Operated Conveyors: Turn ordinary hose, tube, or pipe into a conveyor!
EXAIR's Line Vac connects to standard hose or tube to create a powerful conveyor. The design features large throat diameters for maximum throughput capability. A small amount of compressed air is injected through directed nozzles to produce a vacuum on one end and high output flows on the other.

Click here to learn more.


Image - Wheels: <br>Ford rolls out pothole-mitigation technology
Wheels:
Ford rolls out pothole-mitigation technology

Ford engineers have developed an advanced computer-controlled shock absorber system for the all-new Fusion V6 Sport, a 2017 model year vehicle, that significantly reduces the unpleasant feeling one gets when driving down a pothole-riddled road.
Read the full article.

Image - Mike Likes:<br> Make your own bearings with world's first printable bearing material filament for 3D printers
Mike Likes:
Make your own bearings with world's first printable bearing material filament for 3D printers

Plastics expert igus has introduced the world's first plastic filament for 3D printers enhanced with tribological, or low-friction, properties. The material, 50 times more resistant to wear and abrasion than conventional 3D-printer materials, is ideally suited for creating custom bearings. igus even provides some STL design model files, too.
Read the full article.

Image - Injection Molding Tips: <br>6 ways to cut machining costs
Injection Molding Tips:
6 ways to cut machining costs

Machining gets a bit more complex every year, and as a result, it can be challenging to keep pace with the dos and don'ts of part design. But lowering the cost of machined parts while improving functionality can still be achieved by a few relatively simple adjustments to your part design or material selection. Gus Breiland, Customer Service Engineering Manager, Proto Labs, shows us how.
Read the full article.

Image - Enclosures: Pelican Air protective cases up to 40% lighter
Enclosures: Pelican Air protective cases up to 40% lighter
Available in six long-form, travel-ready sizes, new Pelican Air cases are constructed of lightweight HPX2 resin, the next generation of Pelican's proprietary formula that rebounds to stress without breaking. With the busy traveler in mind, the 1535 Pelican Air case (Wheeled Carry On) complies with overhead bin standards, and the 1615 Pelican Air case (Wheeled Check In) complies with current airline check-in size regulations. Each case passes the same performance tests (impact, drop, submersion, high and low temperature) and is backed by the company's legendary lifetime guarantee.
Click here to learn more.

Image - Motion: High-load hexapod for simulation, stabilization
Motion: High-load hexapod for simulation, stabilization
The dynamic-motion H-900KSCO hexapod from PI (Physik Instrumente) provides linear travel ranges up to 200 mm and rotation to 66 deg. This compact unit is driven by brushless servo motors and combines high load capacity (130 lb) with fast response and high linear speeds up to 80 mm/sec and angular speed of 30 deg/sec. The parallel kinematics design eliminates the need for moving cables and results in a very stiff and compact positioning solution, compared to conventional multi-axis designs. Hexapod applications include motion simulation (profiles compatible to ISO 20672, ISO 8728, and ISO 16328), industrial production, precision machining, automotive industry, and stabilization of motion on moving vehicles and vessels.
Click here to learn more.
Watch video on versatility of PI hexapods.

Image - Avionics: High-speed data handling
Avionics: High-speed data handling
Using the latest Intel Core i7, quad-core 64-bit processor, the MP70S network server from MEN Micro is ideal for a variety of in-flight applications such as wireless content servers, web, or flight maintenance servers, as well as in-flight entertainment systems. It can act as a passenger-accessible wireless access point and a cellular 3G/4G connection for data loading simultaneously. A carrier-grade, managed 16-port Ethernet switch ensures high availability, providing six ports internally and 10 via the ARINC 600 connector.
Click here to learn more.

Image - Motion: First industrial motor-powered caster
Motion: First industrial motor-powered caster
The Drive Caster from Caster Concepts integrates an electric motor with an industrial caster to create a single unit that can be easily added to carts, racks, or just about anything that rolls on casters. With a mere flip of a switch, operators can effortlessly move heavy loads without fear of injury. This is a game changer because it is the first all-in-one, motorized industrial caster. Offered with a 1/4- or 1/2-hp motor to move loads up to 6,000 lb at up to 5 mph.
Click here to learn more.

Most popular last issue

Image - 20-kW wireless car charging surges forward
20-kW wireless car charging surges forward
A 20-kilowatt wireless charging system demonstrated at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory has achieved 90 percent efficiency at three times the rate of the plug-in systems commonly used for electric vehicles today.
Read the full article.

Image - Wheels: Porsche takes a look back at its four-cylinder engine history
Wheels: Porsche takes a look back at its four-cylinder engine history
The market launch of the new Porsche 718 Boxster this week represents the first time since the late 1960s that Porsche is implementing sports cars with four-cylinder flat engines. The launch presents a nice opportunity to take a drive down memory lane through Porsche's four-cylinder engine history.
Read the full article.

Image - Record-breaking steel metallic glass could be used for body armor, shields for satellites
Record-breaking steel metallic glass could be used for body armor, shields for satellites
Engineers have created a new material with an unusual chemical structure that makes it incredibly hard and yet elastic. The material can withstand heavy impacts without deforming; even when pushed beyond its elastic limits, it doesn't fracture, instead retaining most of its original strength. That makes it potentially useful in a variety of applications from drill bits to body armor for soldiers to meteor-resistant casings for satellites.
Read the full article.

Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action
LEGO makes $300 Porsche 911 set
LEGO Technic's new Porsche 911 GT3 RS model features more than 2,700 pieces that all come together to make builders feel like they're running their own little sports car factory. Although the 1:8-scale model doesn't come with 500 hp and a top track speed of 193 mph like the real thing, it does feature detailed orange bodywork, red suspension springs, detailed headlights, taillights, brake calipers, and rims with low-profile tires. The accessible cockpit features a detailed dashboard, working gearbox, steering wheel with gearshift paddles, racing seats, and a glove compartment containing a unique serial number. Functions include opening doors and hood with storage compartment and suitcase, and an opening rear lid that houses a detailed flat 6 engine with moving pistons.
Watch the LEGO video.

Video Image
Overmolding in SolidWorks tutorial
Andrew from DiMonte Group, an industrial and product design house near Chicago, takes on creating production models of the most challenging shapes present in today's cutting-edge product designs using SOLIDWORKS. In this 7-minute tutorial, he goes into depth about overmolding.
View the video.

Video Image

New products

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