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August 19, 2014Volume 10 Issue 31


Image - Protomold Protogami
Protomold Protogami
Protogami's three-dimensional flexagons create a continual kaleidocycle that exposes a different set of triangular faces with each turn of its living hinges. The design aid lets product designers and engineers see commonly used materials like ABS, PC and acetal, and how they interact with different surface finishes.

Register for a free Protogami today.


In this issue of Designfax

  • Microstepping: Myths and realities
  • Make your own bearings
  • Beyond GPS: Five next-generation technologies
  • Wheels: Electromagnetic design tool for flywheels
  • Mike Likes: Wave Spring 3D Models
  • Engineer's Toolbox: Rifle-barrel maker
  • Products: Airframe cable assemblies
  • Products: Spring-loaded plunger assemblies
  • Products: DC motors with 90%+ efficiency
  • Products: Zinc foam with cost-saving feature
  • Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action
    • Skunk Works' future of aeronautics
    • One-wheeled motorcycle-like scooter
  • Most Popular Last Issue
    • Wheels: Cockpit for 1,000-mph car revealed
    • Nissan develops 'self-cleaning' car prototype
    • Wings: FDM takes flight with NASA's N+3 concept
  • New Products
    • Electrical, Mechanical, Motion
    Cover Image: Engineers use Opera electromagnetic design tool to create Ricardo TorqStor flywheel

News

No-power Wi-Fi connectivity could fuel Internet of Things

New catalyst converts carbon dioxide to fuel

Smarter ground robots partnering with Soldiers

What your company can learn from NASA's tragedies



Image - IMPORTANT message for gmail users -- both personal and corporate email accounts
IMPORTANT message for gmail users -- both personal and corporate email accounts
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Feature articles

Image - Microstepping: Myths and realities
Microstepping: Myths and realities
The lure of microstepping a two-phase stepper motor is compelling. Visions of microstepping a 1.8-degree hybrid stepper motor with 256 microsteps per full step flash in your mind. The resolution of 51,200 microsteps per revolution entices you. You're glad you don't own stock in high-resolution encoder companies. Where's the catch? The real compromise is that as you increase the number of microsteps per full step the INCREMENTAL torque per microstep drops off drastically.
Read the full article.

Image - Make your own bearings: <br>igus presents the world's first printable bearing material filament for 3D printers
Make your own bearings:
igus presents the 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 - Beyond GPS: Five next-generation technologies for positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT)
Beyond GPS: Five next-generation technologies for positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT)
Penny-sized inertial sensors, pulsed lasers, and tracked lightning strikes are among novel approaches to provide precise location-based insights in GPS-denied areas.
Read the full article.

Image - Wheels: <br>Advanced electromagnetic design tool helps speed commercialization of innovative energy storage system for construction machinery
Wheels:
Advanced electromagnetic design tool helps speed commercialization of innovative energy storage system for construction machinery

The Opera electromagnetic design tool has helped to accelerate commercial development of a new generation of innovative, high-speed flywheel energy storage systems. Created by the technology development company Ricardo, the 45,000-RPM flywheels are designed to reduce the fuel costs of hydraulically powered construction equipment such as wheeled loaders and excavators by 10 percent.
Read the full article.

Image - Mike Likes: <br>Wave Spring 3D Models
Mike Likes:
Wave Spring 3D Models

CAD models of Smalley Wave Springs are downloadable at application-specific heights. Enter any height between the spring solid and free height in over 60 native and natural CAD formats. Wave springs can reduce spring height by up to 50% with the same force and deflection as coil springs. All Springs Are Not Equal®.
Click here to learn more.

Image - Engineer's Toolbox: <br>Rifle-barrel maker takes hole-making to new level
Engineer's Toolbox:
Rifle-barrel maker takes hole-making to new level

Fred Feddersen is a rifle-barrel maker on a mission to do something that's never been done before: create a production barrel that can shoot successive bullets through the same hole, using an inexpensive semiautomatic rifle, not a bolt-action Olympic race gun.
Read the full article.

Image - Products: <br>Airframe cable assemblies
Products:
Airframe cable assemblies

W. L. Gore & Associates (Gore) has introduced new GORE-FLIGHT Microwave Assemblies, 6 Series -- lightweight cable solutions that deliver the lowest insertion loss before and after installation, ensuring reliable performance for the life of the system. The robust construction of these assemblies reduces total costs by withstanding the challenges of installation, reducing costly production delays, field service frequency, and the need for purchasing replacement assemblies. These lightweight assemblies improve fuel efficiency and increase payload. The 6 Series has been qualified to the most stringent specifications for airframe assemblies, with proven compliance with MIL-T-81490 requirements. In addition, Gore has designed a Cable Installation Simulator to evaluate the stress of installation on microwave airframe assemblies.
Click here to learn more.

Image - Products: <br> Spring-loaded plunger assemblies serve as positioning pins for sliding components
Products:
Spring-loaded plunger assemblies serve as positioning pins for sliding components

PEM Type PTL2 spring-loaded plunger assemblies from PennEngineering ideally serve as reliable positioning pins to quickly move racks, slides, access panels, consoles, and similar equipment to new positions without requiring tools. A unique lockout feature in the standard product line keeps the fastener's spring-loaded plunger fully retracted until the plunger pin drops into final position. A simple quarter-turn of the fastener activates the retracted locking and unlocking functions. Type PTL2 spring-loaded plunger assemblies install permanently in aluminum or steel sheets as thin as .060 in./1.53 mm with hardness of HRB 80 or less. Their engineering allows the reverse side of the sheet to remain flush when the plunger is retracted.
Click here to learn more.

Image - Products: <br>DC motors with 90%+ efficiency boost battery life
Products:
DC motors with 90%+ efficiency boost battery life

Maximizing battery life can be a decisive factor to many mission-critical systems where longevity of the equipment can affect the outcome. For example, in battery-operated medical devices or remotely piloted military vehicles the ability to last 13 minutes instead of 10 can make a significant difference. To meet this market initiative, BEI Kimco Magnetics has developed new Frameless Brushless DC Motors in multiple designs that provide extremely high operational efficiencies in excess of 90% that enable extended battery life. For battery-dependent applications, motor efficiency is paramount in getting the longest operating time before it needs to be charged. The newly designed High Torque Density Brushless DC Motors are able to achieve this superior efficiency with improved weight and envelope profiles.
Click here to learn more.

Image - Products: <br>Zinc foam with cost-saving feature
Products:
Zinc foam with cost-saving feature

Goodfellow has announced the availability of two variants of zinc foam: 99.99% zinc deposited on a polyurethane foam and ZAMAK 410 Zn /Al4/Cu1/Mg0.04 zinc alloy foam with solid ligaments. Both combine the versatile properties of zinc or its alloy with the functional benefits of a foam. This combination should be of particular interest to design engineers working in the fields of heat exchangers, catalyst substrates, energy absorbers, filters, and mixers. Cost-saving feature: For the variant deposited on a polyurethane structure, it is possible to design the finished component in the base foam before metalizing, avoiding post-machining and thereby reducing costs. Editor's note: Goodfellow copper foam has been a favorite of Designfax readers for years, so check that out too.
Click here to learn more about Goodfellow foams.

Most popular last issue

Image - Wheels: <br>Cockpit for 1,000-mph car revealed
Wheels:
Cockpit for 1,000-mph car revealed

The cockpit of BLOODHOUND SSC, the 1,000-mph Land Speed Racing car, was unveiled June 12 in Bristol, UK. The state-of-the-art carbon fiber monocoque has been tailored to the needs of driver Andy Green and will be his supersonic office during record attempts in the South African desert in 2015 and 2016.
Read the full article.

Image - Nissan develops first 'self-cleaning' car prototype
Nissan develops first 'self-cleaning' car prototype
Washing a car can be a chore, and a costly one at that. In response, Nissan in Europe has begun tests on an innovative paint technology that repels mud, rain, and everyday dirt, meaning drivers may rarely have to clean their car again.
Read the full article.

Image - Wings: <br>Fused Deposition Modeling takes flight with NASA's N+3 concept
Wings:
Fused Deposition Modeling takes flight with NASA's N+3 concept

An important goal of NASA's N+3 revolutionary aircraft research effort is to define key technologies that will create a 70 percent reduction in fuel consumption relative to today's 737-800 aircraft, offer the ability to operate from 3,000-ft runways, and result in a significant reduction in noise and pollution emissions. Producing model thermoplastic components with Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) provides the development team with design flexibility while meeting high aerospace standards and process requirements.
Read the full article.

Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action
Skunk Works' vision of future aeronautics
Take a peek inside the minds of Lockheed Martin Skunk Works engineers as they describe advanced aeronautics that are on the horizon, including morphing vehicles made of far-out materials.
View the video.

Video Image
One-wheeled motorcycle-like scooter
See the RYNO in action, a self-balancing, one-wheeled prototype electric scooter that lets you ride "in between the cracks of urban transportation." Chris Hoffman, RYNO's CEO and chief creator, says the scooter is "regulated in the city at 12.5 mph just like any other mobility scooter," but comes preloaded with way more fun. Although it still hasn't rolled into showrooms, the aim of the latest model is to "pack 4 horsepower into the wheel ... with 2,000 Watts of motor power, this thing will climb a wall." Twin removable, rechargeable battery packs provide an estimated range of 25 miles.
View the video.

Video Image

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