Product category:
Springs, dampers, latches, locks and small components
News Release from: Rencol Tolerance Rings | Subject: Power Ring
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 27 June 2002
Tolerance rings improve torque control
Over recent years tolerance rings have been adopted for numerous torque control applications in industries ranging from automotive to white goods.
Over recent years tolerance rings have been adopted for numerous torque control applications in industries ranging from automotive to white goods According to Rencol, developments in ring technology now add still further to their appeal, increasing application scope and the degree of fine tuning of specifications achievable
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 11 Dec 2002 at 8.00am (UK)
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Tolerance ring brings greater torque control
Rencol has developed an advanced tolerance ring design offering further enhanced control of torque parameters in motor and drive gear assemblies.
The changes relate partly to design and engineering enhancements and partly to the growing databank of knowledge on ring performance and characteristics.
The rings provide effective torque overload protection and act as alternatives to more complex slip clutches because the waveforms around their circumference, used to create an interference fit, can be designed to slip within predefined parameters.
Outside these parameters the ring maintains a firm joint, even after thousands of overload cycles.
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The key to getting the best out of automotive sensors is all in the mounting, says Chris Needes, Automotive Product Manager at Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Rencol.
Running rings round steering design challenges
Tolerance rings are simple in concept, inexpensive, compact and easy to use; yet they can enhance performance and safety while reducing costs in steering column assemblies, as Chris Needes explains.
The most familiar designs are rings that have a single row of waveforms.
These have been made more effective through the introduction of "Power Ring" technology.
Such rings double the accuracy of torque control, at the same time minimising degradation so that ring performance is maintained for still longer periods.
Key to the design of the Rencol "Power Ring" is a modified waveform, resulting in enhanced deformation characteristics.
Duplex rings, which have two rows of waveforms, are also now readily available, further extending performance options.
In tandem with these developments, advances have been made in lubrication technology.
As a result tolerance rings can now be supplied factory prelubricated with a specially developed solid lubricant that eliminates the need for separate application of high-pressure greases, and the associated costs.
In lower volume applications, where automation may be inappropriate, this also removes the variables associated with manual application of grease.
Along with product innovation, the increasing use of tolerance rings has enabled the database of information on ring performance to be expanded rapidly.
This provides greater control and versatility in the design and production of bespoke rings for specialist applications.
It is also now beginning to impact on ring design.
Explains Roger Cornwell, sales and marketing manager at Rencol: "Traditionally tolerance rings have a uniform waveform around their circumference, with the waveform set either on the inside or the outside of the ring.
Designs are now emerging, for example, which use fewer waveforms more widely spaced or which have waveforms on both inner and outer surfaces.
Such variations allow performance to be engineered across an ever wide torque spectrum making it easier to eliminate more complex mechanisms and incorporate torque control devices readily even within tightly designed space envelopes". Request a free brochure from Rencol Tolerance Rings ...
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