|
Information Page Links:
Featured Industrial Spring Manufacturers
About Industrial Springs
Industrial Spring Terms
Industrial Spring Associations
Industrial Spring Resources
Trade Shows
Featured Industrial Spring Articles
More Articles
|
|
About Industrial Springs
Springs are essential components in many devices, systems
and machinery. Springs can be defined as an elastic member which exerts
a resisting force when its shape is changed. There are three major styles
of springs made by springs manufacturers: flat, spiral and helical. While
springs can be made from a wide range of metals, spring steel is often
used to form the wire into springs. Steel springs are an industrial grade
of steel known for its good elastic and return properties. The elasticity
of a spring facilitates the return of a piece to its original position;
however, it does diminish over time, so special attention should be paid
to a spring's design capacities and material of construction.
Springs manufacturers use various types of wire to make their products.
Braided wire is used to make springs that can handle sudden significant
loads, such as military applications. The heaviest wire that is typically
cold rolled is 5/8”. Huge, straight bars of steel up to 6” in
diameter can be heated red-hot and coiled on special machinery to be
used for heavy duty shock-absorbers. Lightweight wire commonly used in
commercial applications is generally as fine as .01”, but micro-coilers
can be used to wind wire as fine as .002”. While most springs are
made from round wire, flat and square wire can also be used to form springs,
providing a stronger spring. Tubular stock can be formed into springs
as well. Wire springs can be bought in the form of coils or straightened-and-cut
bars. However, buying spring wire in coils is the most economical way,
as straightened-and-cut bars cannot be returned if they are cut too short.
Springs have a vast array of functions in the industrial world. In general,
springs are used for the storing and absorption of energy (as in the
case of a suspension system) and the maintaining of tension or force.
Springs are used as part of a functioning cycle. They also are used to
force a component to bear against, engage and disengage with another
component. Commonly, springs are used to reduce the shock or impact of
a load or another element. Other applications include alarms, aviation,
circuit breakers, electronics, furniture, hardware, instruments and gauges,
office/business machines, solenoid valves and writing instruments.
Springs manufacturers produce a variety of springs. In selecting springs,
it is important to first define the primary spring function in terms
of push, pull, twist or energy storage. If springs are needed for large
deflections, helical compression springs are a common choice. For solutions
to pull functions, extension springs are typically used, though drawbar
assemblies and constant force springs may also be used in certain applications.
Torsion and spiral springs perform twist functions well. The storing
of energy can be accomplished with spiral torsion springs. Manufacturers
will also need to know the atmosphere in which the spring will operate,
the frequency of cycles, the amount of deflection it will undergo, the
cost of the spring in relation to the overall project and the expected
life of the product, in order to determine the appropriate material from
which to make the spring.
Featured
Articles
http://home.earthlink.net/~bazillion/intro.html
http://www.nasatech.com/Briefs/Mar03/MA0303.html
Types of Springs
-
are flat metal doughnuts whose insides are higher than the outsides.
While not a coiled spring, mounting a bunch of belleville washers together
forms a very strong spring.
- ,
also known as “power,” “motor” or “flat
coil springs,” are made from wide, flat stock and are used in
clocks, retractor reels and other machinery. Clock springs are coiled
up like the shell of a snail and have the ability to store great amounts
of rotational energy.
-
are made by wrapping wire around a cylinder in a helical pattern. Coil
springs are the most standard type and shape of spring.
-
are open coiled, helical springs that offer resistance to compressive
loading.
- have a cone-shaped design that provides a solid height
that is lower than a regular spring. Conical compression springs also
provide near constant spring rate.
-
are a special variety of extension springs that are well-suited for
long extensions with no load build-up.
-
are a form of compression springs that are engineered to give predetermined
pressure at a given compression reliably and consistently.
-
are a closed coiled helical spring that is resistant to a pulling force.
-
include a wide range of springs manufactured from flat strip material
which, on being deflected by an external load, will store and then release
energy.
-
are either helical extension or compression springs that are typically
used in oil seals. The ends of garter springs are connected so that
each spring becomes a circle and exerts radial forces.
-
provide controlled motion and speed for elements, such as lids and doors,
that open and close. There is normally a gas, such as nitrogen, in the
chamber to provide absorption.
- ,
also called “spiral springs,” are the most common type of
spring and can be used in torsion, tension, extension or compression.
- ,
also called “semi-elliptical” or “cart springs,”
have a slender arc-shaped form. Leaf springs are a simple form of spring
used mostly in heavy vehicles, such as vans, trucks and railway carriages.
-
have fewer leaves whose thicknesses vary from the center to the ends
of the spring, following a parabolic curve. Contact between the coils
is made only at the ends and at the center.
- ,
also called “clock” or “motor springs,” store
and release rotational energy in the form of torque.
- ,
also referred to as “spiral torsion” or “brush springs,”
operate without any contact between the coils.
-
exert pressure along a path which is a circular arc, providing torque.
The wire itself is twisted when the spring is compressed or stretched.
|
|
