| March 18, 2014 | Volume 10 Issue 11 |
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 | Design Tip Subscription
Would you like helpful advice and suggestions to efficiently and cost-effectively design your injection molded parts? Protomold's monthly Design Tips provide just that. This e-newsletter delivers useful tips, advice and guidelines on everything from selecting materials to designing injection molded parts using cams, shut-offs, living hinges and more.
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| | Feature articles |
 | Medical Engineering:
Looking deep into heart valve replacement
For patients deemed too old or ill to undergo aortic valve replacement (AVR) through traditional open-heart surgery, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is a growing alternative (and much less invasive) approach. This replacement valve is mounted upon a dedicated endovascular prosthesis or stent. TAVIguide technology allows the study of different virtual procedural alternatives, using Abaqus finite element analysis (FEA) software from SIMULIA, in order to be optimally informed before performing the real procedure.
Read the full article. |
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 | What do you need to perform LASIK eye surgery? Precise and stable DC motors
This is ocular evolution: precise and reliable instruments and apparatus guaranteed to make a patient feel safe. Powered by a FAULHABER stepper motor with PRECIstep technology and a planetary gearhead, modern eye surgeries don't have to be guesswork: while the motor ensures a precision cut by moving a blade forward and back, the FAULHABER brushless DC motor causes the blade to oscillate. Read the full story.
Read the full article. |
 | Color solar cells fuse energy and beauty
Colorful, see-through solar cells invented at the University of Michigan could one day be used to make stained-glass windows, decorations, and even shades that turn the sun's energy into electricity. The cells, believed to be the first semi-transparent, colored photovoltaics, have the potential to vastly broaden the use of the energy source.
Read the full article. |
 | Wheels:
Taking it on the wide side -- Nissan Motor develops Smart LCD rearview mirror
Forget those tall passengers in the rear seats or your dog pacing back and forth in the rear compartment. Nissan Motor Company recently announced the development of the Smart rearview mirror, a world-first LCD monitor that not only provides clear rearward visibility under various conditions, but also allows the driver the ability to switch between the LCD monitor and the traditional rearview mirror, depending on the driver's preference.
Read the full article. |
 | 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. |
 | Industrial wheel and caster innovation
Caster Concepts has developed an exciting new motion solution: the TWERGO wheel (Multiple Wheel Ergonomic). Designed for a wide variety of industrial applications, casters that utilize new-concept TWERGO wheels provide easier movement of loaded carts or vehicles. TWERGO's unique tread minimizes friction and eliminates scrubbing and sliding when turning, while providing the impact resistance of normal wheels. The multiple wheel design is anchored by a robust spanner that improves on existing wheel designs, and the wheel hub features aluminum die-cast cores for maximum strength. All wheels rotate independently of each other. These casters have a very long tread life and are maintenance free.
Click here to learn more. |
 | Loctite structural adhesive/NVH selector guide
Henkel Corporation has introduced its new Loctite Structural Adhesives and NVH Selector Guide. This 30-page brochure is designed to educate readers about the performance of structural adhesives in demanding, high-stress applications, and to communicate their ability to reduce noise, vibration, and harshness. Engineered to eliminate or greatly reduce fasteners and welds from an assembly, structural adhesives provide superior bond strength, long life, and dependability in a variety of bonding applications involving metals, plastics, composites, magnets, and dissimilar surfaces or substrates.
Click here to learn more. |
| | Most popular last issue |
 | Battery-free technology brings gesture recognition to all devices
University of Washington computer scientists have built a low-cost gesture recognition system that runs without batteries and lets users control their electronic devices hidden from sight with simple hand movements. The prototype, called "AllSee," uses existing TV signals as both a power source and the means for detecting a user's gesture command.
Read the full article. |
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| | Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action |
Flying inversion object aims to inspire new drive concepts
The nature-loving wizards at Festo have combined extreme lightweight construction, electric drive units, and control and regulation technology to create SmartInversion, a working helium-filled flying object that moves through the air by turning inside out. The shape is based on the geometrical band devised by Paul Schatz: its middle section, in the form of an articulated ring of six members, detaches itself from a cube and constantly turns inside out, taking on different geometrical shapes in the process. Kind of mesmerizing, don't you think?
View the video. |
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