Getting the Edge in Cosmetics Packaging

Cosmetics packaging is an interesting industry which would benefit from rotary viscous dampers. Compacts for example. They have an articulating lid which opens so that the consumer can dispense the product. The lids on these devices are usually held together with spring pins that act purely as hinges with a little friction to hold in place. Basically a tiny friction hinge. While there is nothing wrong with the design , it’s lacking a wow factor. I have been approached by a cosmetics manufacturer to develop a rotary viscous hinge to provide a luxurious spring loaded slow open lid to expose the product within. This sort of approach adds a high quality feel that exudes class. Users can open the compacts in public and show off their luxurious product. There are many other products that can benefit from this application. Your imagination is the limit. Contact us at http://www.mmtech.us

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How Do Friction Hinges Aid Ergonomic Design?

Some critical elements of furniture for the workplace, airplane, home and school is something that gets overlooked initially when considering a new design. Furniture must be comfortable and not cause the user undue strain, pain or any discomfort. For example a headrest in an office chair must be easily adjustable by the user, usually when they are sitting in the chair. Nobody wants to have to twist a locking knob to move a headrest component. A friction hinge that is easy to move and stay put when adjusted to a comfortable position is a great solution.  The costs are not overwhelming in the least. Actually there are less parts, which indicate less cost and complications. As a designer we should have a high quality friction hinges and rotary viscous dampers on our mind when formulating a new design; I know it will result in a happy customer. Contact us at http://www.mmtech.us 203-406-7900 for a free consultation on the best route for your ergonomic design.

Miniature Friction Hinges

It’s been a while since my last update. We have been manufacturing miniature friction hinges for customers and it has been very interesting. Developing processes to insure consistent product is very rewarding. The friction hinges we manufacture reach many industries such as aerospace and military. To see something you have designed go into large scale production is satisfying. Our niche is to provide highly reliable devices in a slimline profile.  Small handheld computers , cellphones, furniture and airline components seem to be a great fit for our product. Call us with your application. http://www.mmtech.us

3D printing tools for production use

Any production facility involved in stage tooling knows the cost in custom designed and manufactured tools. Tools that are used in assembly processes, quality control, material handling and many other operations can be very expensive to make. If the tools are used in short production runs , these costs factor quite a bit into the final price of the product. Ask any engineer how much a 1 off machined or CNC’d tool costs. Costs involved are design, analysis and machine setup.We have found 3D printing lends an enormous hand in keeping these costs low. Even if the tool is under a high stress process it’s very easy to print another one.  This wasn’t always the case, current engineering printing filaments that can take high loads are very popular now and inexpensive. The cost and time saving benefits are pretty large. We currently use 3D printed testing tools and have saved thousands. Contact us if you want to discuss cost saving techniques for your production area. http://www.mmtech.us

Rotary viscous dampers and production lines

Among the unusual applications I have seen over the years, one in particular sticks in my mind because it is extremely practical in keeping production line productivity high.  A client had a production line that was used in a critical painting operation. The line had to run smoothly yet be safe and also not be self destructive.  If the chain driven line had too abrupt of a jam these pendulum microswitch toggles would release the switch. They were very sensitive so EVERY time there was slight jarring the switch would flip and stop the line. What a production nightmare! Now the jarring was not bad enough to cause a paint defect but the stopping of the line would cause a defect by leaving a part in the paint spray path too long or too short depending on the cause. So we used a rotary viscous damper on the microswitch actuator. The damper was tuned to let slight jarring  not interrupt the safety switch. Only at a certain amplitude would activate the actuator enough to stop the line. This prevented the line from stopping for every little bump in the road. I never saw this type of application for a damper but here it was! You never stop learning. Bring your production line issues to us at http://www.mmtech.us. We may have a solution for you.

3D printing in Engineering

I have been doing a lot of new products and 3D printing has played a large role in moving things along.  The big change that has occurred was the huge advance in filament technologies.  More resilient and robust filaments have been helping smaller companies achieve fantastic results.  #taulman3d have produced high quality filaments worth trying.  See us at www. Mmtech.us and we can try to help in any way possible.

3d Printing and Manufacturing

https://photos.app.goo.gl/FREMz0RiID80Z15z1

Sometimes tooling for manufacturing is needed and a 3d printed part holder fits the bill. It saves time and money. In the video I am printing a tool piece for holding our product while assembly operations are performed. We can pass cost savings along to the customer. #manufacturing #mechanicalengineering #3dprinting

Visit us at http://www.mmtech.us to consult with our engineering team.

Food Processing Application

I have had a few conversations with customers regarding the application of slow close hinges in the food processing industry. It seems that to improve safety and processing abilities on the production floor a slow close hinge would be a great asset. Lids for equipment are quite large and unruly to handle when internal work needs to be performed. Also, there is a cleanliness requirement which needs a hinge that can withstand wash down and corrosive chemical exposure. At mechanical motion technologies we have always offered rotary viscous dampers and friction hinges which can survive exposure to these hazardous environments. Lids for equipment, refrigerator doors are just a few applications. contact us at http://www.mmtech.us for your custom application.

Dampers for Aerospace

We find that aerospace applications are the largest users of rotary viscous dampers and friction hinges. Overall our core focus is creating the most damping per unit volume that is possible. Precision damping in a slimline package is our expertise and we have proprietary processes to achieve these goals.  The same applies for friction hinges, we have new developments to achieve highe torque in smaller diameters than any other friction hinge manufacturer. We stand by that statement proudly. Please visit us at http://www.mmtech.us or call at 203-406-7900

Rotary Viscous Dampers and Cymbals

I sometimes get inspired in different situations  for applications for my rotary viscous dampers. I was thinking of a rock concert where I was watching the drummer intently and noticed his technique for hitting and damping the sound of the long decay on large thin cymbals. He would hit the cymbal in the course of a song or solo and them use his hand to damping the decay of the sound waves to give a quick muffled decay.  I noticed the same drummer a few years later (Neil Peart of Rush)  using very small cymbals that would “splash” and decay very quickly.  Well that got me thinking that we could achieve a new kind of quick decay by using a rotary damper in a spherical configuration to slow the decay in a unique way  unlike anyone drumming now. I guess I have a little experimenting to do on my Ludwig drumset pictured above.  I knew I could get a musical idea once in my life! please come see our web site and contact us if there is any application you need to consult us for, it could be music to our ears.  http://www.mmtech.us