Rotary Viscous Dampers and Automotive

Automotive is a great industry where rotary viscous dampers  could be used. Although their application must be carefully planned. All dampers that use viscous fluid are affected by temperature by some degree, usually at the extremes it is most noticeable.  If you were to use a rotary viscous damper in the winter in Minnesota early in the morning, clearly the damping would be dramatically increased and inversely in Mexico. So the best environments for rotary viscous dampers is between 35 deg F and 100 deg F.  There can be exceptions. For example if the damper is used in combination with a torsion spring  or a friction hinge you may be able to alleviate slamming lids in extreme hot temperatures, because the friction hinge is much less affected by temperature. contact me for your next application at http://www.mmtech.us or call 203-406-7900

Rotary Viscous Dampers and Toys

As in all consumer products safety is a great concern. Safety for the user and others. Since toys involve children mostly, you would expect the designer to incorporate safety features especially when fast moving parts are involved. One classic example is the toy box, some have heavy lids and if there is no safety device to stop it from slamming and injury to a body part can occur. Both friction hinges and rotary viscous dampers can help with lids slamming down but I think rotary viscous dampers would be better  because a partially open lid would eventually close safely , not allowing babies or pets to get in and unable to exit. Its also a cleaner look if the lid was closed all the time.  A friction hinge would need a larger force to close which a child may not be able to exert, maybe even hurting themselves while closing it. contact us at http://www.mmtech.us for your next design project or call at 203-406-7900.

 

Rotary Viscous Dampers and Material Considerations

We find that during our product design process that customer requirements have us design with certain specific materials. General requirements for our specific brand of damper usually needs materials with low coefficient of thermal expansion. For most environments engineering materials such as POM and stainless steel can be used. In a controlled environment like a sterile lab, household and clean rooms we can use a wider array of materials.  Since our product is non-particulating we can be used in any class clean room without reservations. Medical devices that need a lid or the rooms they are assembled in, can use our type of damper.  So please contact us for all your friction hinge and damper needs at http://www.mmtech.us for a free initial consultation. Phone us at 203-406-7900

Dampers and Economics

We often come across problems that are natural to product design.Specifically features verses cost.If a customer is willing to pay the higher price to add a high end feature like a damping hinge then it usually is a good idea to include it in the design. This can become a double edged sword. Once the products in the market and competition starts to appear will the damping hinge become a cost cutting item? Maybe customers are willing to pay for a quality item and keeping the damping feature incorporated into the design will keep you ahead of the competition. Only the sales and marketing team will be able to determine that. One thing we know for sure is that  incorporating a rotary damper is a feature that is both a safety item and a wow feature that adds the feeling of class and high end to any product .

See us at http://www.mmtech.us to see how we can add a high end feel to your product.

Rotary Viscous Damper Temperature

Most applications requiring a rotary viscous damper must consider the temperature consequences. As the ambient temperature rises the damping fluid’s viscosity lowers and vice-versa when it gets cold. In applications that work in a range of temperatures we may take a different approach to achieve controlled damping. Multiple damping greases which complement each other when the units are exposed to temperature extremes is possible. Sometimes a combination of damping grease and springs can achieve success at high frequencies. In essence ambient temperatures need to be know when design a damper.Contact us at http://www.mmtech.us or 203-406-7900 for a free consultation.

Slimline Friction Hinges

We have been involved in an aerospace project where space inside the cabin is at a premium. Our specific flavor of friction hinges is suited specifically for small doors, panels, lids and safety covers that cannot rattle around or pivot without someone physically moving them. When they are moved it is without any noise any can be placed in any position. So during take offs or landings, the won’t move from their position. All of our friction hinges are grease free and can have a full range of torque capabilities. Depending on the diameter and length we can achieve 1 through 40 in-lbs.  Larger is also possible. So please contact us for a free consultation at http://www.mmtech.us or 203-406-7900

Linear Motion and Rotary Viscous Damping

Our rotary viscous dampers can provide damping for linear movement also. For example a cylinder needs to stop smoothly without jerking or banging, we can add a pivot arm to accept linear motion to rotate the damper. One way clutches can provide a way to reset the damper quickly , so it’s ready for another cycle.  We can incorporate gearing to change the ratio of stroke to damping rotation.  So our rotary viscous damper are flexible enough to be used as a linear motion braking system.  see us at http://www.mmtech.us or call at 203-406-7900.  We can meet your damping and friction hinge needs.

MMT Friction Hinge Advantages

friction hinge

I would like to highlight some advantages of our friction hinge design. The materials we choose have been picked because of their specific mechanical characteristics when interacting with other materials. The difference between the peak static torque and dynamic torque is minimal, the reason for this is to achieve a very smooth motion profile which reduces stresses on mounting components made of plastic, such as laptop screen housings. We feel strongly that this feature is critical. The cost of broken laptop screens can be substantial. Another feature we design is a long cycle life. No lubrication is needed for our friction hinges. The characteristics of the mating frictional components have a coefficient of friction needed for the proper breakaway torque suitable for laptop screens and any other similar component you would like to pivot, we are not restricted to using this design technique for computers only. Industries like the medical field, energy, computer and industrial can use our friction hinges. Life cycles of 30,000 to 50,000+ with out failure are common. If you need a free consultation please contact us at 203-406-7900 or visit us at http://www.mmtech.us

Rotary Viscous Damper: Marine Application

We have made a few designs for use in marine applications. The materials we use are impervious to saltwater and debris. The damping grease used is sealed internally and won’t lose functionality with immersion in water or in splashing situations. Typical applications could be port doors, hatches, cooler lids, pivoting panels, storage doors to name a few. Our Rotary Viscous Dampers are maintenance free, low profile and last for 30,000+ cycles. Friction hinges also can be made in the same materials as the Rotary Viscous Dampers, ensuring high performance. Prototypes and samples are available upon request. We can use 3D printing to make a functional prototype. So call us at 203-406-7900 or visit our website at http://www.mmtech.us, let us put our engineering experience to use for you.

Rotary Viscous Dampers And Temperature

As a mechanical engineer reading this blog you should be aware of ambient temperature and it’s effect on the motion of a MMT rotary damper. We usually test the designs in a chamber setup to simulate the customers application. Even though we use a viscous compound that is very tolerant of temperature changes, exact changes in damping motion should be carefully examined to validate customers expectations. Also keep in mind, that structural components in the system are also affected. Metals and plastics expand and contract at extreme temperatures and we design with those temperature variables in mind. So if you have an application for a friction hinge or rotary viscous damper call us at 203-406-7900. Our website is http://www.mmtech.us