How Do You Custom Order Small Springs with Hooks?
Ko to puna iti e hiahia ana ki nga matau ritenga, engari ka pakaru nga whiringa paerewa. Inaianei kua mutu to kaupapa, all because of a tiny, but critical, ira hononga e rahua tonu ana.
Ki te whakarite ritenga he puna iti me nga matau, me tohu e koe nga mea matua e toru: te momo matau (E.g., machine hook, crossover loop), its orientation (the angle between hooks), me te rahi o te whakatuwhera matau. These details are as crucial as the spring's coil dimensions.
I've seen it happen many times in my career. An engineer will spend weeks perfecting the force and size of the spring's body, ko te mahi anake i nga matau hei whakaaro. Engari i te puna toronga, ko te matau tonu te waahi o te ahotea teitei. Ko te tinana o te puna ka taea te tino hoahoa, engari mena ko te matau ko te hono ngoikore, the entire part fails. Let's break down exactly what you need to specify to get hooks that are strong, pono, me te tino pai mo to tono iti.
What's the Most Common Mistake When Specifying Hooks?
I whiriwhiria e koe he matau ngawari hei whakaora i te utu, engari inaianei kei te pakaru ratou i nga wa whakamatautau. Ko tenei rahunga he whakaroa utu nui me te akiaki i te hoahoa ano o to hua.
Ko te hapa nui ko te kowhiri i te paerewa crossover hook[^ 1] mo te tono taumaha-nui. While simple to make, he piko koi enei matau e hanga ana i te waahi kukū taumahatanga, ka kaha ki te ngenge me te pakaru, ina koa i nga puna iti.
I mahi tahi ahau me tetahi kaihoko e whakawhanake ana i tetahi taputapu rongoa iti. I hiahiatia he puna iti me te roa o te huringa ora. Their initial prototypes, i whakamahia nga matau whakawhiti ngawari, i rahua i muri i etahi mano noa o nga huringa. I whakaaro ratou ko te waea waea te raru. I tirotirohia e ahau nga puna koretake ka kite i te pakaru katoa i te waahi kotahi: ko te piko koi ka wehe te matau i te tinana. I hoahoa ano matou i te waahanga me te matau miihini, he piko iti ake. Ko te hoahoa hou i paahitia te whakamatautau kotahi miriona-huringa ngawari. Ko tenei wheako e whakaatu ana ko te ahua o te matau he mea nui ake i te taonga ake ina tae mai ki te mauroa.
Ko te Hononga ngoikore i roto i to Hoahoa
Ehara te matau i te hono noa; he huānga hanganga tino nui.
- Matau Whakawhiti: Koinei nga matau tino taketake me te ohaoha. Ko te waea mutunga ka piko noa ki waenganui o te puna. He pai mo nga kawenga pateko, mo nga tono huringa iti ranei.
- Matau Miihini: Ka piko te waea mutunga ki te maeneene, pūtoro rite i mua i te hanga hei matau. Ko tenei hoahoa ka tino whakaiti i te kukū o te ahotea, kia roa ake mo te hihiri, high-cycle applications.
- Matau Taha: Ko enei matau ka puta tika mai i te taha o te kopae puna. Ka kaha ake i nga matau whakawhiti, ka whai hua ina hiahia koe kia noho te matau ki tetahi tuunga motuhake e pa ana ki te tinana porowhita..
| Momo Matau | Te Awatea | Puhi Whakamahi noa | Main Disadvantage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matau Whakawhiti | Tino Teitei | Whakaaturanga pateko, nga taonga takaro marama. | Ka pakaru i raro i te whakamahi i nga wa katoa. |
| Matau Miihini | Iti | Miihini ahumahi, Nga taputapu rongoa. | He uaua ake, he utu nui ki te hanga. |
| Matau Taha | Whakaōrite | Automotive latches, specific assemblies. | Ka taea te hanga i tetahi kume iti ki waho-pokapū. |
How Does the Hook Design Affect the Spring's Strength?
Ka hiahia koe ki te puna ka toia me te kaha motuhake, engari ko nga matau ritenga kei te huri ke i tana mahi. He ngoikore ake te puna i to tatauranga i matapaetia.
The length and style of the hooks directly impact the spring's initial tension and active coils. Longer hooks or hooks with extended loops add "dead" coils that don't contribute to the force, which can slightly reduce the spring rate and overall stiffness.
This is a subtle but important point that can confuse designers. I had a project for an electronics company where the spring had to fit into a very tight space and deliver a precise force. The engineer's calculations were based only on the spring's body. But their design required very long, extended hooks to reach the connection points. When we made the first samples, the force was about 10% lower than they expected. We had to adjust the coil body, making it slightly stronger, to compensate for the "inactive" wire in the long hooks. This is why it is so important to provide a complete drawing that shows the hooks, not just the coils.
Neke atu i te Hononga
The hooks are an active part of the spring's performance equation.
- Te Manawao Tuatahi: Koinei te kaha e mau ana i nga porotaka i roto i te ahua ngawari. Ko te hanga i nga matau ka taea te whakarereke i te riipene tuatahi i te wa e whiria ana.
- Ngaiti Hohe: Ko te maha o nga porowhita e waatea ana ki te whakatuwhera me te kati hei whakarato i te kaha. Ko te waea i whakamahia hei hanga i nga matau, ehara i te wahanga o nga coils hohe, no reira he iti ake nga porowhita hohe o te puna whai matau nui rawa atu i te puna kotahi te tinana me nga matau iti.
- Roa noa: Te tapeke roa o te puna i mua i te utaina o te kawenga. Ko te roa ake o nga matau he roa ake te kore utu, me tatau i roto i to koutou whakaminenga.
| Ahuatanga Matau | Te Paanga ki te Mahinga | Whakaaro Hoahoa |
|---|---|---|
| Matau Roa | Ka piki te roa kore utu, ka whakaiti i te maha o ngongo hohe[^ 2]. | Must be included in the design to ensure the spring fits and provides the correct force. |
| Hook Style | A machine hook is stronger and more reliable under load. | A stronger hook allows the spring body to be used to its full potential without failure. |
| Te Manawao Tuatahi | Can be affected by the hook forming process. | We can adjust manufacturing to achieve a precise initial tension after hooks are made. |
How Do You Specify the Hook's Position and Opening?
The replacement springs have arrived, but they are difficult to install. Kei te anga atu nga matau ki te huarahi he, making assembly slow and frustrating.
You must specify the hook orientation[^ 3], which is the relative angle of the hooks to each other, and the hook opening, which is the gap size. Hei tauira, you can ask for hooks "in-line at 0 tohu" or "at 90 tohu" with a specific gap size.
This is a detail that makes a huge difference for the people on the assembly line. We once produced a large order of small springs for a consumer product. The client didn't specify the hook orientation. We sent them with the hooks in a random alignment. They called us back and said their assembly time had doubled because workers were struggling to rotate the tiny springs into the correct position. For the next order, we manufactured the springs with the hooks aligned at 90 tohu, exactly as needed for their assembly. It was a small change for us, but it saved them hundreds of hours of labor.
Details That Matter for Assembly
These final specifications ensure the spring is easy to use.
- Takotoranga Matau: This is the rotational position of the hooks relative to each other. Common orientations are 0 tohu (in-line), 90 tohu, me 180 tohu (matau ki te taha taha). Ma te tautuhi i tenei ka taea te matapae me te tere o te whakaurunga.
- Whakatuwhera Matau: Koinei te rahi o te āputa i te pito o te matau. Ma te iti ake o te aputa ka taea te aukati i te puna kia kore ai e wehe, i te mea ka nui ake te aputa ka ngawari ake te whakauru ki runga i te pou. Ka taea te tohu i tenei ki te kaha o te manawanui.
| Tautanga | Why It's Important | Tono noa |
|---|---|---|
| Takotoranga | Ka whakarite i te whakaurunga tere me te tukurua. | "Mauke ki 90 tohu ki tetahi ki tetahi." |
| Rahi Whakatuwhera | Ka whakahaere i te hononga o te puna me te hono tonu. | "Kia kaua e nui ake te aputa i te 0.5mm." |
| Tūnga Matau | Ka tautuhi kei hea te matau (E.g., kei waenganui, kei te taha ranei). | "Mau matau raina-waenganui." |
Whakamutunga
Ki te whakarite i nga puna iti me nga matau, me tino whakamarama koe i te momo matau[^4], its orientation, me tona whakatuwheratanga. He mea nui enei korero mo te hanga i tetahi waahanga roa e mahi tika ana.
[^ 1]: Kia mohio ki nga herenga o nga matau whakawhiti kia kore ai e hapa te utu i roto i o hoahoa.
[^ 2]: Akohia nga piu hohe me o raatau hiranga ki te whakatau i te kaha o te puna.
[^ 3]: Rapua me pehea e taea ai e te whakawhaiaro te whakamau te whakamau i to mahi huihuinga.
[^4]: Akohia nga momo momo matau hei whakatau whakatau mo o tono puna.