Wat maakt een goed luseinde op een trekveer??

Your extension springs look fine, but the loops keep breaking or stretching open. This single point of failure makes your product unreliable and can even be a safety hazard.

A good loop end on an extension spring is defined by two things: a design that matches the load to prevent stress failures, and a precise orientation that allows for easy assembly. Getting these details right is critical for long-term reliability.

After more than 14 years of making custom springs, I can tell you that the loop is almost always the first part to fail. Engineers spend a lot of time calculating the force of the spring body, but they often treat the end loop as an afterthought. They just draw a circle at the end. But that loop is where all the force of the spring gets transferred to the rest of the product. If it's not designed correctly, the spring is useless, no matter how good the body is.

Why Do Standard Loops Break Under Heavy Use?

The body of your spring is holding up perfectly, but the loops are snapping under repeated stress. This unexpected failure is causing costly field repairs and damaging customer trust.

Standard loops often break because of high stress concentration right where the loop wire bends away from the spring body. For heavy or high-cycle use, a full loop with a crossover center is far more durable because it distributes this stress.

I remember a client who manufactured heavy-duty industrial gates. Their extension springs were failing long before their expected service life. When I examined one of the failed springs, the body was in perfect condition, but the simple machine loop at the end had snapped clean off. The repetitive shock loading of the gate closing was creating a fatigue crack at the sharpest bend. We redesigned the spring with a full, forged loop end[^1]. It was a more complex part to manufacture, but it completely eliminated the failure point. The lesson was clear: for a spring to be reliable, its ends have to be as tough as its body.

Designing a Loop for Maximum Durability

The loop is not just a hook; it is a critical structural element.

• Understanding Stress Flow: Think of the force in the spring wire like water flowing through a pipe. A sharp, 90-degree bend in the pipe causes turbulence and high pressure. The same thing happens with force at a sharp bend in a loop, creating a high-stress point that will eventually crack.
• Full Loops vs. Machine Loops: A machine loop is simply the last coil of the spring bent outwards. A full loop[^2] is a more complete circle of wire, often with the end of the wire crossing over the center for extra support. This design provides a much smoother path for the force to travel.
• The Importance of the Transition Radius: The small, curved area where the loop wire leaves the spring body is called the transition radius. Een vlotte, gradual radius is essential for reducing stress. A sharp, almost non-existent radius is a guaranteed point of failure in any dynamic application.

Welke invloed heeft de lusoriëntatie op de montage en prestaties??

U heeft uw grote bestelling veren ontvangen, maar ze zijn een nachtmerrie om te installeren. Jouw montageteam moet elke veer handmatig in de juiste positie draaien, het vertragen van de hele productielijn.

De lusoriëntatie – de relatieve hoek van de lussen ten opzichte van elkaar – is van cruciaal belang voor een snelle montage. Indien niet gespecificeerd, lussen bevinden zich op een willekeurige positie, vertragingen veroorzaken. Specificeer "in-line" of "90 graden" op jouw tekening zorgt ervoor dat elke veer perfect past.

Dit is een fout die een bedrijf duizenden dollars aan verspilde arbeid kan kosten. Een paar jaar geleden, we hadden een nieuwe klant in de consumentenelektronica-industrie die bestelde 100,000 kleine trekveren. Hun tekening was perfect in elk detail, behalve één: it didn't mention loop orientation. We hebben de bestelling in willekeurige richting geproduceerd, wat de standaard is. Een week later, hun inkoopmanager belde mij in paniek. Hun lopende band stond stil. Werknemers waren aan het rommelen met deze kleine veertjes, proberen de lussen uit te lijnen voordat ze op hun plaats worden geklikt. Voor hun volgende bestelling, we hebben een eenvoudige opmerking aan de tekening toegevoegd: "Lussen om op te oriënteren 90 graden." Het probleem verdween volledig.

De taal van loops spreken

Een duidelijke tekening voorkomt verwarring en bespaart tijd.

• In-lijn (0 of 360 graden): Dit is de meest voorkomende oriëntatie. Als je de veer plat op tafel legt, beide lussen zouden ook plat liggen.
• 90 Graden: Dit is ook heel gebruikelijk. If you lay the spring flat, one loop will be flat against the table, and the other will be pointing straight up in the air. This is often used when the spring connects two parts that move on different planes.
• 180 Graden: In this case, the loops are in the same plane but face in opposite directions.
• Random: This is the default if you do not specify an orientation. The manufacturer makes no attempt to align the loops. This is only acceptable if the spring is connecting to swivel points.

What's the Right Way to Specify the Loop Opening?

The springs arrived, but they don't fit. The loop is too small to go over the post it needs to connect to, and now your project is on hold.

To ensure a perfect fit, you must specify the binnendiameter[^3] (ID) of the loop on your drawing. Simply specifying the buitendiameter[^4] (OD) of the spring body[^5] is not enough information for the manufacturer to guarantee the loop will fit your part.

A customer who makes retail display fixtures came to us with this exact problem. They had been buying springs from another supplier and about 10% of them were unusable because the loop wouldn't fit over a small peg in their display. Their drawing only showed the spring's outside diameter and overall length. The supplier was making the loops to a size that was convenient for their machines, not for the customer's application. We added one dimension to their drawing: "Loop ID to be 3.5mm ±0.2mm." That one small change ensured that every single spring we sent them fit perfectly. It shows that clarity on the drawing is the key to getting a usable part.

The Dimensions That Matter Most

The connection point is just as important as the spring body[^5].

• Inner Diameter (ID) vs. Buitendiameter (OD): The OD of the loop is usually about the same as the OD of the spring body. But what matters for assembly is the ID—the size of the hole. This is especially true for full loops.
• The "G" Dimensie: For machine hooks or crossover hooks that are not a full circle, you might specify the opening or "gap" dimension. This ensures the hook can easily snap over its intended connection point without being too loose.
• Tolerances are Key: For any critical dimension like the loop ID, you must include a tolerance (Bijv., ±0.2mm). This tells the manufacturer how much variation is acceptable. Without a tolerance, the manufacturer has to guess, which can lead to parts that don't fit.

Conclusie

For reliable extension springs, focus on the loop ends. Choose a durable loop design, clearly specify its orientation for assembly, and define the opening size for a perfect fit every time.

[^1]: Understanding loop ends is crucial for ensuring the reliability and safety of extension springs.
[^2]: Explore the benefits of full loops for enhanced durability in high-stress applications.
[^3]: Learn the importance of specifying inner diameter for a perfect fit in your applications.
[^4]: Explore how outer diameter impacts the overall design and functionality of springs.
[^5]: Understanding the spring body is essential for ensuring overall spring performance.