Springs add in-car comfort
22 May 2008
In modern vehicles, each part of the car interior needs to impart the right ‘feel’ to the driver. So when the design engineers at William Hughes were asked to develop a special torsion spring to release an armrest catch on a central console, ergonomics were the primary consideration.
The catch mechanism had to be designed to slow the movement of the console to make it open gently; it also needed to be easy to operate with minimum effort. The team at William Hughes was provided with a complete set of parameters for the operation. In order to provide the best solution, the design engineer needed to fully understand every aspect of the application to ensure that the proposed design would be both economical and fully compatible with the plastics and fabrics also used in the assembly. The designer needed to consider how the unit could be assembled quickly and easily.
With the help of the latest computer aided design software and specialised spring data, William Hughes used its knowledge and experience to develop a spring that was optimised for the application. In this instance a single torsion spring provided the best solution and William Hughes was able to quickly produce prototype springs for evaluation before the design was finalised for volume production.
Torsion springs provide a perfect solution for many automotive applications. They can be either single, which gives a higher force in a smaller space, or double, which provides a balanced force or torque. To overcome friction, which can be a problem in some applications, springs can be coated with special materials or the spring geometry can be optimised to minimise the effect. Other options include tension or compression springs in a range of sizes and materials.
In addition to special springs for car interiors, William Hughes can also supply a wide range of bent wire forms and sub assemblies for car seats and trim panels. Seat frames are welded or clipped together and supplied as complete pre-assembled units. These rigid assemblies are ready for immediate use to suit the requirements of the foam moulding process.
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