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Plastic Gears

PRODUCT NEWS | 2024-12-11

Igus Components Reduce Maintenance for Portable Racing Simulator

Greaves 3D Engineering, a British company specializing in precision engineering, has introduced “The Ultimate Drivers Rig,” a state-of-the-art racing car simulator designed for portability and professional performance. This innovative simulator can be folded and stored in a compact road case, allowing for easy transport to racetracks, trade shows, and corporate events. Central to the rig’s design are 45 high-performance components from igus, including self-lubricating linear and drive technologies, cable carriers, and plain bearings, which help reduce maintenance requirements and improve overall reliability.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-11-22

Igus Celebrates 60th Anniversary with Recyclable Bike

To mark its 60th anniversary, igus has launched its innovative and environmentally friendly bicycle — called the igus:bike — on a world tour, underscoring its commitment to sustainability. Made from recycled plastics, the bike will spend a year traveling through 16 countries, signaling a new form of urban mobility while demonstrating the success of a circular economy of plastics.

| 2024-08-22

Igus Covers Automation and Motion Control at IMTS

Motion plastics component provider igus GmbH recently announced its participation in the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) 2024. The trade show will be held Sept. 9-14 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL. 

PRODUCT NEWS | 2024-06-07

Emerson Announces Laser Welder for Plastic Components and Assemblies

Emerson has announced its new Branson GLX-1 Laser Welder, which offers users flexibility to meet the growing demand for joining small, complex or delicate plastic components and assemblies. Its small footprint and modular design make it compatible for use in ISO-8 cleanroom environments, while an integral automation controller simplifies installation and interfaces with production robotics.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2024-03-05

Igus Launches iglide i230 3D Printing Material for High-Temp Applications

Igus announces its new iglide i230 3D printing material for selective laser sintering (SLS). This new powder material can withstand temperatures up to 110°C, expanding the use cases for SLS-printed polymer components.

TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2024-03-01

Designing Plastic Components for Power Transmission Engineers

Steel, iron, and aluminum are the dominant materials in the mechanical power transmission industry for good reason: high power density requires the high strength and stiffness of metallic materials. Plastics, however, offer valuable features that should be utilized for good gearbox design.

REVOLUTIONS | 2023-10-25

Interact Analysis Revises Manufacturing Outlook Forecast

Global market intelligence firm Interact Analysis recently made some revisions to its global manufacturing outlook forecast. According to the company’s latest research, the outlook for global manufacturing is bleak, and this looks set to continue throughout 2024 into early 2025. Europe in particular is feeling the pinch, while the Americas region fared well during the first half of 2023. Due to the semiconductor slump, manufacturing output in the Asia Pacific region is declining – the region accounts for almost 90% of semiconductor and components production.

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INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-10-03

KISSsoft Offers Plastics for the Calculation for Cylindrical and Crossed Axis Helical Gears

In KISSsoft, 97 (yes, ninety-seven!) plastics are available for calculation of cylindrical and crossed axis helical gears. The materials range from unreinforced POMs and PAs to high performance reinforced and internally lubricated materials. 

PRODUCT NEWS | 2023-02-15

JW Winco Introduces Gears and Gear Racks Made from Polyamide

Gears and gear racks used for transmitting torque and forces within gearboxes are typically made of hardened steel. For many other uses and applications, gears and racks made from plastic are the better choice. These generally require no lubrication and are lighter, quieter, less expensive, and more resistant to corrosion than metal gears. This is why JW Winco is expanding its range with polyamide gears and racks that can transmit high forces and torques.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-10-07

Igus Acquires Commonplace Robotics

Igus is expanding through investments in its Low-Cost Automation and has now acquired the majority shares in Commonplace Robotics based in Bissendorf near Osnabrück. As an integrator, Commonplace Robotics specializes in intuitive control systems and software and power electronics for robotics, both in industry and in education. The two companies have been cooperating intensively for six years. They have, among other things, developed the igus Robot Control, which supplements igus’ low-cost kinematics made from high-performance plastics.

TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-02-01

Design Investigations and Indications for Acoustical Optimized Gear Meshes Using Plastic Gears

When it comes to a steel-gear mesh, there are several common standards and design rules on how to reduce noise emissions in the mesh. But if plastic gears are involved, this is no longer the case. The topic of this presentation is to highlight some of the differences between metal-and-plastic gear meshes, i.e. which design strategies can be stated as valid for metal as well as plastic and which are not?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-03-01

Design of Plastic Microgear Teeth for Mass Production with High Manufacturing Tolerances for a Medical Device

Microgears for some types of medical technology need to be inexpensively mass produced. But at the same time, they need to be both precise and reliable, even though their design lifetime is relatively short. Here's how microgears were developed for blood glucose measuring devices, insulin pumps for diabetics and other very small devices.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-04-01

There Is a Great Future in Plastics

The first thing you see when you walk into Winzeler Gear is a pretty face. No, scratch that — the face is beautiful. Streamlined with chiseled cheek bones, delicate yet bold and strong, a half dozen photos of the feminine face line the building’s entranceway, enclosed tastefully in simple black picture frames, beckoning you to come further in with its pleasant warmth, repelling you to turn and leave with its foreign presence in such a location.
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FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-03-01

3-D Printing and Plastic Gears

Regarding 3-D printing of gears and machine tools, etc. — does plastic gearing have a future in 3-D printing/additive manufacturing?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-02-01

Gear Wear Calculation and Prediction

Wear is a very important topic for dry running plastic gears. Over the past few years, the authors have worked closely with a number of manufacturers of plastic gears to investigate the problems of gear wear in detail. Together they have developed a calculation method that can be used to predict where and when local wear will occur on a tooth flank. Their findings have also just been published in the final version of VDI 2736.
POWER PLAY | 2014-09-01

High-Tech Motors Evolving from PM Muck

University lab's motor eliminates pricey rare-earth magnets.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2007-10-01

Precision Plastic Gears

Some gear geometries are more practical to produce than others. Since choices made early in the design process aff ect the ease and cost of fabrication, those who design gears would do well to consider molding and how molders operate, especially when they create precision gears.