Investment casting is one of the oldest types of metal-forming techniques, used in Egypt thousands of years ago to make gold jewelry. The technique, which involves using a wax or foam mold to create complicated shapes that require only minor machining and minimal surface finishing, is still commonly used today. How Investment Casting Works Investment casting manufacturers first make a master pattern out of plastic, wood, clay, metal or wax before crafting a mold, or master die. The manufacturer then uses the mold to make wax patterns that get assembled. Once complete, the wax patterns are then used to make…
Advantages of Progressive Die Stamping for Mass Production
When you need to mass produce metal parts using multiple methods, progressive die stamping is the way to go. The process of die stamping, including automotive stamping, involves feeding a strip of metal through the different stations of a stamping die. Each station performs a different operation until the finished product is complete and separated from the carrying web. The automotive industry uses progressive die stamping to create everything from large-gauge steel parts to micro-miniature parts. Automotive stamping is efficient for quickly creating prototypes, assembling metal items with precision and maintaining quality control. Additional benefits of progressive die stamping include:…
Understanding Two-phase Stepper Motor Winding Arrangements: Biopolar and Unipolar
The stepper motor is a type of brushless DC motor. It gets its name from the number of equal steps it uses to complete a full rotation. When the motor is the right size for its application, you can command it to move and hold during one of its steps without a feedback sensor. Instead of having continuous rotation, the stepper motor uses toothed electromagnets powered by an external control circuit. Because the teeth are slightly offset, the gears rotate, or step, slightly when the electromagnets are turned off and on. With two-phase stepper motors, there are two basic winding…
Sinotech President Michael Bloom Receives Certification as Global Trade Counselor & Certified Global Business Professional
Sinotech, Corp. is proud to announce that our president, Michael Bloom, recently earned his certification as a Global Trade Counselor through the U.S. Small Business Administration and as a Global Business Professional through the NASBITE. In 2012, Bloom earned a certification through the U.S. Small Business Administration as a Global Export Counselor. Bloom has a B.S. in electrical engineering from the City College of New York; an M.S. in counseling from Long Island University; and completed doctoral work in educational administration at Hofstra University. He started Offshore Solutions, Sinotech’s predecessor, in 1989 and currently has offices in the U.S. and…
AC vs. DC Gear Motors: What’s the Difference, and Which Offers More Gear Motor Advantages?
Ask an engineer to list the differences between AC gear motors and DC gear motors, and you can expect a quick, concise answer: AC motors are generally smaller, less expensive, lighter and more rugged than brushless DC motors. DC motors, on the other hand, are generally considered better for variable speed operations. Their improved speed control makes DC custom motors more expensive to purchase and maintain, generally. Given enough time, the engineer might explain the technical aspects that differentiate these two gear motors. If speaking to a layperson, the engineer would explain that AC stands for alternating current, while DC…
Gearmotors: Understanding Planetary Gears
Also called an epicyclic gear, a planetary gear is a system containing one or more outer (planet) gears that revolve a central (sun) gear. The outer gears are mounted onto a carrier (moveable arm) that rotates in a manner that’s relative to the sun gear. There are two types of planetary gears: simple and compound. The simple gear has one sun with a single ring, a single set of planets and one carrier – one example would be a manual pencil sharpener that uses a crank. Compound gears have a meshed-planet, stepped-planet or multi-stage structure – for example, bicycle gears….
Advantages of the AC Gear Motor
AC gear motors and DC motors each have their own distinct characteristics, applications and benefits. However, when you need to make a choice between the two, you may find the AC gear motor to be far superior. The following is a look at some of its advantages. Size: An AC gear motor is generally smaller and lighter in weight. Cost: DC motors can be more expensive to purchase and maintain. Durability: AC gear motors are more rugged, particularly in wet, hazardous, potentially explosive and corrosive environments. Speed: AC motor speeds are more precise and can control multiple motors, reach speeds…
Brushless DC Motors in Medical Applications
As the medical industry advances, so does the brushless DC motor. While connected to a DC power source, BLDC motors don’t have windings attached to the rotating shaft or armature, because this is where the magnets are. While the features brushless DC motor manufacturers integrate may seem insignificant to the lay person, the consequential benefits have helped revolutionize the medical industry. Medical Applications that Use a Brushless DC Motor Breathing devices: Positive Airway Pressure (PAP) respirators that aid in the treatment of sleep apnea have BLDC motor-powered blower fans that help regulate airway pressure. Blood clot prevention: Air pumps that…
Selecting a DC Gear Motor: Uses and Design Features
When you need a DC gear motor, it can be hard to know the right one to choose. The next time you find yourself in this situation, refer to this list of common features of DC gear motorsto help you figure out how to best meet the needs of your application. Features of DC Gear Motors Gear materials: Plastic or metal. Motor types: Wound-field, permanent-magnet, brushless, intermittent and continuous duty motors. Brush-type and brushless motors: The brushed motor gains torque from the power supplied to the motor using stationary magnets, commutation and rotating electrical magnets. Brushless motors use a soft…
Differences in BLDC Motor Controller Applications
You see examples of BLDC motor controllers almost everywhere, but you may not know it. BLDC motor controllers use IGBTs (integrated-gate bipolar transistors) or FETs (field-effect transistors) to provide power to the motor’s coils. Many also use electronic commutation to drive coils, which switch the current between different phases. When compared to their brush-type counterparts, BLDC motors are often considered superior. Here’s a look at the different components within their controllers: Switch. This component breaks an electrical circuit, thus diverting or interrupting the current. The most common type of switch is an electromechanical device that you manually operate. Other kinds…
