Posted to News on 22nd Nov 2005, 00:00
Square springs are the stars of the show
A leading manufacturer of seats for both indoor and outdoor events approached William Hughes with a problem that a number of other spring manufacturers had been unable to solve. It wanted to extend its folding seat product range into a new market that required the performance of the seat to be upgraded. To meet the standards for this new application, the pair of springs that are used to return the seat to the upright position needed to complete twice as many cycles, an increase from 50,000 to 100,000 operations.
The solution proposed by William Hughes was neat, simple and completely effective. One of the company's specialities is the manufacture of springs using square section wire. These springs offer a higher performance than similar springs made from round section material and this design provided all the right characteristics. Using square section material allows the section of the wire to be increased without increasing the overall dimensions of the spring.
To address the issue of the extended operational life, the springs were treated with a shot-peening' process which enhances the fatigue life. The result is a spring that is no bigger than the original round wire spring, but has double the operational life. Using the latest CNC wire bending machinery, William Hughes was even able to build a clever kink' into the spring to ensure it moves freely around the hub.
