Applications
Zinc Alloy Instant-Cure Bonding
Molten zinc alloy is a powerful bonding agent which can be a highly effective alternative to many instant-cure adhesives. It exhibits properties common to adhesives, such as excellent stress distribution and the ability to join a diverse range of dissimilar materials and those of different thicknesses. The zinc alloy bond, however, requires no special surface preparation, has no peeling and thermal degradation issues common with conventional adhesives, and performs well in harsh environments. The molten alloy bonds materials in milliseconds as it “cures”, with the bonded components immediately ready for use.
Control Cable Terminations
Cast Terminations on control cables help to significantly reduce costs. They provide great flexibility as virtually any shape can be cast onto the cable in a single operation. Strength and accuracy meet and often exceeds our customers’ requirements. The IMA process helps to eliminate assembly of pre-manufactured and/or purchased termination fittings. Cast terminations are used in a variety of applications by automotive, aircraft, power garden tools and other industries.
FisherTech Cable Processor Module (CPM)
To meet the increasingly high demand for control cables, FisherTech has developed a system that casts zinc terminations, of the customers’ specification, onto cables in a continuous semi-automatic three-stage process:
- The cable is inserted into the Upsetter. The Upsetter automatically clamps the cable and then drives an anvil against the cable end creating a bulb or upset at one end of the cable.
- The cable is now transferred to the Casting Tool where the termination is cast onto the upset portion of the cable.
- The cable is then transferred to the Trim Station where the Runner is removed, and the cable is released.
Upsetting the cable allows the zinc alloy to shrink onto every strand of the cable. Under strength testing, the cable will break before the termination pulls off.
An automatic quality check is performed as the cable is automatically moved from the Upsetter station to the Casting Tool. As the cable is transferred, it passes through an Upset Sensor, this sensor checks to see if the upset on the cable is to specification, if not, there will not be an injection. This quality check ensures that all cables are made with the same pull-off strength.
Another important feature of the Cable Processor Module is the Cable-in-Place switch. This switch checks to make sure there is a cable in the Casting Tool, this prevents the machine from injecting alloy into the tooling when there is no cable present.
CPM equipment is a semi-automatic system that can produce 600 +parts per hour depending on size and length of cable.
Double Cable Systems
FisherTech has also developed the Cable Processor Module to process two cables at the same time. By casting two identical terminations, production is almost doubled. The Transfer system must be slowed slightly to allow the Upset Sensor to check both cables.
The Terminations do not necessarily have to be the same configuration; if they both fit in the casting envelope, they can cast simultaneously. Depending on the length and flexibility of the cable, both ends of a single cable can be cast in one operation.