9/28/2009
HEADLINES
Steel “Velcro” Handles 35 Ton Load at 800° Celsius
Spring steel hook and loop fasteners developed at the Institute of Metal Forming and Casting of the Technische Universitaet Muenchen, Germany (courtesy Institute of Metal Forming and Casting).
Hook and loop fasteners made from spring steel have been developed at the Institute of Metal Forming and Casting of the Technische Universitaet Muenchen, Germany.
The fasteners are resistant to chemicals and can withstand a tensile load of up to 35 tonnes per square metre at temperatures as high as 800°C. ‘Metaklett’ won a German Stahl-Innovationspreis (Steel Innovation Award) in June this year, overcoming more than 100 competing projects. The jury noted, “Metaklett is suitable for a wide variety of applications, in which the combination of simple production and a high level of resilience in the fastener is crucial.”
Researchers at the Munich Technical University opted to use spring steel, which combines high ductility with high strength, to make the fasteners.
They created 3-D models to develop a variety of interlocking mechanisms. One, a spring lock mechanism, is known as the Flamingo. The other, a hook and loop system, is the Entenknopf or duck’s head. Both consist of 0.2mm thick hook tape and loop or perforated tape of the same thickness.
The duck’s head system is based on the traditional synthetic hook and loop concept, in which delicate steel hooks attach at any angle to the loops in the perforated metal tape.
The Flamingo variant is more stable. Wider hook elements snap into opening in the perforated tape. They are bent to deform elastically under light pressure and glide into the holes, similar to the mechanism of a backpack strap buckle. Once inserted their sprung splaying arms revert to form and resist back pull like an expanding rivet. ©2009 GlobalFastenerNews.com
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