Technical Case Study – Medical Applications

Customer Challenge

A leading manufacturer of medical products changed the design when developing a new pump for hospitals. This resulted in special requirements, whereby a spring was needed that delivers a constant force and in which component tolerances should not be a factor. The force had to be almost constant at different heights. There were also installation space problems that ruled out the use of a round wire spring.

TFC Solution

To solve the problem, TFC proposed a Smalley Crest-to-Crest® flat wire wave spring.
The wave springs are specially designed for the small installation space. The design was precisely designed according to the requirements and in consultation with the customer by our engineers. During the trials, the spring was once again adjusted to respond to changes in the pump’s design.
Due to the appropriate spring design, the spring rate could be kept very low, so an almost constant force was generated regardless of the component tolerances.

In addition, the spring was made of stainless steel to meet the requirements of the medical products. The service life is also very high and virtually permanent during load changes.

Customer Outcome

Thanks to the unique properties of the Crest-to-Crest® flat wire wave spring, the customer could implement their improved pump design and achieve very accurate drug dosing. In addition, the design of the pump has become much more compact.