audible snap design
audible snap design
(OP)
We are trying to design a plastic latch that, when assembled, gives a very distinct snap sound. Has anyone ever worked with different beam geometries/materials to optimize a snap sound? Weird question, I know. Thanks in advance.






RE: audible snap design
You need a 'sounding board', as in a related surface being relatively large and flexible, so as to radiate the shock wave that travels through the plastic when the snap drops off the far side of the ramp.
Examine some children's toys. Not for snap fits; you know how to do that, or can find out. Look at the size and thickness of the acoustic radiating elements of toys that produce sound without electronics.
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
RE: audible snap design
RE: audible snap design
Things to consider :
-Snap stiffness - material (elasticity), thickness, shape/ribbing
-Resonance (As Mike stated more completely above)
-Stiffness of mating parts or nearby parts - in a way you are trying to control which parts vibrate and which do not by designing the proper stiffness into each.
-Volume around snap and amount of material between snap and outer surface
-Ramp/Cam profile - what does your force curve look like? How much designed deflection is there?
-Creep, stress - Is your part loaded at rest leading to creep? Is your design stress too high during motion causing plastic deformation (usually due to too much deflection)?
Mechanical design engineer
www.johnboezi.com