Flat washers and spring washers both belong to the category of washers, and they are two types of washers that are widely used in industrial automation applications. However, due to the significant differences in their usage characteristics and focus, careful selection is required based on the actual usage environment.
If an appropriate washer is not selected, not only will the washer not function as intended, but it may also cause additional malfunctions during equipment operation.
Therefore, let’s take a closer look at the advantages and disadvantages of flat washers and spring washers respectively.
Flat washers
Flat washers can increase the contact area between components and thus reduce pressure. Their advantages and disadvantages are as follows:
Advantages:
- By increasing the contact area between components, flat washers can protect equipment from damage during operation.
- By increasing the contact area between components, flat washers can also reduce the pressure between fasteners such as nuts and bolts and the equipment, providing a certain degree of protection.
Disadvantages:
Flat washers cannot prevent loosening or provide shock absorption.
Spring washers
In addition to protecting the surface of the connecting parts from damage by nuts and other fasteners, spring washers can also increase the friction between nuts and bolts, providing a certain degree of anti-loosening effect.
Advantages:
- Spring washers can provide good anti-loosening and shock absorption effects.
- The raw materials of spring washers are generally metal materials, which have a wide range of sources and low manufacturing costs, making them suitable for large-scale production or purchase.
- The installation process of spring washers is relatively simple, and the specific steps are not complicated, which is conducive to assembly line or even mechanical integration production.
Disadvantages:
The overall performance of spring washers is limited and affected by the materials and manufacturing processes used. If appropriate materials are not selected or certain special processes are not controlled properly, spring washers may easily break or have a short service life, causing quality problems.
Conclusion
In reality, due to the significant differences in the functional characteristics and advantages and disadvantages of flat washers and spring washers, both types of washers are often used in conjunction with each other in most working environments. This not only ensures the protection of the components, but also provides anti-loosening and shock absorption effects.
