Benefits

• High spring energy with low weight and volume
• Overload-proof in block position
• High damping
• Maintenance-free
• Force-displacement diagram independent of load speed

Friction springs “RF” are indispensable safety components in all technical areas where sudden forces and kinetic energy must be absorbed or springs with high force are required with relatively small dimensions. Friction springs “RF” are used where large kinetic energy has to be absorbed and damped or a relatively small spring size is required to withstand high forces.

The application areas of friction springs “RF” are very diverse. Three main performance aspects are offered here, which can also be combined with each other: Overload protection, displacement compensation and energy absorption.

Friction springs “RF” consist of outer and inner rings which contact each other on their conical surfaces using a special lubricant. If an axial load acts on the spring column, the conical surfaces slide against each other and each ring is elastically deformed. This means: the outer ring is stretched and the inner ring is compressed. The resulting spring stroke is calculated from the change in diameter of the elastic deformation ring and its cone angle.

Compared to other types of springs, the circumferential stress is distributed almost evenly over the cross-section of the loaded spring element, so that each component is utilised evenly. This results in a lighter friction spring “RF” compared to other similar spring types. The special characteristic of the friction spring is the strong frictional damping of about two-thirds of the introduced energy.

Types of Friction Springs