When it comes to silicone rubber, most people first think of the RTV Silicone Adhesive Sealant that is used in the repairment, or the jelly-like silicone protective cover of smartphones which is inseparable from its excellent waterproof, temperature-resistant, and shock-absorbing properties. However, most still don't know how widely silicone rubber-made products can be adopted in specific industries or categories. Or, some are even not sure whether silicone rubber can be used as an alternative raw material or solutions for certain specific products. Today we will show you all types of silicone rubber products and what industries they cover. Our road map will help you have a preliminary understanding of the world of silicone rubber.
The category of silicone rubber products
O-Rings
Silicone O-rings are mechanical gaskets with a round cross-section. They are used to prevent gas and fluid leaks in static and dynamic applications and are manufactured from various types of elastomers. There may have plenty of generic models available on the market for you to choose for your specific device. However, the sealing result and endurability highly depend on the hardness of the material. That narrows down the options you can have from the after-market. LAIMES is specialized in all kinds of custom silicone rubber O-rings, seals, and gaskets based on products function and structure to make sure the O-rings fit its assembly components perfectly.
Gaskets
The silicone gasket is also a kind of sealing part, which is used to bind the two components or the shell to achieve the sealing for leak-proof and tight pressing purposes. Due to its shape being determined by the design of the combined parts, which is an irregular shape, so the application range of this silicone part is more extensive, and it is almost not possible to find the off-the-shelf products on the market to use. The applications of silicone rubber gasket can be seen in automobiles, industries, household appliances, and electronic devices. The techniques of silicone rubber gaskets are actually very high and professional because it is not easy to produce. However, people often underestimate the development technology and manufacturing thresholds of silicone rubber gaskets and cause functional defects. Finding a manufacturer with rich experience and design capabilities to undertake will save you a lot of wrongdoing.
Keypads and accessories
The soft-touch feeling and flexible buttons or keypad on the TV remote control which we use in everyday life are made with silicone rubber. Moreover, when you pay by credit card at the counter will need the pos terminal machines. The digital operation buttons are also silicone-made buttons. As long as a device which is involved pressing (stroke) and touch (manual) functions, they can be implemented with silicone rubber keypads or silicone buttons. Silicone keypads/buttons are not only used as an external interface for manual functions but can also be used as interior parts inside the device. The function is the same. For example, we see the central controls buttons, sunroof buttons, navigation instrument buttons in the cars. The top hard shell of keypads and buttons looks like a PC or plastic material, but they still sink and rebound when pressed. This is because a silicone rubber lining is added to the bottom of the device. Broadly speaking, electronic devices in various fields will have requirements for silicone rubber keypads/buttons or accessories.
Zebra Connectors(Elastomeric Connectors)
Zebra connectors are also known as Elastomeric connector is made of silicone rubber. That is why the zebra connectors are soft and elastic. Zebra connectors are widely applied to various LCD panels to be the bridge of LCD panels and the PCB boards. Silicone rubber has innate insulation properties and is combined with conductive materials to perfectly realize the signal conduction of the device while blocking conduction in the designated area without causing signal interference to affect the interpretation. Secondly, it has the characteristic of elasticity to closely cover each golden finger on PCB chips after assembly. The audio screen of the car or the screen window on the thermometer or blood glucose meter is a typical example of using conductive strips as the screen signal display. LAIMES is one of the few suppliers in the current market that still produces elastomeric connectors from raw materials to finished products.
The application of silicon rubber parts
Medical & Healthcare
Relying on its high transparency of texture, non-toxicity, high biocompatibility, and no allergic reaction, silicone rubber parts have a pivotal position in the medical industry, whether it is adhesives/sutures in surgical treatments, artificial valves/artificials in organ transplants. For medical purposes such as lungs, or artificial skin/dressings in trauma healing, we often see silicone rubber parts and silicone rubber products; in addition, the softness of silicone rubber has been widely used in the plastic surgery industry since 1963. Such as cosmetic needles and silicone rubber breast augmentation surgery and so on. The rest, such as common maternal and child products in daily life, and kitchen utensils are also silicone rubber-made products.
Automotives
Silicone rubber parts have high-temperature resistance, acid and alkali resistance, and good compression characteristics, and are favored by automobile manufacturers. Sitting in a car, many of the interiors such as LCD screen display, central control buttons, sunroof buttons, car navigation instrument buttons, steering wheel controller buttons, car rearview mirror switch controllers, air conditioning controller buttons, reading lamp buttons. and so on are silicone rubber parts. As for car components, there are motors, drive components, etc. that require silicone rubber parts as well. And a very important concept is that the automotive industry's requirements for the safety of automotive parts will not be lower than that of medical products. This shows how unique the feature of silicone rubber parts is.
Consumer electronics & Home appliances
As mentioned earlier, silicone rubber keypads and buttons or accessories can be seen everywhere in daily life. There is another advantage of silicone rubber besides the function, that is, the skin-soft touch. Yes, the keypads and buttons are created for hand operation, right? Back in the 1970s, when the keypads and buttons of electronic devices are made of hard metal that was so clumsy, slow-reacting, cold, and rigid, which can cause pain in the fingers when pressing too much pressure or for too long. This is how the silicone rubber button was born to save the fingers of all human beings, in order to improve the lifespan and accuracy of the product and enhance the user experience. In addition, many electronic devices have certain requirements for waterproof function, which also allows silicone rubber parts to better exert their waterproof advantages. Common applications include credit card machines, computers, chronographs, treadmill buttons, massage chair control panels, 3C peripheral products, USB/SD hole waterproof and dustproof covers, home appliances buttons, mobile phone protective covers... etc.
Industry & Building
More and more light and heavy industrial enterprises are striving for green energy transformation to achieve sustainable operation. Silicone has good thermal conductivity, insulation, heat dissipation, abrasion resistance, high and low-temperature resistance, flame resistance, buffer and anti-slip, anti-aging, and excellent electrical properties. It can be widely used in precise industrial devices like vernier caliper, measuring equipment, oil and gas valve, handheld device, waterproof/ dustproof gasket, etc, all need high and stable quality. High-quality rubber design will increase accuracy and safety, reduce testing time.
Conclusion
The industries and product categories mentioned above are not enough to cover or define all silicone rubber products, because the fields that need it and the emerging industries are still expanding. This is also related to the safety and non-toxic environmental advantages of silicone products. If you want to develop towards sustainable operation, you cannot ignore the potential development of silicone rubber. LAIMES is committed to a sustainable business model that creates value for its stakeholders through more sustainable processes, the latest technology, and the most innovative design. We also adhere to the persistence of environmental protection and the vision of sustainable operation and are dedicated to continuing to deepen and expand in the field of silicone product production. Continuously refine and upgrade the production process and equipment to break through the framework and limitations of various product development. LAIMES welcomes corporate customers who have the same values and concepts to join us.
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