UK | BNL Bearings | Controls | UK

We work closely in collaboration with our customers in the automotive and domestic appliance controls markets.

We initially worked with automotive controls companies to replace unstable, multi component encoders with a plastic bearing that integrates both ‘push’ and ‘rotate’ functionality in one moulded product.

Today, we design and manufacture a range of designs for some of the most innovative user interfaces on the market.

Our bearing technology underpins designs that operate touchscreen and touchpad controls, Head-Up displays (HUDs), volume and menu selectors, scrolling wheels and thermostats in applications from in-car entertainment systems to domestic appliances.

Our signature custom-designed plastic bearings are especially suited to this market, serving the diverse requirements of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) who require different haptic feedback and product characteristics.

Custom Controls with Consistent Connection

BNL have partnered with Microchip Technology Inc. in the design & manufacture of their maXTouch® Knob on Display (KoD™) family of touchscreen controllers.

These KoDs combine the benefits of a mechanical knob with a touchscreen display. Mainly aimed at the automotive market, these controls could also be used as controls for domestic appliances, heating and cooling controls and industrial machinery.

The KoDs can be mounted directly to the screen saving time and assembly costs, and offering more design flexibility for OEMs. The BNL KoD can be customised to the specification of each customer, offering bespoke haptics, detent counts and profile, springs and an axial push function as well as rotation.

Find out more about BNL’s partnership with Microchip on the KoDs, about our rotational touchscreen control bearings and our custom control knob designs for automotive and domestic appliances.

Integrated Designs

By moulding rather than machining our plastic bearings, we provide a high degree of design flexibility and innovation.

We have worked on a variety of controls products including:

– a multi-functional modular control knob bearing with multi-axis functionality, to allow our customer to offer a range of functionality from one control knob product

– a bearing with slide and turn functions around a fixed area allowing for a display to be positioned in the centre without compromising on axial and rotary movement

– an integrated bearing to replace the instability of linear slides in an automotive control pad

– a set of different diameter automotive control knob bearings, with different feel and sound to match proprietary OEM haptics

Our bearings integrate features and functions for proprietary haptics, including adjustable torque, retaining features, castellations for optical sensors, poke yoke characteristics, a middle space location for displays, identifiers and photo interrupter fingers – all in one plastic bearing product.

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1. Our integrated bearing is more stable than multi-component encoders and linear slides, reducing ‘wobble’
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2. Injection moulding allows us to create design features such as a central space for LED displays and informatics
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3. One integrated product with push button, rotational and sliding functionality through different axis
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Plastic materials are self-lubricated so need no grease to operate smoothly
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Adjustable Torque

We design our bearings to achieve a specific torque to rotate requested by the customer and the OEM, giving the controls a particular type of ‘feel’. We use a low torque to rotate as a basis – plastic bearings are lightweight and do not need grease and so exhibit a low torque naturally. Low torque to rotate enables their smooth operation and can then use design features to ‘tune’ the torque to a range of resistances for each product.

Haptics

Most controls manufacturers and OEMs, especially in the automotive market, have a proprietary sound and feel to their controls. We provide proprietary haptics by integrating specific features such as detents, wave forms and springs into the bearing, to achieve a required feel or ‘click’ to suit customer specification.

Our control products range from those with minimal haptics, designed to be quiet with a smooth and high-quality feel, to those with moulded detents and integrated springs to create a louder ‘click’ and a ‘heavy’ feel.

Stability

By integrating functions into our plastic bearings, we provide more stability than multi-component encoders or linear slides, reducing the feel of ‘wobble’ in the haptic feedback, without sacrificing the smooth, free spin from the low torque design. This stability and smoothness make our bearings particularly suited for use with touchpads where precise movement is imperative to prevent the pad from rocking, and touchscreens, where bearing rotation tracks through options on a menu or scale via conductive components. Smooth and stable contact with the screen is essential to ensure the signal is consistent.

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1. A base design of low torque and minimal features customisable to meet OEM requirements for haptic feedback and component reduction
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2. We can ‘tune’ the torque and change the resistance on the bearing rotation to create a specific feel
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3. We design and integrate features such as detents, wave forms and springs to achieve specific haptic requirements
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4. Integrated features to simplify assembly by combining retainers and poke yoke characteristics
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