Improving Oil Change Efficiency with Solenoids

This latching solenoid provided precise control over the amount of oil dispensed by an oil dispensing meter without any waste.

Customer Problem

A manufacturer of fluid handling systems needed a solution for an automatic shut-off feature on an oil dispensing meter. The meter’s high pressure and flow made it difficult to control manually, often resulting in spills. The manufacturer’s goal was to develop a product that would dispense a precise amount of oil without any spillage or waste. The solution also needed to be battery operated and compact.

The TLX Solution

TLX Technologies designed a custom latching solenoid that used a permanent magnet to hold the oil dispensing meter’s valve open without consuming any power. When the meter determined that the correct amount of oil had been dispensed, a short voltage pulse canceled the magnetic field of the permanent magnet, and a spring closed the valve and stopped the flow of oil. The solenoid could operate efficiently for six months on four AA batteries.

View Design Solution

Latching Solenoid

Stroke: 1.5 mm ± .508 mm

Supply voltage: 4.2 to 6.5 Vdc

Coil resistance at 20°C: 2.8 Ω ± .3 Ω

Net latching force: > 21.13 N

Spring load (latched position): > 10.23 N

Spring load (de-latched position): 4.45 N

Cycle life with 4 AA batteries: > 10K cycles

All TLX components are customized to fit system requirements, meaning technical specifications are unique to each customer and design. Examples given on our website are for illustration purposes only.

Working with TLX

Experienced partner of industry leaders, first-tier suppliers, and OEMs
Direct access to our design and engineering team
Localized production in USA and China
Dependable single-source solution from design to delivery

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Our Process

Step 1 / Initial Review

Our engineering team works directly with you to determine the viability of your program and identify the best solution based on your specifications.

Step 2 / Quote

Quotes include all costs related to your project - tooling, prototype, piece part, production and project specific costs.

Step 3 / Design Review & Prototypes

Our engineering team reviews the design with you and makes any adjustments needed. Prototypes are built according to design specifications for testing.

Step 4 / Testing

Prototypes are tested according to your specifications, with all relevant test data provided to you for evaluation.

Step 5 / APQP

DFMEA’s, PFMEA’s, control plans and process flow diagrams are started to drive the product intent design.

Step 6 / Pre-Production

Working drawings are developed for production. A second prototype build and a set of production parts are made from tooling and thoroughly tested.

Step 7 / PPAP/Production

The final design along with the PPAP (Production Part Approval Process) is developed and the new product enters production.

Step 8 / Ongoing Improvements

Our team collaborates with you to continue making improvements to the product to best meet your needs, increasing efficiency and reducing cost.

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