About Jigs and Fixtures

What are jigs and fixtures?

Jigs and fixtures have been widely used since before the Industrial Age. As a tool that assists in product manufacturing, jigs and fixtures are primarily used in complex technical stages of product assembly, testing, and other manufacturing processes. They play a critical role in positioning, fixing, adjusting angles, or directing motion, as well as in control and inspection operations.   Certain types of jigs are also referred to as “molds” or “auxiliary tools,” with their main purpose being to allow for the repetitive and precise replication of a part.

Why are jigs & fixtures made?

Jigs and fixtures are produced because of the needs of the business. Many types of jigs and fixtures are customized, and the main purpose of using them is to improve production efficiency, repeat specific actions, or make work more precise, thereby reducing the defect rate of the products and ensuring product quality.

Application for jigs and fixtures

Due to their wide range of applications and the complexity of the production processes involved, jigs are characterized by a high degree of customization, product diversity, and contour-based design. Jigs are widely used across many industries, including consumer electronics, smart home technology, automotive, medical, and photovoltaic sectors.

What should be considered when making a jig or fixture?

1. To ensure the safety of operations, we know that whether it is a manual jig or a semi-automatic or automatic jig, it requires human operation. Therefore, when designing and manufacturing jigs, the safety of jig operation should be taken into consideration.
2. It should not have too many functions but should be easy to operate, which is the primary principle in jig or fixture design.
3. It must meet the machining requirements.
4. Jig or fixture components should have good interchangeability.
5. The correct raw materials should be used.

Materials used for manufacturing jigs and fixtures

The materials generally used for jigs and fixtures should be wear-resistant to enhance the lifespan of the product and ensure the precision of its use, like the following materials:

Aluminum: good smoothness and high temperature stability, with lower manufacturing costs compared to steel jigs or other metal jigs.

Stainless Steel: mainly for its wear resistance and rust prevention functions, is commonly used in welding jigs;
Carbon Steel: It has high tensile and compressive strength, and can work under high pressure or heavy load.

Bakelite: it has high strength and is not prone to deformation.

POM (Polyoxymethylene): known for its excellent dimensional stability, rigidity, impact resistance, and temperature resistance.

Brass: it has very high corrosion resistance and is mechanically robust.
In addition, there is another case in the above multiple materials are integrated with the same jig or fixture.

How long will it take to manufacture jigs and fixtures

It usually takes 3-5 days to complete for small sets of quantity.

Manufacturing methods for jigs and fixtures

There are two manufacturing methods: CNC machining and 3D printing. CNC is a commonly used jig processing method, which is more comprehensive in material processing, and can also achieve better accuracy.