Exhaust gas regulations began in the motorcycle industry in the late 1990s and have become stricter with each passing year.
Long-life, legendary models are being discontinued one after another.
And the need to respond to carbon neutrality is growing day by day.
Even though, we want to continue giving many riders the joy of riding and owning motorcycles.
To achieve this, lightweight, high-performance, and cost-effective parts are essential.
Surely the motorcycle market and riders will want such high-quality parts.
In particular, weight reduction was our main focus, so fewer components are better.
Brake discs are parts that will remain essential, whether for internal combustion motorcycles or EVs.
We began exploring ways to reduce the weight of brake discs, our core product.
If this brand-new type of brake disc is accepted, its impact could be immeasurable.
We then devised a new method to fasten the parts, resulting in a lightweight, stylish, and unprecedented brake disc.
The key to success was finding a way to join the two parts without pins or washers.
The president and the technical director were discussing various options for creating brake discs with fewer components.
The president wondered, "Can't we get rid of the pins and washers that fasten the rotor to the bracket?"
The Technical Director was troubled…
How can two parts be joined without pins or bolts?
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't come up with a solution...
While out one day on a day off, the technical director's favorite song popped into his head. He then thought back to the trumpet he had played as a teenager.
A trumpet's slide-tubes are made with incredibly precise fittings...
Depending on how much force is applied, the tube may slide out—or may not.
This is it!
Maybe we can utilize the bonding strength of an interference fit between metals? An idea struck us.
An in-house project team was formed.
However, this project was different from previous developments.
In the past, there was a path, and if you followed it, you would arrive at your goal. This time, there was no path.
One of the selected project members, T, a second-year employee, was also hesitant. He loves motorcycles and races, so he is confident in his motorcycle experience. But with his limited work experience and skills, he wondered if he could handle the role...
The project began to move forward.
The end faces of brake disc rotors are perpendicular, and at our company, this perpendicularity is achieved through machining technology, while our press technology tends to remain in the background.
On the other hand, in the world of press technology, it is generally accepted that the edge of the material becomes beveled.
This time, we decided to use beveled press processing to achieve an interference fit and fasten the disc rotor to the bracket without pins or bolts.
In the end, we succeeded in fastening the rotor and bracket without pins or washers.
The inexperienced young team members were puzzled by this new ground, but they worked hard on the experiments and evaluations in front of them.
Then one of the team members had an idea: "If we develop our own product, wouldn't we have more freedom not only in terms of performance but also in terms of design?"
The team immediately began discussing the design and tried changing the color of the bracket.
When they saw the finished result, they were all excited, saying,
"This color is definitely going to be popular!"
Despite the challenges of development, the team also found joy, and the project moved forward with a strong desire to deliver a satisfying product.
After successfully passing tests and evaluations, the team finally completed a finish that they could propose to customers.
All of the team members' initial hesitation completely disappeared.
The brake disc we developed was named the "Miracle Fit Disc".
The parts fit together perfectly, as if by a miracle.
We are currently proposing it to customers and working hard toward adoption.
Our young team members learned how difficult it is to make decisions when there is no clear path to follow.
Sometimes, solutions hinge on intuition.
However, they also learned that intuition is born from knowledge and experience.
Our goal is to build a technical team where idea-makers and engineers coexist.
Our fastening technology has already been adopted and is beginning to appear in products such as our in-house developed Miracle Fit Disc, battery cases for electric golf carts, and products for air conditioning equipment.
This technology can be applied to a wide range of products, and in addition to these, new adoptions and proposals are rapidly increasing.
Miracle Fit Disc
Battery Case
Air Conditioner Panel
If you are interested in FUJICO, please feel free to contact us.
Our representatives will respond promptly to your inquiry.
