Let's stay with the pacifier for the time being: it calms the nerves - first those of the children, then those of the parents. To ensure that it withstands daily use and thus wear and tear without damage, it is tested in accordance with specified standards such as DIN EN 1400.

One of these tests is to pierce the teat with a tool. In this pressure test, the force required to penetrate the wall of the suction part is measured using a ZwickiLine testing machine. This test simulates biting the pacifier. Immediately after the bite resistance test, the test for tear strength follows - in the pre-damaged condition. Even if the wall of the pacifier is damaged, i.e. punctured, the pacifier must not tear or fall into pieces that could be swallowed. A pull test determines how much force is needed to tear the pacifier. DIN EN 1400 also provides limit values ​​here.

Tension test for cuddly toys

Stuffed animals are also subject to strict controls. Good workmanship and checking standardized minimum requirements help your favorite stuffed animal to put up with a lot. This is how they are torn under laboratory conditions. The forces required for this are recorded and recorded. In this way, well-founded statements can be made about the strength of the seam connections as well as the limbs of the stuffed animal. Applications such as the eyes or the nose must also prove that they are firmly attached and can only be detached from the stuffed animal by applying great force. Adequate testing devices and sample holders are required to obtain exact and, above all, reproducible values ​​from the tests. In view of the wide variety of test specimens, Zwick Roell offers a variety of diverse low clamps, tool tools and holders for specimens.

During the test of the seam connections, the stuffed animal is placed in a kind of holding cage. A circular opening is designed to allow a limb pull test to be performed without pulling the stuffed animal out of the cage. A simple screw sample holder serves as a counterpart for locking the limbs. The connection between the sewn-on eyes and the nose is also checked: clamped to the test table with a hold-down device, a thread connects the teddy bear's eye to the traverse. In both cases, a test is carried out until the seam fails, with the required force being recorded. In order to comply with the standard, the eye must not tear off under a load of 90 N.

Checking the breakaway and opening torques of medication bottles

Because small children are fascinated by medicine bottles, caps are made child-proof. The fuse requires an opening rotation superimposed by an axial load. The force required to open the screw cap and thus how secure the cap is is tested here. In the so-called push & turn test, the superimposed pressure and torsional forces required to open and close child-resistant containers and pharmaceutical packaging are determined. A Zwickiline bench testing machine with Fmax of 2.5 kN is used to test the breakaway and opening torques, supplemented by an additional torsion drive with a torque of 5 Nm. It allows the two test axes to be used for both independent and any combination of axial and torsion tests.