2. Responding to functions

2.1 Permanent or temporary retention

If you're looking for a momentary hold:

• static electricity uses the surface properties of materials. The forces involved can be considerable. We use the attractive or repulsive forces of the materials to be joined with electrical charge-generating bars;

• The magnetic field is increasingly used in machine tools and in mold fixing for injection molding. It works with ferromagnetic materials;

• air vacuum holds two parts in position by eliminating the air between the two surfaces in contact. This solution is valid for smooth surfaces; it is often used in printing or flocking, in bonding applications, in thermoforming... ;

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