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Overhung load adaptors provide load support and contamination protection

Overhung load adaptors (OHLA) provide both overhung radial and axial load support to protect electrified mobile equipment motors from heavy application loads, extending the lifetime of the motor and alleviating the cost of downtime both from maintenance costs and loss of production. They seal out dirt, grime, and other contaminants too. Zero-Max OHLAs are available in an extensive offering of standard models (including Extra-Duty options) for typical applications or customized designs.
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Why choose electric for linear actuators?

Tolomatic has been delivering a new type of linear motion technology that is giving hydraulics a run for its money. Learn the benefits of electric linear motion systems, the iceberg principle showing total cost of ownership, critical parameters of sizing, and conversion tips.
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New AC hypoid inverter-duty gearmotors

Bodine Electric Company introduces 12 new AC inverter-duty hypoid hollow shaft gearmotors. These type 42R-25H2 and 42R-30H3 drives combine an all-new AC inverter-duty, 230/460-VAC motor with two hypoid gearheads. When used with an AC inverter (VFD) control, these units deliver maintenance-free and reliable high-torque output. They are ideal for conveyors, gates, packaging, and other industrial automation equipment that demands both high torque and low power consumption from the driving gearmotor.
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Next-gen warehouse automation: Siemens, Universal Robots, and Zivid partner up

Universal Robots, Siemens, and Zivid have created a new solution combining UR's cobot arms with Siemens' SIMATIC Robot Pick AI software and Zivid's 3D sensors to create a deep-learning picking solution for warehouse automation and intra-logistics fulfillment. It works regardless of object shape, size, opacity, or transparency and is a significant leap in solving the complex challenges faced by the logistics and e-commerce sectors.
Read the full article.

Innovative DuoDrive gear and motor unit is UL/CSA certified

The DuoDrive integrated gear unit and motor from NORD DRIVE-SYSTEMS is a compact, high-efficiency solution engineered for users in the fields of intralogistics, pharmaceutical, and the food and beverage industries. This drive combines a IE5+ synchronous motor and single-stage helical gear unit into one compact housing with a smooth, easy-to-clean surface. It has a system efficiency up to 92% and is available in two case sizes with a power range of 0.5 to 4.0 hp.
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BLDC flat motor with high output torque and speed reduction

Portescap's 60ECF brushless DC slotted flat motor is the newest frame size to join its flat motor portfolio. This 60-mm BLDC motor features a 38.2-mm body length and an outer-rotor slotted configuration with an open-body design, allowing it to deliver improved heat management in a compact package. Combined with Portescap gearheads, it delivers extremely high output torque and speed reduction. Available in both sensored and sensorless options. A great choice for applications such as electric grippers and exoskeletons, eVTOLs, and surgical robots.
Learn more and view all the specs.

Application story: Complete gearbox and coupling assembly for actuator system

Learn how GAM engineers not only sized and selected the appropriate gear reducers and couplings required to drive two ball screws in unison using a single motor, but how they also designed the mounting adapters necessary to complete the system. One-stop shopping eliminated unnecessary components and resulted in a 15% reduction in system cost.
Read this informative GAM blog.

Next-gen motor for pump and fan applications

The next evolution of the award-winning Aircore EC motor from Infinitum is a high-efficiency system designed to power commercial and industrial applications such as HVAC fans, pumps, and data centers with less energy consumption, reduced emissions, and reduced waste. It features an integrated variable frequency drive and delivers upward of 93% system efficiency, as well as class-leading power and torque density in a low-footprint package that is 20% lighter than the previous version. Four sizes available.
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Telescoping linear actuators for space-constrained applications

Rollon's new TLS telescoping linear actuators enable long stroke lengths with minimal closed lengths, which is especially good for applications with minimal vertical clearance. These actuators integrate seamlessly into multi-axis systems and are available in two- or three-stage versions. Equipped with a built-in automated lubrication system, the TLS Series features a synchronized drive system, requiring only a single motor to achieve motion. Four sizes (100, 230, 280, and 360) with up to 3,000-mm stroke length.
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Competitively priced long-stroke parallel gripper

The DHPL from Festo is a new generation of pneumatic long-stroke grippers that offers a host of advantages for high-load and high-torque applications. It is interchangeable with competitive long-stroke grippers and provides the added benefits of lighter weight, higher precision, and no maintenance. It is ideal for gripping larger items, including stacking boxes, gripping shaped parts, and keeping bags open. It has high repetition accuracy due to three rugged guide rods and a rack-and-pinion design.
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Extend your range of motion: Controllers for mini motors

FAULHABER has added another extremely compact Motion Controller without housing to its product range. The new MC3603 controller is ideal for integration in equipment manufacturing and medical tech applications. With 36 V and 3 A (peak current 9 A), it covers the power range up to 100 W and is suitable for DC motors with encoder, brushless drives, or linear motors.
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When is a frameless brushless DC motor the right choice?

Frameless BLDC motors fit easily into small, compact machines that require high precision, high torque, and high efficiency, such as robotic applications where a mix of low weight and inertia is critical. Learn from the experts at SDP/SI how these motors can replace heavier, less efficient hydraulic components by decreasing operating and maintenance costs. These motors are also more environmentally friendly than others.
View the video.

Tiny and smart: Step motor with closed-loop control

Nanotec's new PD1-C step motor features an integrated controller and absolute encoder with closed-loop control. With a flange size of merely 28 mm (NEMA 11), this compact motor reaches a max holding torque of 18 Ncm and a peak current of 3 A. Three motor versions are available: IP20 protection, IP65 protection, and a motor with open housing that can be modified with custom connectors. Ideal for applications with space constraints, effectively reducing both wiring complexity and installation costs.
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Closed loop steppers drive new motion control applications

According to the motion experts at Performance Motion Devices, when it comes to step motors, the drive technique called closed loop stepper is making everything old new again and driving a burst of interest in the use of two-phase step motors. It's "winning back machine designers who may have relegated step motors to the category of low cost but low performance."
Read this informative Performance Motion Devices article.

Intelligent compact drives with extended fieldbus options

The intelligent PD6 compact drives from Nanotec are now available with Profinet and EtherNet/IP. They combine motor, controller, and encoder in a space-saving package. With its 80-mm flange and a rated power of 942 W, the PD6-EB is the most powerful brushless DC motor of this product family. The stepper motor version has an 86-mm flange (NEMA 34) and a holding torque up to 10 Nm. Features include acceleration feed forward and jerk-limited ramps. Reduced installation time and wiring make the PD6 series a highly profitable choice for machine tools, packaging machines, or conveyor belts.
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Engineers develop networked self-analyzing electric motors

A team of engineers from Saarland University in Germany is developing intelligent motor systems that function without the need for additional sensors. By essentially transforming the motor itself into a sensor, the team, led by Professor Matthias Nienhaus, is creating smart motors that can tell whether they are still running smoothly, can communicate and interact with other motors, and can be efficiently controlled.

Simply using magnetic-field data collected from the motor while it is operating, the researchers are able to calculate quantities that in other systems would need to be measured by additional sensors -- and they are teaching the drive how to make use of this knowledge.

By transforming the motor itself into a sensor, a team led by Professor Matthias Nienhaus is creating smart motors. [Credit: Oliver Dietze]

 

 

They are currently working with project partners to study and test a number of different procedural methods. The ultimate goal is to make manufacturing processes more cost effective and flexible and to enable machinery and equipment to be continuously monitored for faults or signs of wear.

The project will be highlighted at the huge HANNOVER MESSE trade show in Germany from April 25-29, where the team will be exhibiting at the Saarland Research and Innovation Stand in Hall 2, Stand B46.

Sensors are all around us in today's world. Cars, for example, contain dozens of these tiny artificial sentient devices that warn us when, for instance, something gets too close to the vehicle, when the coolant gets too hot, or when there is too little fuel in the tank. But these small, sensitive detectors can sometimes fail and stop working, with the result that the vehicle is left standing at the side of the road. And what can happen to a car can also happen to other machines or pieces of plant equipment: A faulty sensor can lead to production downtimes and financial losses.

Professor Nienhaus, a drive systems specialist, is working on developing a new kind of self-monitoring motor -- one that doesn't need sensors. "We're developing an important new type of sensor -- the motor itself," says Nienhaus. The advantage of this new approach is that the engineers simply collect data that is available from the normal operation of the motor. "That makes our approach very cost effective, as there's no need to install any additional sensors," he says. "We're looking at elegant ways of extracting data from the motor and of using this data for motor control and for monitoring and managing processes. We are also working with project partners on improving the design and construction of miniature motors so that they yield the greatest possible quantity of operational information." His specialist area of research concerns electromagnetic miniature and microdrive systems with power ratings ranging from a tenth of a watt to several hundred watts.

Just like a doctor uses blood test data to draw conclusions about the health of a patient, Nienhaus and his team use motor data to determine the health of a drive system.

In order to gather data from the motor, Nienhaus and his team carefully monitor the precise distribution of the magnetic field strength in the motor. An electromagnetic field is generated when electric current flows through the coils located within the outer ring of rotating permanent magnets. The researchers record how this magnetic field changes when the motor rotates. This data can then be used to compute the position of the rotor and to draw other inferences about the status of the motor, which allows the motor to be controlled efficiently and error states to be detected reliably.

"We examine how our measured data correlates with specific motor states and how specific measured quantities change when the motor is not operating as it should," says Nienhaus. Gathering data from the motor while it is operating normally is particularly valuable for the research team; the more motor data they have, the more efficiently they can control the motor. The engineers analyze the huge amount of motor data in order to identify those signal patterns that can be used to infer something about the current status of the motor or to flag changes arising from a malfunction or from wear. The team is developing mathematical models that simulate the various motor states, fault levels, and degrees of wear.

The results are fed into a microcontroller, the brain of the system that processes the data. If a certain signal changes, the controller can identify the underlying fault or error and respond accordingly. These "sentient" motors can be linked together via a network operating system to form an integrated complex that opens up numerous opportunities in the fields of maintenance, quality assurance, and production. It is also conceivable that a system could be designed in which one motor automatically takes over if one of the other motors fails.

Nienhaus is currently testing a number of different methodologies to determine those best suited to acquiring data from the motor. He is also looking to identify which motor speed range generates the best data and which type of motor is best suited for this type of application.

This work is being carried out as part of a multi-partner industry project called "Modular sensor systems for real-time process control and smart state monitoring" (MoSeS-Pro), whose members include companies such as Bosch, Festo, Sensitec, Pollmeier, CANWAY, and Lenord, Bauer & Co. The goal of the research project is to develop a suite of hardware and software modules with which it will be easier to develop sensor systems for monitoring and controlling drives and positioning systems, paving the way for fast and precise manufacturing processes that can be monitored and adjusted in real time.

Application example: Smart conveyor rollers
Conveyor systems are used in many different places: mail-order firms, parcel delivery services, factories, and airports, to name but a few. To improve the speed and reliability with which goods are transported to their destinations, engineers at Saarland University are currently developing smart conveyor rollers that communicate with one another by turning the motor inside every drive roller into a sensor. When the conveyor is running, the drive motors continuously generate data, which allows the rollers to be precisely controlled and thus respond to changing operating conditions. These intelligent roller conveyor systems can identify new routes if a fault arises or can flag certain conditions, such as when there is space in a box for more cans. The project partners intend to test the system at a large distribution center.

Professor Nienhaus' conveyor system under development does not require any additional sensors, such as position sensors, so it is remarkably inexpensive. There is also no risk of sensitive (extra) sensors becoming damaged or unable to generate a signal for some reason.

If one of the rollers is not rotating properly because the bearing is worn, or if a short circuit has knocked out one of the coils, the magnetic field generated by the motor will change and this will be immediately registered by the system.

"The data we gather enables us to detect even very small changes," says Nienhaus.

The system is able to detect any deterioration in the performance of a roller early on. The engineers perform calculations and experiments to determine how the measurement data correlates with specific motor states. The results are stored in the system's "brain" -- a microcontroller that processes the data in real time.

The thousands of individual rollers in the roller conveyor system interact with one another via the network operating system that is integrated into each roller. The rollers can communicate with each other and can therefore respond flexibly whenever an unexpected condition arises. Unlike conveyor systems with a centralized external controller, each conveyor roller "knows" by itself how to respond at any given time. This makes it possible to build roller conveyor systems that can do new things.

"By analyzing angular momentum data, we can draw conclusions about the weight of a box currently being transported and decide whether or not another package could be added to the box," says Nienhaus. The system could then make fulfillment and transport decisions on its own. He and his team are also working on ways to make the data even more reliable by computationally filtering out artifacts and interference effects.

Source: Laboratory of Actuation Technology, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany

Published April 2016

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