Motors & Drives

The latest variable speed drive technology from Parker Hannifin, the global leader in motion and control technologies, is being used by British Airways to improve the efficiency and reliability of its flight cabin simulators. By enabling the simulators’ hydraulic control systems to be powered only when needed, the drives are cutting energy consumption by 95%, in addition to extending maintenance intervals and service life considerably.

Metrix offers the Vibralert® Mechanical Switch for economical vibration protection for low to medium speed machinery. The Metrix 5550 meets all requirements for mechanical switches in a single, affordable weatherproof package, with optional IS hazardous area rating. Whilst it is a simple mechanical switch it can be supplied with local and remote reset options with an adjustable start-up delay to ensure no false alarms.

Haydon Kerk Motion Solutions introduces the Haydon RoHS compliant IDEA™ programmable stepper motor drive. The IDEA Drive is a compact, easy-to-use electronic drive and fully programmable control unit with a patent pending graphic user interface. Programming the drive is through the use of on-screen buttons instead of complicated command sets or other proprietary programming languages.

Renishaw’s DSi (Dual Signal interface) is now available with its TONiC™ family of incremental optical encoders, bringing even higher accuracy to rotary axes and giving customers a selectable reference mark position via the company’s propoZ™ technology.

Haydon Kerk Motion Solutions introduces the Haydon RoHS compliant IDEA™ non-captive programmable linear actuator. In addition to full programmability through an easy-to-use graphic user interface, the non-captive actuator configuration is capable of up to 20” of stroke length with a variety of screw pitches allowing fine resolution linear motion. The non-captive IDEA programmable actuator is perfect for small gantry robots, motion systems for optics and lasers, high resolution imaging, precision fluid dispense, and other applications requiring precision linear motion.

When bpi.films needed to replace worn out and obsolete actuators at the end of a process line they were faced with a few problems. Their replacements needed to match the fixing centres and diameter of the failed mechanisms and be sufficiently compact so as not to impinge on the nearby drive system. The Framo Mini 3 actuator from R. A. Rodriguez proved to be the ideal solution and was also available on a very short lead time. Within ten days the process was restored to full automation.

A distinctive characteristic of the Huco Dynatork power transmission range is that many of its standard driveline products cater for specific application needs. A good example of this is its electric motors for use in wet and humid environments.

Piezoceramic stepping drives which combine large travel ranges with resolutions of better than 1 nm (0.001 µm) open up many application areas in nanopositioning. This includes semiconductor manufacturing, testing equipment and wafer inspection as well as nanolithography or nanometrology and active vibration control, e.g. in mechanical engineering. Because precision drives are very reliable, they are used directly there where the motion is required and also where the access is difficult. The facts such as that they are additionally not affected by even strong magnetic fields and safely hold loads also, when powered down, make them interesting for further applications, e.g. in space.

MAC00-B41 is a new module intended to be used for the integrated MAC servo motors type MAC400 and MAC800.

Gmeinder traction products, available in the UK from M Buttkereit Ltd, have a long established reputation for both quality and durability. Their final drive units and gearboxes have been specified for modern rail mounted equipment in operation throughout the world. This includes diesel locomotives (mechanical, hydraulic and electric variations) for light and heavy duty diesel railcars, trams, underground and surface transport including a wide range of special purpose rail vehicles.