Of the three primary stepper motor designs — permanent magnet, variable reluctance, and hybrid — hybrid stepper motors are arguably the most popular in industrial applications, combining the best performance characteristics of permanent magnet and variable reluctance types. Hybrid stepper motors are constructed with a rotor made of two sections, or cups, with a permanent […]
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What are different ways to express a gear ratio?
In motion control systems, gears are used to change the torque and speed delivered by a motor to a driven component. Depending on how the gears are arranged, they can either increase the delivered torque and decrease the output speed (the most common arrangement in motion control applications) or decrease the delivered torque and increase […]
New distributed drive system designed for conveyor applications
The Sinamics G115D from Siemens is a new compact and powerful drive system specifically designed for horizontal conveyor applications. The drive system comprises the motor, drive and gearbox in one unit and is offered in two versions — wall-mounted and motor-mounted. The Sinamics G115D drive system features a robust design with a high IP protection […]
Magnetic ring encoder features functional safety for machine tool applications
HEIDENHAIN’s new absolute modular magnetic angle encoder is for applications needing contamination-resistant encoders with functional safety (FS) for machine feedback. This new ECM 2400 encoder supplements HEIDENHAIN’s portfolio of absolute angle encoders and is designed for machine tool applications that require a sturdy encoder with medium accuracy. The ECM 2400 is suitable for applications with […]
Absolute encoder interfaces: Differences between SSI, BiSS, Hiperface, and EnDat
Absolute encoders can communicate with controllers through parallel or serial wiring, over a fieldbus, or via an Ethernet-based protocol such as EtherCAT. Of these options, serial communication is a simpler solution than parallel wiring (which requires a twisted pair of wires for each bit of output) and is well-suited for applications that aren’t complex enough […]
IoT connectivity enhances controller performance
The controllers available today to design engineers have more built-in functions, are more powerful, and are being used in a wide array of diverse applications. We asked some of the top controls manufacturers what trends they’re seeing in the industry. Here’s what they told us. Do you see automation controllers in any new uses? Where […]
New spring-loaded pivot arm for wheel-encoder assemblies
POSITAL has introduced a new spring-loaded pivot arm mounting system for wheel-encoder assemblies. Like earlier spring-loaded mounting brackets, this device is designed to minimize slippage by maintaining a steady contact pressure between the wheel and the moving surface. However, the pivot arm can accommodate larger lateral movements of the moving surface. Spring tension can be […]
What are multi-stage gearboxes and when are they used?
Gearboxes are commonly used in motion control applications to change the output speed and torque from a motor to a driven component. By using a smaller gear with fewer teeth (commonly referred to as a pinion) to drive a larger gear with a higher number of teeth, the torque delivered to the load is increased while […]
Programmability is a key encoder design trend
Encoders are central to motion control applications, providing feedback in order to increase system accuracy and reliability. As other components in motion systems evolve, encoder manufacturers are making sure that their offerings keep pace with these broader technological changes. For instance, the rise in high-performance networks for motion control is in part driven by the […]
Trends: Sensors on the front lines of changing industrial world
Sensors play a key role in many types of automation systems and machines, helping ensure they perform at their optimal level. Sensors are also at the core of the trend for increased condition monitoring and the larger program of predictive maintenance, which aims to reduce or eliminate sudden and catastrophic machine failure by actively monitoring […]
