ACS Motion Control (www.acsmotioncontrol.com) has announced the release of SPiiPlus UDMnt, an EtherCAT slave Universal Drive Module that drives directly one or two axes.

The Universal Drive Module supports DC brushless, AC servo, closed loop two-phase and five-phase step motors and open loop two-phase and five-phase step motors. Operating as an EtherCAT slave tool to any SPiiPlus EtherCAT master controller, it can also be connected to a network to allow coordinated control of up to 32 axes.

“The SPiiPlus UDMnt drive is an economical, yet high performance product that can be used as part of a completely distributed control network or as an auxiliary drive to complement an ACS MC4U integrated control system,” said ACS Motion Control Sales and Support Manager Jason Goerges.

“ACS’ SPiiPlus EtherCAT family of products offer advanced, high-level machine control with a smaller footprint and lower cost when compared to competing control solutions. Our universal drive technology provides a flexible solution for all motor topologies, helping to reduce costs by enabling users to run multiple axes from one drive module.”

The Universal Drive Module features general purpose I/O, dedicated encoder and limit inputs as well as robust fault protection. It is also available in a 10A, 5A or 20A peak current rating at a maximum of 60 Vdc bus voltage. At an update rate of 20 kHz per axis, the drive performs real time control of velocity, position and current.