Linear motor is `ten times faster than ballscrews`
Copley Controls has developed a compact, direct-drive linear motor which, it claims, delivers ten times the speed and life of ballscrew actuators of a similar size. The ServoTube STB11 motor can accelerate at up to 25 g and achieve a positioning repeatability of ±12 microns. Typical applications are expected to include high-speed point-to-point positioning and pick-and-place systems
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The IP67-rated motor (above) can operate as speeds of up to 5.2m/s, deliver peak forces of up to 92N, and provide strokes up to 372mm in length.
Fields produced by coils in a 26mm-wide forcer interact directly with permanent magnets contained in an 11mm-wide stainless-steel thrust road. The load-carrying forcer moves on a low-friction single-rail bearing. The naturally air-cooled motor can operate continuously at high duty cycles.
There are no gears, ballscrews, couplings or drive motors to add inertia and impair responsiveness. An integral position sensor eliminates the need for external encoders.
