Motion Control Systems

Do you need precise control of position, velocity and torque at an incredible price?
Check out our SureServo AC Servo Systems: 3 standard drives, 8 standard motors...100W to 3kW

Do you need a stepper motor and drive system with high performance and torque at a low cost?
Check out the great prices on our SureStep motion control product family. [go to SureStep description]

What is a Motion Control System?

Motion control is typically considered to be the industrial automation field of controlling the position and/ or velocity of some type of actuator, usually an electric motor. Motion control is a very important component of robotics applications, but it is also used extensively in many other industrial applications where the motions are less complex. Non-robotic applications are often referred to as General Motion Control (GMC). For example, motion control systems are used widely in the packaging, printing, manufacturing and assembly industries, as well as many others. Common motion control product manufacturing applications include conveyor system controls, food processing, or other material handling applications.

Typical motion control system architectures include:

• A motion board to generate the trajectory and close the position loop, sometimes also the velocity loop (this is referred to as servo control).
  Servo can also refer to servomechanism - which is a device used to cause mechanical motion for a specific distance.
• A drive or amplifier to transform the velocity or torque signal into a high power electrical current
• A motor for actuation
• Some mechanical device (i.e. gearbox)
• A feedback sensor to return the motor position to the motion board and the drive or amplifier

SureServo™ - AC Servo Systems [more info]

The AutomationDirect SureServo family of brushless servo systems is fully digital and offers a rich set of features to cover a broad range of applications. There are eight standard servo motors that can be operated in combination with one of three standard servo drives. The servo drives can be configured for a range of command sources including analog torque, analog velocity, "step & direction" or "up & down" pulse position, quadrature encoder follower, and built-in motion controller with preset position, velocity, or torque. Presets can be selected with switch inputs or modified with the MODBUS serial interface. Configuration and diagnostics of the servo drives can be accomplished with the integrated keypad/display or the easy-to-use PC-based software called SureServo Pro.

The SureServo brushless motors include a 2500 line incremental encoder with quadrature data signals (A+, A-, B+, B-) and a marker pulse (Z+, Z-). All three signals have a line driver output resulting in 10,000 pulses per revolution plus index mark as the standard resolution inside the drive. Each servo motor also has one connector for the encoder and another connector for the motor power and optional 24 VDC spring-set holding brake.

The SureServo family includes standard accessories such as motor encoder cables, motor power/brake cables, ZIPLink kit for drive's CN1 connector that provides for easy connection of external controller and I/O, optional external regeneration resistors, and optional AC input filters.

• Eight standard systems from 100 W to 3 kW
• Use with PLCs or any other host control
• Everyday low prices and same day shipping
• Free set-up software (SureServo Pro software available for free as a download, or for a nominal fee on a CD)
• 2 year warranty
• 30 day money-back guarantee

Why Use A Servo?
(vs. Using a lower cost stepping system)

The SureServo AC servo systems provide the highest possible level of performance for precise control of position, velocity, and torque.
As compared to lower cost stepping systems, the AC servo products provide:

• More torque at higher speeds (up to 5,000 rpm)
• Broader range & higher power (up to 3kW)
• Higher response with closed-loop control (high hit rate without stalling or lost position)

SureStep™ Stepper Motor Systems [more info]

AutomationDirect is pleased to offer the SureStep™ family of products, an open-loop stepping system that provides simple and accurate control of position and speed and offers a solution for applications requiring lower power. Programmable logic controllers (PLCs) or other indexers and motion controllers act as a stepper motor controller to send step pulses and direction signals that are received by the stepper motor driver to allow very precise motion control. The SureStep stepping motor, microstepping drive and power supply products provide a low-cost, reliable, high quality solution to answer your positioning control needs.

The SureStep family includes four standard stepping motors and a "one-size-fits-all" stepper motor driver. With holding torques from 83 oz-inch to 434 oz-inch in NEMA size 17, 23 or 34 frames, the stepper motors handle a wide range of automation applications, including woodworking, assembly and test machines. These stepping motors operate on 2.8 A per phase (size 17 motor uses 2.0 A). The square frame style of the SureStep™ stepper motor produces high torque and allows the motors to achieve the best torque-to-volume ratio. All four stepping motors are connectorized for easy hookup.

A 20-foot extension cable with locking connector is a standard option to interface the SureStep motors to the 2-phase microstepping drive that communicates with the stepping motor controller. The cable can easily be cut to length if needed. The stepper drive can operate any of the four standard motors and features standard +5 VDC optically isolated logic inputs for interfacing with AutomationDirect PLCs and many other 3rd party controllers/ indexers.

A 9-position DIP switch is used to set up the drive; no software or add-on resistors are required for configuration. The DIP switches are used for built-in self test, step angle selection, current level selection and optional idle current reduction.

Step pulses and direction signals from the AutomationDirect PLCs or other indexers and motion controllers are "translated" by the microstepping drive into precise movements of the stepping motor shaft. The drive uses advanced microstepping technology with selectable step sizes of 400 steps per revolution (divide by 2), 1,000 steps per revolution (divide by 5), 2,000 steps per revolution (divide by 10) and 10,000 steps per revolution (divide by 50). The 2-phase bipolar motors have 200 full steps per revolution or 1.8 degrees per full step.

A standard 32 VDC, 4-amp linear power supply completes the SureStep line. The power supply operates at least two SureStep stepping systems of any size with an auxiliary +5 VDC regulated supply to facilitate AutomationDirect PLCs and stepper motor driver interfaces.

NOTE: For further details or technical specifications, select the desired product category and select the "Products" tab and click on the desired "Item Code" link, or select the "Technical Info" tab.