Keywords
Citation
(2004), "Copley launches ServoTube actuator into Europe", Assembly Automation, Vol. 24 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/aa.2004.03324cad.001
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2004, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copley launches ServoTube actuator into Europe
Copley launches ServoTube actuator into Europe
Keywords: Actuators
Electrical actuator specialist Copley Motion Systems has announced the European launch of its latest product range – a series of innovative new linear servomotor drives. The company's ServoTube range combines sophistication with simplicity to deliver unparalleled value (Plate 1).
Plate 1
New ServoTube actuator from Copley Motion Systems
As part of the global Copley Controls Corporation, the Essex-based Copley Motion Systems business is best known for its acclaimed ThrustTube range of tubular linear motor drives that feature high accuracy, large air gap flexibility, easy direct mounting of payloads, and low heat generation performance.
The new ServoTube products extend the ThrustTube range. They share the same thermal characteristics, but integrate an innovative feedback mechanism for precise positional measurement, delivering exceptional reliability and robustness along with significant cost savings.
ServoTube delivers the speed and ruggedness of pneumatics, the controllability of a ballscrew and the reliability of a linear motor at a price unprecedented in the industry.
ServoTube Actuator – Copley's flagship product – is a truly innovative moving thrust rod implementation for push/pull/lift applications featuring full-length integral bearings and pneumatic-actuator-compatible mountings for exceptional ease-of-use.
The integral bearing also serves to wipe the actuator rod clean with each stroke, further improving robustness and prolonging operational life. With no tight-tolerance encoder to align, the ServoTube Actuator products are as easy to install as pneumatic actuators. In addition to industry-standard mountings and fixings, they are compatible with Xenus amplifiers from Copley Controls Corporation as well as a comprehensive range of third-party drives. The embedded encoder design provides clear operational advantages by eliminating the possibility of degradation from tarnishing or soiling, or damage by physical contact – a real consideration in contaminated environments.
ServoTube deploys Copley's proven 25 mm diameter thrust rod to provide the actuation. The thrust rod is a patented construction comprising a sealed stainless steel tube enclosing rare-earth magnets to ensure a high density, uniform magnetic field. The ServoTube forcer is a rugged IP67 rated enclosure that houses the motor coils and position sensing electronics. The range offers different lengths of forcer to interact with the thrust rod magnets and provide a choice of performance values, delivering continuous force from 51 to 104 N and a peak force up to 959 N, with impressive acceleration figures above 574 m/s2 and maximum velocity exceeding 13 m/s – all at resolutions down to just ±6 μm. Key to the 6 μm resolution and positional repeatability is a pioneering fully-integrated positional feedback mechanism conceived and developed by Copley.
For further information, contact: Bill Luckin, Sales Director, Copley Motion Systems LLC, Luckyn Lane, Basildon, SS14 3BW, UK. Tel: +44 (0) 1268 287070; Fax: +44 (0) 1268 293344; E-mail: bill.luckin@copleymotion.com; Web site: www.copleymotion.com