Page 38 - MMI-March-April-2022

LINEAR MOTORS

FOR GREATER PRODUCTIVITY

Tubular linear motors are outperforming their counterparts by offering a slew
of significant benefits, including their applications in harsh environments and
automated warehousing.

Source: ANCA Motion

LinX M Series HERO_EXPLODED

here is stored energy, and resolution and throughput are ly used. Depending on the size
T there is kinetic energy or critical, have welcomed im- of a factory, getting compressed
movement. Motors turn
proved surface finish, increased
air to a source might require
the first into the second. As with efficiency, and reliability gains at multiple compressors and a
everything else, ways to create a lower operating cost after in- complicated reticulation system.
movement have evolved. corporating LinX tubular linear Leaks throughout such a net-
One comparatively recent kind motors into their machines. work are expensive.
of actuation – tubular linear ANCA Motion’s LinX motors,
motion – is gaining favor appli- Pneumatic on the other hand, work on ser-
cations as diverse as machine Pneumatic actuators have a vo-based, closed-loop control,
tool building, factory automa- history going back roughly to and changing setpoints is quick
tion, packaging, printing, and World War II. Today they are a and painless, resulting in mini-
material handling. factory staple, used to quickly mal time between batches. They
(and noisily) move between two have an integrated position sen-
LinX tubular linear motors set points. sor with 10 µm of resolution that
ANCA Motion is an Australian They are a major user of electric- eliminates the need for an exter-
developer and manufacturer of ity in factories. According to one nal encoder, simplifies system
motion control systems, hard- estimate, using compressed air to integration, and allows for high-
ware, and software. ANCA CNC perform a task directly takes ten er quality and throughput. The
Machines is its sister company. times the energy of using elec- savings on energy costs quickly
Since 2014, ANCA has used LinX tricity directly due to the waste offset the upfront cost, and the
tubular linear motors in its glob- heat created. One huge bottle- payback period versus pneumat-
ally renowned tool and cutter neck they can create is their in- ics is generally 18 months.
grinders, first introducing them flexibility. Recalibrating air pres-
in the FX Linear and MX Linear sure between different batches Ball screw
tool grinding machines. Custom- can sometimes take hours. More than a century old, ball
ers in the precision toolmaking Though inefficient, pneumatics screw motion is still around and
Source: ANCA Motion industry, where micron-level are well-understood and wide- used in a broad set of applications

38 | March-April 2022 Modern Manufacturing India