Cut-core servomotors `double the power density`

Rockwell Automation has designed a compact, brushless servo motor that takes up less space than the magnetic components alone in its previous generation of servos.

The new MP series of servos offer power densities more than twice those of the models they replace. Rockwell says this will allow machine builders to produce systems that occupy less space on the factory floor. The compact design has been achieved by adopting a "cut core" technology which uses pie-shaped segments that are wound on the outside, avoiding the need to put windings in slots.

The high-efficiency servos, which were unveiled at Rockwell`s Automation Fair in California in early December, have a high torque-to-inertia ratio, allowing them to be accelerated and decelerated rapidly. Feedback options include absolute positioning, and high-resolution encoders that can position the servo to within a millionth of a revolution.