For the best motion control, precision rotary stages are and important element in your system to keep it running efficiently and accurately. Browse the articles below for more information on rotary stages and other linear motion components.

Nippon Pulse’s new SLP Linear Stage ideal for industrial applications

Nippon Pulse (www.nipponpulse.com) has announced that its high precision SLP Acculine single-axis linear stage series comes with the ability to simplify the transition from conventional linear motion systems including pneumatic actuators, belt and chain drives and ball screws. The new SLP stage has integrated the company’s successful Linear Shaft Motor into its all-inclusive stage to provide useful solutions for various industrial applications.

The SLP linear stage is also fitted with shaft support in the housing, while simplifying transition from traditional ball screw systems. Meanwhile, the addition of Nippon Pulse’s Linear Shaft Motor effectively makes the SLP stage a low-profile, high-precision product.

The company’s Linear Shaft Motor features three fundamental concepts. First, it is simple as it consists of only a forcer and a magnetic shaft. Second, the shaft motor is high-precision, providing sub-micron resolution. This is attributed to several factors, such as less heat generation, stiffness that is up to 100 times more than other linear motors, no Eddy currents and no cogging issues. Finally, the non-contact shaft motor also features a non-critical air-gap, eliminating variation in force over the device’s stroke.

Offering the highest force-to-volume ratio, the all-new SLP stage is an ideal solution for those working in space-restricted environments. Unlike other linear stage currently offered on the market, the single-axis linear stage series offers the smallest dead zone.

Piezo Motor allows lower profile rotation table

Physik Instrumente L.P. (www.physikinstrumente.com) has unveiled a higher-precision variant of its M-660 low profile rotary table.

The new model is powered by piezo motors enabling it to feature a very low profile of just 14 mm (0.6 in). It is designed with a high accuracy direct measuring encoder and offers eight times the position resolution of the current version.

The new M-660 rotary table can also accelerate to velocities of 720 degrees/sec with its directly matched precision optical encoder resolving positions down to four µrad (0.00023°), offering the servo controller backlash-free, phase-lag-free feedback.

The new model’s self-clamping drive delivers very high stability, without any heat generation and energy consumption at rest, making it suitable for various applications, such as semiconductor/ test equipment, Optical Instrumentation and Metrology.

With its light-weight direct-drive ceramic motor functioning without magnets or gears, inertia and mass were significantly reduced as compared to traditional rotation stages. This result to precise bidirectional position and speed control — which is very important for high speed motion contouring — and very fast start/stop behavior, effectively making the M-660 outperform the acceleration, stability and settling speed of conventional servo motor gear-driven and direct drives mechanisms.

The company also offers a special motion controller for the piezo motors to allow customers to take full advantage of ultrasonic ceramic motors’ specific motion characteristics, which includes a solid software and driver package as well as a USB interfacing.

Linear Positioning Stages Feature Moving Magnet Voice Coil Technology

Linear Positioning Stages featuring moving magnet voice coil technology from H2W Technologies offer high resolution (from 50 nanometers), zero cogging, high speed, high acceleration (to 5 g’s), high repeatability, and long life. The compact linear positioning stages can be mounted horizontally or vertically and are suitable for short stroke positioning applications requiring high acceleration, high accuracy, repeatability, and high reliability.

This compact (4.0 in. L x 3.5 in. W x 3.52 in. H), light weight anodized aluminum, moving magnet voice coil linear positioning stage features a stroke length of +/- 0.11 in. from the center of travel home position, and has a payload to 2 lbs. For greater reliability there are no moving cables or wires as the coil assembly and linear encoder head are stationary.

These moving magnet voice coil linear positioning stages can be supplied with a variety of amplifiers and controllers to provide plug-and-play solutions for easy integration into new and existing applications. Other options include: Optical or magnetic linear encoder; ball bearing, cross roller, or air bearing slide; different stroke lengths; higher payloads. Custom designs can be quickly supplied.

H2W Technologies
www.h2wtech.com

Nanopositioning Rotary Stages from Aerotech

Aerotech’s ANT95-R and ANT130-R direct-drive rotary stages are part of Aerotech’s nano Motion Technology product line. They offer unprecedented in-position stability (0.005 arc sec) and incremental motion (0.01 arc sec) using Aerotech’s unique direct-drive technology, and are suitable for demanding high-throughput manufacturing applications such as disk-drive and MEMS manufacture and test, fiber-optic device alignment, as well as for super-high-precision laboratory R&D applications.

The ANT95-R and ANT130-R rotary stages incorporate Aerotech’s unique direct-drive for extremely smooth motion, and both are available in 20°, 180°, or 360° continuous travel. Maximum speed is 200 rpm and maximum acceleration is 400 rad/s2. Axial load capacity is 2 kg for the ANT95-R and 3 kg for the ANT130-R. These rotary stages also offer an 11 mm clear aperture that can be used for product feed-through, laser beam delivery, cable clearance, or application-specific requirements. Error motion specifications are outstanding.

The ANT95-R and ANT130-R series are designed for compatibility and easy integration with Aerotech’s ANT linear stages. Together these stages provide the accuracy, stability, and performance required for current and future nanomanufacturing and inspection applications. Their low profile reduces the effective working height, minimizing “stack-up” related errors when used as part of a multi-axis system.

The ANT95-R and ANT130-R were designed to operate in a 24/7 manufacturing environment while providing laboratory-grade accuracy. Unlike other extremely precise rotary devices, they require no periodic maintenance, and our direct-drive ensures years of trouble-free operation.

The ANT95-R series data sheet is available at:
http://www.aerotech.com/products/NANO/ant95r.html

The ANT130-R series data sheet is available at:
http://www.aerotech.com/products/NANO/ant130r.html

Aerotech
www.aerotech.com

Newport launches new integrated X-Y stages

Newport Corp (www.newport.com) has launched the UMR-TRA XY Stages, a new line of integrated XY stages built from premium UMR linear stages and TRA actuators. Specially designed to be used in confined spaces, the UMR-TRA-XY stages is an ideal choice for different motion control tasks in industry and research.

“We are very pleased to announce the UMR-TRA because we believe it offers significant benefits to our customers,” said Beda Espinoza, senior product manager at Newport Corp.

“UMR-TRA Stages are compact and inexpensive motorized XY stages assembled from two UMR5.16 linear stages and two TRA actuators. To minimize the footprint, the actuators are parallel and by using a mechanical lever, the action of one actuator is converted to perpendicular motion.  The small stage base plate also features accessible mounting holes that facilitate direct mounting on optical tables or integration into custom systems,” added Espinoza.

Compact and affordable, the UMR-TRA XY stages measures 90mm wide and 38mm high, including the base plate. It has 12.5mm travel and is available in DC or stepper motor version, metric or English versions, and a vacuum-compatible stepper-motor version, which can be likely used down to 10–hPa.

For industrial works, the robust stage is ideal for laser beam positioning and can endure high machine accelerations. For research, the stage is qualified for use in vacuum applications, as well as other space-restricted setups.

The UMR-TRA XY Stages is compatible with all of the popular motion controllers developed by Newport, from the hand-held NewStep™ single-axis stepper-motor controller up to the high performance and sophisticated XPS universal controller.

Bishop-Wisecarver Promotes National Sales Manager

Pittsburg, CA - Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation announced that National Sales Manager Michael McVeigh has been promoted to Vice President of Sales. He will have the primary responsibility of overseeing the entire sales channel for Bishop-Wisecarver, and manage all global efforts both domestically and internationally.

“I have had the pleasure of working with Mike for four years as our National Sales Manager. He has done a fabulous job of growing our sales efforts, even during the recent economic downturn,” said Pamela Kan, president of Bishop-Wisecarver. “The Board of Directors felt that bringing Mikes’ management skills to our entire sales channel will be an important element of our global sales efforts going forward. I look forward to working with Mike on our strategic sales plans for growing our sales both domestically and internationally.”

McVeigh is a college graduate from the University of New York at Buffalo. Prior to joining Bishop-Wisecarver in 2006 as the National Sales Manager, McVeigh worked in the bearing industry for 16 years in both sales and marketing. Since his hire at Bishop-Wisecarver, he has grown to appreciate the uniqueness of Bishop-Wisecarver’s customer base and their applications.

“Our overriding company goal is to become the customer’s 1st choice,” said McVeigh. “I am honored to be leading our team to meet this challenge as the Vice President of Sales.”

Bishop-Wisecarver
www.bwc.com

New URS precision rotation stages from Newport

Newport Corporation (www.newport.com), a global leader in photonic and laser solutions that “Make, Manage and Measure Light”, is proud to announce the release of the URS50BPP and the URS50BCC precision rotation stages that feature 360°, continuous motion. These new stages have the smallest footprint of 50mm in size, and are offered in very affordable price, while maintaining the high performance of URS motion product family from Newport.

The URS50BPP and the URS50BCC provide very low wobble and backlash-free, continuous rotation with extremely high MTBF of up to 20,000. Competitively priced, the high-performing rotation stages feature large stage performance in a very small package. The two stages also offer exceptional 6µm eccentricity and easy integration.

The URS50B’s feature a one of a kind, two-part bearing design with pre-tempered bearings and steel gears to ensure long-life motion positioning and precision. The URS50BCC, the DC-motor version with embedded index pulse for precision homing, is best suited for demanding applications that need bi-directional positioning.

The economical URSBPP stepper motor version is ideal for less demanding, yet precision rotation applications. Each URS50B has a cable URS50B for plug-and-play compatibility with XPS, SMC and ESP.

IP66-Rated Direct-Drive Rotary Stages from Aerotech

The ASRT is an IP66-rated, direct-drive, sealed rotary stage that provides precise angular positioning in hostile environments where dirt, dust, cutting fluids and fluid jets are present. Applications range from industrial machining automation to precision sensor positioning in hostile environments, and the ASRT is also an effective solution for precise rotary motion in product environmental test and range tracking applications.

The ASRT is offered with either high accuracy encoder or magnetic encoder feedback. Unlimited travel is standard, with an optional limited travel model also available. Three different models cover a wide range of load and torque requirements.

The ASRT series uses Aerotech’s brushless, slotless motor that has no brushes to wear, no gear trains to maintain, and high acceleration and high speeds. The low inertia and zero backlash make the ASRT the ideal solution for applications requiring frequent directional changes. In addition, Aerotech manufactures a wide range of servo amplifiers and advanced controllers to provide a complete, integrated package.

Dual large-diameter bearings are used to maximize performance with respect to tilt error motion (3 arc sec), moment stiffness, and repeatability (1 arc sec). The large diameter bearings permit large payloads (up to 175 kg) without compromising performance.

Maximum rotary speeds are from 100 to 200 rpm. The ASRT includes an electrically grounded shaft and housing to protect against electrical shock and eliminate RF re-radiation, and housing grounding points are included. Circular sealed connectors are standard, while options include desiccant cartridge, air purge, and mounting flange accessory.

A polymer-based paint on the housing and a hard-coated tabletop prevent corrosion. The stage has optional brown, green, grey, black, and white paint colors. Standard operating temperature is 0 to 70°C. Operation below freezing requires the optional air-purge and desiccant, with air-purged stages operational from -20 to 70°C.

Aerotech
www.aerotech.com

Rotary Stage features Compact Package and Accurate Positioning

RTHM-100 compact rotation stages are designed to rotate optical components and small tooling in the confined spaces of the manufacturing processes for fiber optical components and semiconductor devices, fiber optic alignment, laser diode research, bio-medical applications and inspection systems.

The lightweight design feature low 32 mm profile height and incorporates anodized aluminum body with pre-loaded ball bearings with run-outs of 5 microns. This proprietary bearing design provides smooth rotation with minimal wobble.

A precision ground worm gear produces consistent driving torque to the rotor and eliminates variations in the motor current.

RTHM-100 stages feature an angular resolution 0.1 arc-sec, which may be achieved with either DC Servo or stepper motor controls.

The stages are equipped with a reference home sensor. RTHM-100 stages can run in continuous or start/stop rotation modes and mounted horizontally or vertically.

These stages feature zero backlash, large 50 mm center aperture and can rotate loads of 20 kg over unlimited rotation angle.

IntelLiDrives, Inc.
www.intellidrives.com

High Speed Piezomotor Rotary Stage from PI

San Francisco, CA — PI (Physik Instrumente) L.P. introduces a new ultra-low profile (0.6”), direct-driven, high-speed rotary stage based on its proprietary PILine® piezomotor drive technology at this year’s SPIE Photonics West conference. The new ultra-low profile (0.6”), direct-driven, high-speed rotary stage is based on PI’s proprietary PILine® piezomotor drive technology.

The M-660 stage reaches top speeds of 720 degrees/sec. and resolution to 40 µrad (8 arcsec). Its self-locking ceramic drive holds the position steady at rest, with no energy consumption and heat generation. A directly coupled precision optical encoder provides phase lag-free, backlash-free feedback to the servo controller.

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