Large Aperture Lift Stage from Aerotech

Aerotech’s AVS1000 series stages offer the ideal solution for applications that require positioning of large or heavy loads over very small incremental movements in elevation above a horizontal plane. The low profile and precise motion capability make these stages ideal for use in semiconductor manufacturing and inspection, automated tool alignment, machine vision inspection systems, laser machining applications, and more.

Quality Design Provides Superior Performance
The AVS1000 series provides precise elevation of a load in a vertical plane using a moving-wedge design. The precision machined wedge block converts horizontal movement from a precision-ground ball screw into vertical elevation of the AVS1000 series tabletop. Excellent pitch and yaw characteristics over the length of travel minimize the impact of angular errors. AVS1000 performance includes exceptional resolution (5 nm) and accuracy (±1 µm), with the ability to apply this performance to large loads up to 135 kg.

Sealed linear motion guide bearings with integral wipers are incorporated to provide excellent payload capability, long life, and smooth, precision motion. Stable and parallel vertical motion with no rocking or horizontal deviation of the platform is assured. Careful design of the wedge angle and bearing system allows the AVS1000 series to achieve submicron resolution and still maintain a compact profile.

A Better Approach to Vertical Motion
The vertical lift approach offers an alternative to traditional Z-plane oriented stages. Not only do the AVS1000 series stages offer a lower profile, but the load can also be conveniently accessed from any side due to the large aperture. And by centering the payload over the bearings, there are no cantilevering effects.

Motor and Drives
The AVS1000 series includes Aerotech’s high performance NEMA 34 frame-size BMS series brushless, slotless servomotor. The slotless motor has zero cogging and therefore is optimized for applications requiring very smooth motion.

Aerotech
http://www.aerotech.com/products/liftstages/avs1000.html

Heason releases new MMG-AL linear motor driven positioning stage

Heason Technology (http://www.heason.com) has introduced an all-new high throughput version of the Mini-MAG linear motor driven positioning stage from distribution partner Dover Inc. (www.dovercorporation.com).

While the new, ultra-compact MMG-AL still incorporates the main design and dimensional characteristics of the range, it replaces the stainless steel base and top plate with an optional single phase linear motor and simplified high grade aluminum construction. When combined, this results in minimized moving mass with the added benefit of lowered stage and drive amplifier costs, as well as higher bandwidth performance.

The small footprint stage comes in four travel options from 25mm to 150mm. It has a nominal width of 80mm and features Dover’s MAG moving magnet motor technology, which does away with the need for moving motor cables. It also features a durable side mounted tape style optical encoder, which comes in a selection of positional resolution from 0.1 microns to 0.005 microns. With stage flatness and straightness across the new MMG-AL range from 4 microns to 8 microns, and with specified bidirectional repeatability to within +/- 0.5 microns, the 25mm travel version’s positional accuracy is 3 microns with a 0.1 micron encoder.

The MMG-AL range has less than two-thirds of the mass of its stainless steel counterpart and 8kg nominal load capacity with an optional higher load capacity. The positioning stage can meet the dynamic performance needed for the most demanding high precision production systems, thanks to its maximum acceleration of 22m/sec2 and velocity of 0.5msec. The stage caters to the need of high throughput imaging industries, as well as ideal for any precision position application, where in-position stability and step-and-settle times are the main requirements.

Physik introduces M-687 microscopy stages

Physik Instrumente (www.physikinstrumente.com) has released the M-687 XY stage, which provides fast, high-precision XY positioning system ideal for applications that use inverse microscopes. The stage is designed with large apertures of up to 160 mm x 100 mm, which can support specimen holders and Z systems for specimen scanning. It can achieve a travel range of up to 100 mm x 75 mm.

Unlike DC motors or flanges stepper with large screw ducts, the M-687 XY requires no additional installation space for its driver since the PILine piezoceramic linear motor is already integrated inside the stage. This feature allows easy integration of the stage in the microscope providing unhindered access to the specimen. The PILine motors keep the platform’s position stable by transmitting force directly to it while moving. By doing so, the motors do not produce additional heat.

PI’s stages closed-loop velocities can reach up to 250 mm/s. M-687’s settling behavior has been optimized to allow settling within a few milliseconds. Meanwhile, PI also acknowledges that slow movements are of great importance to users. Thus, the stage is specifically designed with 1000-fold magnification, which enables the microscope to cover movements even at a distance of a few micrometers per second.

Using a PILine drive together with a high-resolution position sensor produces high precision, still stage specifically designed to repeatedly reach positions with sub-micron accuracy. This is useful for imaging methods required for large specimen such as stitching and tiling.

Aerotech ANT130-5-V Vertical Lift Stage

Aerotech’s ANT130-5-V is a linear-motor-driven wedge-style vertical lift stage that provides the exceptional resolution, accuracy, and in-position stability required in nanopositioning applications, all while offering travel up to 5 mm. It is a precision stage that is perfectly at home in industrial applications. The ANT130-5-V was designed for stand-alone use or can be seamlessly integrated with other stages in the Aerotech ANT stage family for a superior multi-axis nanopositioning system.

ANT130-5-V stages utilize advanced direct-drive technology, pioneered by Aerotech, as well as anti-creep crossed-roller bearings to achieve the highest level of positioning performance. Aerotech direct-drive technology is non-cogging, noncontact, high-speed, high-resolution, and high-accuracy. The lack of hysteresis or backlash enables accurate and repeatable nanometer motion. The unique drive and bearing combination, packaged in an extremely compact profile and footprint, offers tangible advantages in high-precision positioning applications such as disk-drive fabrication, fiber alignment, optical delay element actuation, sensor testing, and scanning processes that demand smooth, precise, stable, and repeatable motion.

The ANT130-5-V family has universal mounting and tabletop patterns that allow for easy system integration. Two, three, or more axes can be easily combined for flexible system designs and multi-axis configurations.

Outstanding accuracy, position repeatability, and in-position stability require high system resolution. The ANT130-5-V stage’s industry-leading 2 nm minimum incremental step size provides this high level of performance.

Aerotech
www.aerotech.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.

Aerotech introduces brushless linear servomotor-driven stages for industrial applications

Aerotech (www.aerotech.com) has unveiled a new PRO-LM range of direct-drive, brushless linear servomotor-driven stages. The range now includes a new 280mm wide version that comes in eight travel options from 300mm to 1.5m for heavy-load precision positioning and high-throughput applications in harsh environments. The fully protected and side-sealed/hard-top stages have heavy-duty linear motion guide bearings, optional cable management and sub-micron encoder feedback. These are available in nominal widths of 165mm, 225mm and 280mm, which can be mixed to optimize application load and travel requirements.

The new PRO280LM is based on the successful side-sealed design that the company has developed over the past generations of ball screw-driven stages and linear motor. The aluminum hard top cover – finished in a scratch-resistant hard coat – is a preferred alternative to plastic bellows or soft fabric stage covers, especially made for applications like laser machining. Its vertical-tensioned side straps completely seal the internal stage components from process or machining debris. A wide array of optional tabletops with steel inserts permit YZ, XZ or XY configurations with other PRO series stages with 5arc-sec orthogonality certification. Tabletop plates are available for Aerotech’s AGR, ADRT and ADRS series rotary stages or to suit customer workpiece mounting in inch and metric hole patterns. Cable management is also available for single-axis or customer-specified XYZ+rotary, XY, and XYZ stage configurations.

Aerotech said that its new PRO280LM features a positioning resolution of 250nm from a choice of amplified sine output encoders or 0.1 micron line driver. Additional impressive specifications include accuracy to +/-3 microns for the 1.5m travel version (+/-2 microns for the 300mm travel stage) with speeds to 2m/s and acceleration to 3g.