Electric actuators double the eject speed of pneumatic actuators

SMAC Moving Coil Actuators reached a cycle rate of 2400 ppm (40 Hz) with their new LCB model electric actuator, meeting the target set by several leading packaging OEM’s. The fastest pneumatic actuators generally reach a peak speed of 1,200 ppm. By doubling the speed of pneumatic actuators, SMAC can greatly improve the efficiency of any eject, divert, or sorting application without any air consumption.

SMAC electric actuators can now reject or divert a single container, at line speeds over 2400 containers/min. Movement of container is smooth, fast, and gentle with unique Soft-Land™ feature. The container does not tip over because of force and velocity control.

The LCB already made news earlier this year by more than doubling force in same package size as existing LCA actuators with a minimal increase in price, enabling SMAC to continue its strategy to reduce prices by 35 percent every 5 years compared to the previous SMAC series, a practice the actuator manufacturer has been following since 1995.

In addition, force more than doubles with the LCB over comparable LCA actuators due to a much higher “flux density” (>10k Gauss) in the Moving Coil Actuator magnetic circuit. For example, the 155 mm x 88 mm x 30 mm sized LCB25 can produce up to 80 N, vs 25 N in the similarly sized LCA 25. Further, accelerations with the new LCB now exceed 100 g. This makes SMAC a competitive solution for some higher force applications that were previously dominated by pneumatic actuators.

SMAC’s built in sensor feedback system gives its Moving Coil Actuators the unique mechatronic ability to “do work and verify its success at the same time.” This would allow the actuators to quality check key processes 100 percent in real time and feedback the results.

SMAC Moving Coil Actuators claim to be true mechatronic solutions. By that they mean their actuators have unique capabilities, such as programmable and controllable position, velocity, and force, high accelerations, cycle life well over 100M, and a patent-pending “Soft-Land” capability. The Soft-Land capability is particularly useful when performing fragile part assembly, measurement, or moving objects.

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