Welcome to Oriental Motor's "Engineering Notes" Blog:

Topics: Stepper Motors, Robotics, Absolute Positioning, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, Gearheads, Rotary/Index Tables

For someone who has never had experience wiring I/O for motion control, it can be scary the first time.  If devices are not wired correctly, it can cause a range of issues from a motor simply not doing what's expected to irreversible product damage.  I still get that nervous feeling before I press the START button on a demo.  Murphy's Law, anyone?

Topics: AC Motors, Stepper Motors, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, Speed Control, BLDC Motors, Servo Motors, Motion Control Basics

A gripper is typically an end effector that is installed at the end of a robotic arm or on a cartesian robot and can be used to grip parts in order to transfer them from one location to another.  However, there's more to it than just closing the jaws to pinch a part.  

Topics: Stepper Motors, Robotics, Absolute Positioning, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, VIDEOS, Application Examples

Now that we understand the calculations behind load torque and load inertia, we're a little closer to motor selection.  You might be wondering why I separated load torque and acceleration torque calculations.  That's because in order to calculate for acceleration torque, load inertia and speed must be calculated first. 

Topics: AC Motors, Stepper Motors, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, Speed Control, Motor Sizing, BLDC Motors, Servo Motors, Motion Control Basics

Other than torque or speed, another factor should be considered when sizing motors.  

Topics: AC Motors, Stepper Motors, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, Speed Control, Motor Sizing, BLDC Motors, Gearheads, Servo Motors, Rotary/Index Tables, Motion Control Basics

Proper sizing of a motor requires that 3 criteria must be met: torque, load inertia, and speed.  For the first part of this Motor Sizing Basics series, I will be explaining what load torque is, how to calculate it for specific application examples, and how it fits into the torque requirement for the application.

Topics: Conveyor, AC Motors, Stepper Motors, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, Speed Control, Motor Sizing, BLDC Motors, Servo Motors, Rotary/Index Tables, Motion Control Basics

The terms "absolute" and "incremental" comes up frequently in the world of position control.  The exact meaning changes according to the context they are used in.  For example, absolute and incremental motion can refer to the type of motion done by the motor either by relating it to the absolute home position or the last known position.  Absolute and incremental feedback can also refer to the type of feedback device being used with the motor.  In this blog post, we will focus on the feedback system and hopefully clarify some differences for you.

Topics: Stepper Motors, Absolute Positioning, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, VIDEOS

The word, "AlphaStep", describes Oriental Motor's patented Hybrid Control technology, which offers improved stepper motor performance by sensing the rotor position and automatically switching between open-loop and closed-loop operation when necessary.  This post explains the unique technologies offered within the AlphaStep family of products and summarizes the numerous integrated options available.  It also can serve as a website navigation guide (video added).

Topics: Stepper Motors, Absolute Positioning, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, VIDEOS, Gearheads, Software, Network

Along with the advancement of industrial technology, maintenance methods of motion control components of a machine, such as motors, drives, and sensors, have also evolved.  Which method is the most efficient?

The most common method of maintaining a machine after a failure has occurred was the traditional reactive maintenance method.  Realizing the need for improvement, maintenance personnel started to estimate life and replace motion control components before they fail.  This is called the preventive maintenance method.  More recently, with the advancement of IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) and real-time availability of status data, another method was born - the predictive maintenance method.

The three maintenance methods have the same goal of eliminating machine downtime, but only one does it more efficiently.

Topics: Stepper Motors, Linear & Rotary Actuators, VIDEOS, Network, Application Examples

Robot adoption is increasing in many industries due to global efforts in reducing long term costs, maintaining quality, and freeing up time for humans to do "human" tasks.  For example, by using a robot to clean floors or restock shelves in a supermarket, human employees can spend more time helping or selling to their customers.  A company can either tap into this robotic trend by buying ready-made robots, or by making their own with less cost. 

If engineering resources are limited, selecting the right components can reduce the difficulty and time for building a robot.

Topics: Stepper Motors, Robotics, Absolute Positioning, Alphastep Hybrid Control, Linear & Rotary Actuators, Motor Sizing, VIDEOS, Gearheads, Software, Application Examples