What are they and how do they work

Electric axes are electromechanical devices capable of converting and managing rotary movements into linear and rectilinear ones. These are profiles equipped with a movable slide with a motion transmission realized through a screw or a belt and a motor driven and controlled electrically.

The profiles are made of aluminum or stainless steel, designed to provide high rigidity and precision, and are available in various sections and lengths with ball recirculation or toothed belt transmission featuring a slide that it moves on adjustable ball bearings.

The electric axes motor can be stepping, brushless or linear.

The control logic can be very simple, as in servo positioners, to move to a point defined by a binary encoding of inputs, or more complete and advanced, capable of managing the interpolated motion of multiple axes (up to 4), digital inputs and outputs, serial ports and in general independent parallel tasks. Programming is also simple for non-experts on the matter.

Main features

  • High precision and repeatability
  • Excellent rigidity
  • Modularity and high level of customization
  • Reliability

The electric axis should be chosen considering some characteristics:

Type of transmission, ball screw, belt

Load (kg), which is the maximum weight of the objects to be manipulated including,

of course, the weight of the gripping device

Stroke (mm), which is the length or distance to move the object

Speed (mm/sec), which is the maximum speed at which the axis can operate based on the applied load

Precision, that is the precision with which the axis can operate based on the applied load and the operating speed

Working area

The working area can only be a segment for the single electric axis, a rectangle for the combination of 2 axes working on orthogonal planes (XY;XZ; ZY) and a parallelepiped for 3 axes working on orthogonal planes (XYZ).

Configurations

The electric axis can be mounted on the base thus obtaining the movement of the object through the movement of the slide to which the end effector is applied or on the slide thus obtaining the movement of the object through the movement of the axis to which the object is applied.

The single exes can be combined with brackets and cable carrier chains, to create various configurations and achieve positioning in space within a well-defined parallelepiped area.

Application’s fields

The electric axis fonds applications in many fields wherever manipulation and movement are required. We list just a few, such as:

– Industrial automation, in the production of consumer goods, in component assembly and in material handling

– Packaging and wrapping, in the handling of products and packages

– Medical, in the production of medical equipment and in material handling

– Electronics, in the production of electronic components and in the handling of assembly process materials.

Our “machinery” fleet

IAI

IAI’s electric axes boast an extremely wide range, in both mechanical and kinematic characteristics, embodying the plug&play philosophy which guides the entire production of IAI.

This involves providing electric axes in various types equipped with motorization and control logic already parametrized for the specific actuator.