Beckhoff Compact Drive Solutions Direct in the Bus Terminal

Beckhoff will present its PC- and EtherCAT-based automation solutions for assembly and handling technology at Motek 2011, which takes place from 10 to 13 October in Stuttgart, Germany. Modular and finely scalable in performance, PC-based control from Beckhoff covers all requirements for the control and monitoring of the entire process chain of individual processing machines as well as complete production lines. One of the main features of this year’s trade fair presentation is the extension of the compact drive technology.

The EtherCAT Servo Drives from the AX5000 series for the middle and high performance classes are supplemented by drive solutions in the I/O systems with IP 20 and IP 67 protection. The connections in the format of Bus Terminals (IP 20) support AC and DC motors, stepper motors and – as a new item – also servomotors. EtherCAT Box Modules (IP 67) for stepper and DC motors are available for use without control cabinets. Together with the appropriate I/O module, the stepper motors from the AS1000 series provide a complete solution in the performance range up to 5 A.

The EL7201 servomotor terminal for the EtherCAT Terminal system is designed for highly dynamic positioning tasks. It integrates a full servo drive including an encoder system into a 12 mm terminal. The EL7201 is suitable for the direct connection of servomotors up to 200 W. Combination with the servomotors from the AM3100 series enables the implementation of an inexpensive servo axis.

The complete integration of the drive technology into TwinCAT automation software enables programming and configuration to be carried out conveniently in one tool. As a result, engineering is simplified and diagnostics are improved. TwinCAT PLC provides the user with a multitude of software function blocks which, due to their high degree of abstraction, can be applied to the different types of axis for a wide variety of functions.