PI Q-Motion drives – Small, Powerful and extremely Efficient.
PI draws from a wealth of experience when it comes to implementing piezo ceramic drives in positioning systems. However, PI is certainly not restricted to a special drive technology, but is always able to offer the optimum solution for the
many different requirements in the field of motion and positioning.
Piezo motors combine the high position resolution of the piezo actuators with the unlimited travel ranges of classical drives.
The drives in the Q-Motion series are based on one piezoelectric inertia drive that can now be more compactly integrated than an ultrasonic motor and is less expensive than a stepping drive.
All piezomotor drive principles are distinguished by:
- High resolution to <1 nm
- Self-locking at rest with maximum force, no heat generation at rest, no energy consumption, no servo jitter
- Compact design
Operating Principle
Piezo inertia drives are space-saving and inexpensive piezo-based drives with relatively high holding forces and a virtually unlimited travel range. They make use of the stick-slip effect (inertia effect) – a cyclical alternation of static and sliding friction between a moving runner and the drive element generated by the piezo element – for a continuous feed of the runner. The operating frequency of more than 20 kHz enables the runner to be directly driven at velocities in excess of 10 mm/s (70°/s).
Nanometer Resolution
During the slow control phase (stick phase), in which the runner is moved, the drive behaves in the same way as a classical piezoceramic actuator. By varying the voltage applied, the actuator can take any position and therefore achieves the high motion resolution that is typical for piezo ceramics. Together with an incremental encoder for measuring the position, it is
possible to achieve high positioning accuracy and repeatability of the motion over long travel ranges.
