It is not news that motion control technology has advanced beyond traditional manufacturing applications. Medical devices particularly incorporate motion in a wide variety of ways. Applications vary from medical power tools to orthopedics to drug delivery systems. This flexibility has allowed expansion in usage for medical devices and equipment while providing smaller footprints, better specifications, and lower energy usage.
Because of the life-changing nature of most medical applications, motion control components must harness the complexity of electronics, software, and mechanical motion into highly accurate and precise tools for use in everything from doctors’ offices to hospitals to laboratories.
A stepper motor is an electromechanical device that converts electrical pulses into discrete mechanical movements and therefore can be operated directly from a pulse train generator or a microprocessor. Stepper motors can work in an open loop, the controller used to drive the motor can keep track of the number of steps executed and knows the mechanical position of the shaft. Stepper geared motor have very fine resolutions (< 0.1 degrees) allowing precise metering for pump applications and maintain a position without current because of their inherent detent torque. Excellent dynamic characteristics allow quick starts and stops.
The structure of stepping motors naturally enables accurate and precise repetitive positioning without the need for sensors. This eliminates the need for feedback from external sensors, simplifying your system and contributing to stable and efficient operation.
Over the years KGG has partnered with leading medical device manufacturers and in the process developed and optimized range of stepper motor and geared stepper motor solutions that can deliver optimum performance in the smallest size with a focus on quality, precision, reliability, and cost.
In some applications, an axis can require feedback at multiple positions over a full rotation to ensure absolute position is known and to confirm if a particular action is completed. Stepper motors have a distinct advantage in such applications because of the repeatability of shaft position in open loop. In addition, KGG has developed precise and low-cost optical and magnetic feedback solutions with stepper and geared stepper motors to provide home position feedback that helps in defining start position after each complete rotation.
The design and application engineering team at KGG engages early with the customer to understand key application needs in terms of performance requirements, duty cycle, driving details, reliability, resolution, feedback expectations, and mechanical envelope available to design custom solutions. We understand that each device has a different design and will be having different needs for various mechanisms and a single solution cannot serve all the purpose. Customization to meet specific needs is the key to address application-specific needs.
Post time: Dec-29-2023
