Hexapod for high-precision positioning and motion tasks

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October 2024 Motion Control & Drives

Image copyright: Aerotech.

Aerotech, a specialist in motion control and positioning systems, has launched its new hexapod. The HEX150-125HL is suitable for high-precision positioning and motion tasks down to the nanometre range. Compared to its predecessor, it has a more compact design and a lower height. In addition, the Hexapod-150 125HL has undergone design improvements which lead to significant increases in performance.

The new Hexapod offers a versatile solution for users who need to position workpieces with high dynamics and precision. Thanks to its special design, the parallel kinematic hexapod is extremely robust and rigid. It is therefore particularly suitable for use in automation solutions, and is ideal for measuring and testing technology in quality assurance, for example. Aerotech also sees a wide range of applications for the HEX150-125HL in the fields of electronics, photonics, automotive, mechanical engineering and medical technology.

Robust, compact, and yet flexible

Compared to its predecessor, the new HEX150-125HL features a number of enhancements. These include a reduced height of 125 mm and a base diameter of 150 mm with medium Z travel; a cable reduction to a total of just two cables, one cable for motor power and one cable for feedback; a simplified strut design; and a larger, more robust joint construction. “The joints are incorporated directly into the base and moving platform, which increases the rigidity and load capacity of the miniature positioning system,” explains European director, Simon Smith. “What’s more, our users get more performance for less money. Our new HEX150-125HL will cost 30% less than its predecessor.”

More performance for less money

The unmistakable advantages over other positioning systems lie in the flexible six degrees of freedom, which enable precise translation in the X, Y and Z directions and also rotation around each of these axes, while at the same time ensuring exact positioning.

With a movable working platform of 130 mm diameter, the HEX150 can handle loads of up to 12 kg vertically and 5 kg horizontally with travel ranges in X of 42 mm, in Y of 44 mm, and Z of 17 mm. It also offers a central opening with a diameter of 35 mm. The Hexapod also increases the number of available positioning paths with a minimum incremental movement of 15 nm. It offers improved repeatability, higher speeds in the X and Y directions of 30 mm/s and in the Z direction of 8 mm/s compared to its predecessor, and also improved load capacity. According to the manufacturer, this leads to significant increases in performance in the application.

Efficient movement control with XA drive technology

The HEX150-125HL can be moved using the new XA4-DC-AX2 and AX4 drives from Aerotech. These compact single- and multi-axis servo drives are designed for installation into a control cabinet. The XA drive series is an integral part of Aerotech’s user-friendly Automation1 motion control platform, which allows systems to be configured and controlled precisely. The platform has its own software-based motion controller, which makes it easy to control the servomotor drives.

The XA drives support multiple feedback device types and have onboard memory for high-speed data acquisition and process control. With the integrated Automation1 controller, up to 12 HyperWire motion axes can be controlled and up to nine user tasks can be executed simultaneously. The HEX150-125HL can be mounted in a standard 48-cm rack, under a machine base, or on another panel.

Smith concludes: “With the new HEX150-125HL, we are once again setting standards in precision and flexibility. In combination with the XA drive technology and the Automation1 motion control platform, we offer our customers a powerful and cost-effective overall solution that opens up a wide range of possible applications. Our most important design goal was to improve the motion performance, while further increasing the efficiency and user friendliness of our products.”

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Motion Control & Drives

Hexapod for high-precision positioning and motion tasks

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