Rockwell Automation: Linear motor actuator with a built-in linear guide to carry a load

The new Allen-Bradley LDAT-SeriesTM Integrated Linear Thruster from Rockwell Automation is the first commercially available moving magnet iron core linear motor actuator with a built-in linear guide to carry a load. To produce a high speed, load-bearing linear actuator today, many machine and equipment builders invest a good deal of time and money to design a mechanism with rotary-to-linear motion conversion. With the LDAT thruster, machine builders get high speed, load-bearing linear motion out-of-the-box, cutting design and assembly time by as much as 98 percent. Doing away with power transmission components such as couplings, gear boxes, belts, pulleys and other motion conversion mechanisms also saves energy by avoiding frictional losses attributed to these components.
 
Ideal for applications with a high-duty cycle such as tray formers, cartoners, case packers, stackers, wrappers, horizontal motion conveyors and stretch-blow molding, the LDAT thruster can help maximize productivity. The motor combines high velocity, up to five meters per second as well as high levels of acceleration.  Peak thrust forces range from 187 to 4,306 newtons. It also helps improve reliability and makes maintenance easier by reducing the number of wear items typically used in such applications.
The LDAT thruster can be used with any Allen-Bradley servo drive, and uses the same innovative SpeedTEC DIN connectors as the rest of the Allen-Bradley servo motor family, for a quick, secure assembly.