Linak Releases Family of Field-tested CANopen Actuators

Oct. 8, 2020
CANopen will improve control in automation and autonomous vehicles.

Linak has expanded available control options to include CANopen. Linak added CANopen control to support the control systems in the rapidly changing markets of automation and autonomous vehicles.

Linak CANopen is available in these actuators: LA14, LA25, LA33, LA36, and LA37. The heavy-duty actuators LA36 and LA37 are also available in both 24 V and 48 V editions, widening the range of product options even more. In addition to full position control, the CANopen actuators also provide feedback information about piston position, service data, and full diagnostics.

“CANopen is an additional option for our actuators,” says Soren Buck, business development manager at Linak. “It is based on the CiA 301 standard. This gives our linear actuators a wider degree of flexibility—especially to software engineers working to control and monitor various vehicle components with a single platform”.

Tested for Easy Integration
Prior to the release, Buck and a group of Linak software specialists tested CANopen with a number of existing applications.

“We tried setups in real-life settings with customers, testing it in off-highway vehicles, AGVs (automated guided vehicles) and even in automated farming environments,” says Buck. “This helped us tune in and even eliminate a few bugs. But, I think what will impress people the most is, how easy our CANopen actuators are to integrate and configure. It really is easy as plug and play”.