Energy-efficient And Economical - New Torque Motors From Schaeffler

2023 Author: Hannah Pearcy | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-26 11:39

The “ErP directive for the creation of a framework for the definition of requirements for the environmentally friendly design of energy-related products” was adopted by the EU Parliament in 2009 and has been implemented step by step for several years. The general public has noticed the first effects of this with the ban on 100W incandescent lamps. The next bans include high-performance vacuum cleaners and other household appliances. Circulation pumps or electric motors are currently directly affected in industry. The goal here is to use engines with higher efficiency classes. The effects of the implementation directive for machine tools are less well known.

Will machines with high power losses be banned in the future? Certainly not in this sharpness, but an energy-saving target has been defined by the legislature, which must be implemented in principle. From 2009 to 2012, reports were commissioned on the following questions: Where can energy be saved? How much energy can be saved? At what cost is this possible?

• Result 1: Machine tools are so different that a general solution (as with incandescent lamps) cannot be implemented.
• Result 2: The large number of optimizations is difficult to understand, since every type of machine such as milling machines, drilling machines or punching machines has its own characteristics and must be considered in detail.

The currently most likely scenario is voluntary self-regulation, in which industry commits to use 12% less energy in ten years than it does today. However, an EU implementation measure is also conceivable, which specifies various savings measures and credits the machine manufacturer with corresponding points for the implementation of individual measures. A final decision from the Commission is still pending.

Even small consumers offer optimization potential

Not least against this legally relevant background, it was appropriate to provide the manufacturing industry with solutions in the area of components and systems. Already today, the energy consumption of the individual components is paying more attention. Energy in the form of electricity, compressed air or hydraulics should not only be reduced for the benefit of the environment or the legislator. Rather, there are clear competitive advantages here. Machines that use less electricity also cost less to maintain. This also reduces the production costs of the products manufactured on them.

At the moment there are many different studies that have examined different production machines and thus come to very different results. The basic tenor in all work is that 35 to 50% of the total energy of a machine tool is required in the main drives and their cooling. Cooling lubricant supply and preparation, control and hydraulics are other main consumers.

But it is also worth looking at the little consumers! Even small changes, for example in the storage concept, pay off in cash.

An example are the spindle or rotary table bearings that are common today: Here, an alternative bearing can be used without great design effort. In the rotary table, a bearing with an inner diameter of 325mm generates about 90Nm friction at 100 min ^-1. If you replace the bearing with a YRTS 325, you reduce the friction to only 10 Nm. This means that the axis saves around 800 W during operation. That is around € 1,000 every year with an S1 operation of 7/24 hours.

Switching "OFF" is another approach of how up to 20% of energy consumption can be reduced in single-shift operation. Since many machines are not completely “switched off”, there is still great potential on the control side.

The main drive design also enables a multitude of different individual measures. Here it is decided early on whether the later machine will be an “energy eater” or a “savings fox”. Two approaches are particularly interesting when designing, here called "hot" or "cold drive". The name given is the desired temperature in the thermally steady state.

Content of the article:

• Page 1: Energy efficient and economical - new torque motors from Schaeffler
• Page 2: Design as "hot" or "cold" drive
• Page 3: New torque motor with improved nominal torque or minimal heat dissipation

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