Control Techniques and Nyquist develop motion control based on open PC standards

Control Techniques and Nyquist develop motion control based on open PC standards

Keywords: Networks, Motion, Control systems

Co-operation between Nyquist Industrial Control and Control Techniques promises a new generation of OEM systems based on open PC motion control. The systems will integrate Nyquist's open PC motion control technology with the advanced and fully digital servo controls from Control Techniques.

Mr Chiew Fong, vice-president of servo business with Control Techniques,remarked: "We regard co-operation agreements as the best way to supply first class products in a market that makes such stringent demands on motion control and multi-axis servo control performance. Both our companies are leaders in their field: Control Techniques in the area of servo drive technology, Nyquist in high-end motion control. Together, we can give a technological lead to OEMs,helping to improve their competitive edge. The robust PC standards and FireWire communication in Nyquist's motion systems, combined with our SLM technology for very reliable servo performance, make a powerful combination for our industrial automation OEM clients."

High performance demands

"Our core strategy is twofold", said Mr Twan Smetsers, marketing manager at Nyquist. "Nyquist's OEM customers demand high performance from their motion control systems, and we have therefore chosen a manufacturer with extensive knowledge and expertise in digital servo controls. This will also allow us to supply our partners with high-quality products for the high-end of the general motion control (GMC) market."

Control Techniques SLM technology is a leading edge innovation for servo motion control, digitally linking the motion controller to the servo drive to the "intelligent" motor. With an "intelligent" node in the servo motor feedback, SLM also provides the highest resolution feedback for dynamic and precise performance. This results in an extremely high positioning resolution (8.3 million steps per revolution for velocity loop) with a tenfold improvement in dynamic response, control bandwidth and torque variation performance. More importantly, SLM gives benefits to the OEM machinery builder by significantly reducing interconnections and cabling by as much as 50 per cent when compared to the conventional servo system. Control Techniques' latest series of servo drives, M'Ax and Multi'Ax incorporates SLM technology and truly provides maximum value to OEMs.

Advanced motion control systems

Nyquist's NYCe series of motion controllers rank among the most advanced systems on the market. PC standards such as Windows NT, NT Embedded, Ethernet and FireWire have helped to create a robust, open platform that is accessible at all levels. It is also a platform that OEM customers can easily adapt to their demands. The graphical user interface, I/O processing and calculation of motion sequences, trajectory generation and kinematics are all accessible under NT and NT Embedded to ensure simple and flexible programming. Together with the M'Ax and Multi'Ax servo controls available from Control Techniques, this gives a completely digitally controlled system. FireWire and SLM reduce cabling within the machines to a minimum.

Analysts expect that the FireWire standard, IEEE 1394, will play an important role in the automation industry of the future. Market research agency ARC recently published an overview of the ten most important technologies for 2001,and FireWire takes a prominent position. ARC senior analyst Salvatore Spada said: "FireWire combines excellent characteristics such as high transfer speed and insensitivity to errors with a stable standard and low cost price. An increasing number of machine builders are incorporating these advantages into their applications. Nyquist has already integrated IEEE 1394 in its motion control systems, and so the company is in a good position to create a de facto standard for FireWire drives."

For more information, please contact: Chiew Fong, Vice President – Servo Motion Control Techniques, The Gro, Newtown, Powys SY16 3BE, UK. Tel: +44 (0)1686 612300; Fax: +44 (0)1686 612211; E-mail: 100566.1177@compuserve.com