Automated turning and swivelling applications

Electric rotary and part-turn actuators are important components in process automation. They are used to control valves, flaps, slide valves and other fittings and thus regulate the flow of workpieces or liquids in industrial plants.

Electric rotary actuators are more energy efficient, offer more precise control options and require less maintenance than pneumatic cylinders. In addition, they can be easily integrated into automated systems because they communicate directly with control systems...

IAI offers rotary actuators with stepper or servo motors, as well as hollow shaft rotary axes and rotary grippers. In addition to the standard version, many models are also available as high-precision versions with a positioning repeatability of up to +/- 0.005°.

Normal mode versus index mode

Many IAI rotary actuators are available in single or multi-rotation versions that allow rotary movements of more than 360 degrees. Independently, there are 2 different modes: the index mode and the normal mode.

The index mode is suitable for use of the rotary actuator as a shift plate and allows a rotary movement of unlimited degrees, built up from small rotations of up to 360 degrees with short stops between each rotation.

The normal mode works according to the principles of linear actuators and allows free rotation without stops between ±9999 degrees.

Rotary actuators with hollow shaft flange

The RCS2 rotary actuators are also available with a hollow shaft flange through which connecting cables or pipelines from the devices mounted on the rotary cylinder can be passed.

The model series consists of three sizes with widths of 85, 99 and 123 mm and hollow shaft diameters of 30, 40 and 54 mm. The other key data in particular predestine these rotary axes for dynamic and precise positioning tasks:

  • ±9999 ° rotational stroke
  • ±0.005 ° repeat accuracy
  • 1200 °/s max. rotational speed
  • 25 Nm max. load torque
  • 800 N max. holding force

Therefore, the RCS2 hollow shaft rotary drives are also widely used for demanding applications, such as pulling silicon crystals in the semiconductor industry or precise grinding and polishing applications that require an extremely high transmission speed in the angular second range.

Robot wrist units for maximum flexibility

With the robotic wrist (WU Wrist Unit), Cartesian systems have the same flexibility and degrees of freedom as articulated robots for the first time. IAI's unique design makes the components light and compact. They can also be used for an orthogonal axis system with interpolation function.

These wrist units are equipped with two joints: the tilting joint for inclination covers a working circle of ±100⁰, while the rotating joint for rotation can be rotated by ±360⁰. The two stepper motors used move these axes at speeds between 750 ⁰/s and 1,200 ⁰/s.

Rotary gripper: turning and gripping in one unit

RCP6 rotary grippers combine motorised turning and gripping in a single unit. They can approach multiple points between 0 and 360° within one rotation. Any values can also be set for the rotation speed and acceleration/deceleration.

Equipped with a battery-free absolute encoder, homing is no longer necessary.

Slim lightweight RCP6 hollow shaft rotary axes

RCP6 rotary axes have a large hollow shaft diameter of 49 mm for feeding through cabling or pipes. They have a dead weight of only 2.1 kg and are equipped with battery-free absolute encoders as standard.

RCP6 rotary axes can be easily combined with Cartesian robots, grippers and wrist units and can be used, for example, as shafts for rotating grippers.

In combination with a Cartesian 3-axis system and a wrist unit with 2 rotary axes, traverse movements with 6 axes or degrees of freedom can be realised.

Part-turn actuators & rotary drives | product overview

Rotation angle:   up to 330°, 360° or multi-rotation (±9999°)
Torque:   max. 75 Nm

RCP6-RTFML

Hollow shaft rotary type

  • MOI: max. 0.08 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 5.2 Nm
  • Rotation: max. 360° (±180°)
  • Body width: 90 mm
RCP2-RTBS(L)

Small vertical type

  • MOI: max. 0.0035 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 0.36 Nm
  • Max. 330° or multi-rotation
  • Body width: 45 mm
RCP2-RTCS(L)

Small horizontal type

  • MOI: max. 0.0035 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 0.36 Nm
  • Max. 330° or multi-rotation
  • Body width: 72 mm
RCP2-RTB(L)

Medium vertical type

  • MOI: max. 0.015 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 1.7 Nm
  • Max. 330° or multi-rotation
  • Body width: 50 mm
RCP2-RTC(L)

Medium horizontal type

  • MOI: max. 0.015 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 1.7 Nm
  • Max. 330° or multi-rotation
  • Body width: 88 mm
RCP2-RTBB(L)

Large vertical type

  • MOI: max. 0.03 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 4.6 Nm
  • Max. 330° or multi-rotation
  • Body width: 76 mm
RCP2-RTCB(L)

Large horizontal type

  • MOI: max. 0.03 kg·m2
  • Torque: max. 4.6 Nm
  • Max. 330° or multi-rotation
  • Body width: 124 mm