Electromechanical actuators instead of hydraulics

"Electromechanical actuators are highly efficient and in many cases are an adequate replacement for hydraulic systems," explains Jens-Uwe Gühring, Sales Manager at August Steinmeyer GmbH und Co KG. "With our ball screw drives, we offer a low-noise, clean, environmentally friendly and technically mature alternative for the electrification of machines and systems - even in small quantities." Depending on the application, the manufacturer offers either heavy-duty ball screws, which enable position-dependent control, or differential roller screws with indirect control, which are suitable for pure infeeds.

Heavy-duty ball screws

August Steinmeyer has designed the heavy-duty versions of its ball screw drives from the ground up for a special range of tasks: The high-precision positioning of heavy loads with a servo drive with high repeat accuracy. The high load capacity of the installed components is particularly important here. To ensure a high load capacity, the manufacturer adapts the material, the ball diameter, the nut body and, in particular, the flange to the high forces during the design phase. The load transmission is simulated using FEM calculations. Although a higher pitch and a higher torque requirement are necessary than with the differential roller screw, high travel speeds are also possible.

Differential roller spindles

Differential roller spindles are becoming increasingly important in electromechanical drive technology as an alternative to hydraulics. They are used wherever a rotary motion needs to be converted simply and reliably into a linear motion. Ball screw drives not only operate oil-free and highly efficiently, they are also characterized by a high degree of efficiency, a simple, robust design and low wear and offer a high degree of design variability. The continuous rotational movement of all components has a positive effect on noise levels and smooth running. Another advantage is the low feed pitch of the nut, so that high transmission ratios and low torque requirements can be achieved. In contrast to heavy-duty ball screws, the preloadable differential roller screws are not controlled directly but indirectly - positioning is possible via linear displacement measurements, the detection of compressive forces or torques or, in the simplest case, via limit switches.