To this end, Tente has expanded its areas of expertise, e.g. in sensor and actuator technology. The company uses industry-proven products as part of its modular system and relies on a common parts strategy. Tente retains important core capabilities in-house and is expanding its business field from manufacturer to system integrator.

Brushless drive
How does the new E-Drive ultimate differ from the original E-Drive? First and foremost, a new drive technology significantly improves versatility and comfort. The brushless drive of the E-Drive ultimate is smoother and more comfortable than its predecessor. Slip and contact pressure can now be controlled even more precisely. The E-Drive ultimate supports deceleration via an improved gearbox and is available with an active brake for certain applications. Whereas previously 1,000 kg could only be transported with a double E-Drive, there is now a more powerful single drive as E-Drive ultimate.

Relief for workers, higher productivity for companies: Manual push trolleys or tugger train trolleys become more powerful with the E-Drive ultimate from Tente. © Tente-Rollen GmbH

Proven control system
For the control system, Tente opted for a customer-oriented control system that is widely used in the industry and supports common sensor technology as standard. This means that approach behaviors, speeds, track control characteristics, deceleration or braking behavior, laser scanners for hazard detection and stopping points can be integrated on a customer-specific basis.

Customizable hand control units
The hand control units of the E-Drive ultimate can be adapted to customer requirements. If required, a normal manual push trolley can even be converted into an electrified version during operation: Simply add an E-Drive ultimate mechatronic hand control unit to the standard grab rail and attach the drive and battery via plug & play. In this way, a previously purely manual, larger fleet of manual push trolleys can be electrified as required.

The new E-Drive ultimate drive unit from Tente can be used to implement a wide range of mobility solutions for workshop trolleys, manual push trolleys, trolleys or sequence trolleys. © Tente-Rollen GmbH

Tente has developed various setups for the E-Drive ultimate for typical customer applications, which will be available from fall 2019: For example, special requirements in confined spaces in a production or assembly facility mean that pushed transport racks need to be operated from both sides. Tente is adding an additional manual operating component for this purpose, so that the racks can be controlled from the front and rear - another function that was previously not available.

Pragmatic concept
Dipl.-Wirt.-Ing. Oliver Heyne, Director of Business Development at Tente, explains: "With the E-Drive ultimate, we don't want to achieve a revolution in the distant future, but rather help to pragmatically improve existing industrial processes." This does not replace the worker, but increases their productivity and makes their work easier. Options such as wireless control or fixed castors driven by the E-Drive for heavier weights give users additional application options with added value.

About Tente:
Tente is a leading global manufacturer of high-quality castors and wheels and a provider of efficient, innovative mobility solutions. The family-run group of companies is active worldwide with 30 subsidiaries and over 1,500 employees (2018) and generates a turnover of 225 million euros (2018). Since its foundation in 1923, Tente has been constantly reinventing castors and wheels, offering them in a virtually unlimited number of variants designed according to customer requirements. Tente has nine production sites worldwide. Further information at: www.tente.com