2018/04/23
ID: 2176

Festo builds a superconductive motor for the first time

A world first: highly compact, superconductive claw pole motor with solid-body cooling

At the Hanover Messe 2018 trade fair, Festo is for the first time presenting the technology platform SupraMotor, a superconductive claw pole motor with solid-body cooling. It is characterised by a highly compact design, a high holding torque and a durable electrical direct cooling system. For a number of years, the company has also been investigating superconductive drive units in addition to automation concepts with superconductor technology.

Along with the movement concepts with SupraMotion that are being developed for industrial application, Festo is also investigating technologies for superconductive direct drive units. With SupraMotor, the automation specialist has succeeded in constructing a superconductive drive with electrical direct cooling. Measuring only about a metre in length and up to 23 centimetres in diameter, this unit is highly compact. The drive makes use of the effect that electricity within an appropriately cooled superconductor is transmitted without loss. This allows a strong magnetic field to be generated with very high currents which can be used for the motor.

 

High overload capacity

The SupraMotor has a high overload capacity and is suitable for applications in continuous operation. The risk of overheating is effectively zero as the superconducting coils carry the electrical current without resistance. The motor works particularly efficiently at low speeds with very high torques. If a load must be held, the drive uses no energy even at maximum holding torque.

 

Low energy demand

In general, too, the energy demand is low: whilst the motor’s output power is in the double-digit kilowatt range, it only needs energy for cooling in the low three-digit watt range.

 

The motor can at present only be operated with low phase currents, as the ferromagnetic materials available until now are unable to take larger magnetic flux densities. Through further research, however, new concepts and materials could be investigated, which could fully exploit the superconductor’s current carrying capacity of well over 100 amperes.

 

Further new concepts for superconductivity

Festo has now been developing superconductor technology for application in automation technology for ten years. The innovations on display at the Hanover Messe 2018 will once again include various SupraMotion exhibits which further extend the diverse range of applications for this technology.

 

Superconductors: materials with special characteristics

Superconductors are materials which below a certain temperature lose their electrical resistance and can store the field of a permanent magnet at a predefined distance. Festo is using the first of these effects for SupraMotor, and the second enables objects to be held in position and manoeuvred without contact, as is being demonstrated with the SupraMotion projects. The levitation gap remains stable even beyond walls.

Festo es un actor global y una empresa familiar independiente con sede en Esslingen am Neckar (Alemania). Desde sus inicios, Festo ha marcado pautas en la tecnología de automatización industrial y en la formación técnica, contribuyendo así al desarrollo sostenible del medio ambiente, la economía y la sociedad. La empresa suministra tecnología de automatización neumática y eléctrica a 300.000 clientes de automatización de fábricas y procesos en más de 35 sectores. El sector LifeTech, con la tecnología médica y la automatización de laboratorios, es cada vez más importante. Los productos y servicios están disponibles en 176 países de todo el mundo. En todo el mundo, unos 20.600 empleados en cerca de 60 países con más de 250 sucursales generaron unas ventas de aproximadamente 3.650 millones de euros en 2023. De esta cantidad, alrededor del 7% se invierte anualmente en investigación y desarrollo. En la empresa de aprendizaje, las medidas de formación y desarrollo representan el 1,5% de la facturación. Festo Didactic SE es un proveedor líder de educación y formación técnica y ofrece a sus clientes de todo el mundo soluciones integrales de aprendizaje digital y físico en el entorno industrial.

© Festo SE & Co. KG
SupraMotor_1
Superconducting compact claw pole motor with electrical solid-state cooling.
© Festo SE & Co. KG
SupraMotor_2
The SupraMotor only needs energy for cooling in the low three-digit watt range.
© Festo SE & Co. KG
SupraMotor_3
The SupraMotor has a high overload capacity and is suitable for applications in continuous operation.