Festo builds a superconductive motor for the first time
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.
费斯托 (Festo)是一家全球性的独立的家族企业，总部位于德国埃斯林根。自成立以来，Festo在工业自动化技术和技术教育方面制定标准，从而为环境、经济和社会的可持续发展做出贡献。公司为超过35个行业的30万家工厂和过程自动化客户提供气动和电驱动自动化技术解决方案，其中生命科学和实验室自动化业务受到越来越多的关注。Festo产品和服务遍布176个国家。2022年，费斯托在全球61个国家的250多个分支机构拥有约20800名员工，实现销售额38.1亿欧元。每年约7%的销售额用于研发。在这家学习型企业，1.5%的销售额用于基础和进一步培训。Festo 教学培训 (Didactic SE) 是全球领先的技术教育和培训供应商，为全球客户提供工业环境中全面的数字化和常规学习解决方案。
