Servo Drives

Servo Drives are crucial components in motion control systems that take a low power command signal from a motion controller and amplify it into high power current or voltage to produce torque through the servo motor windings.

There are two key categories of servo drives, analog and digital. Analog servo drives function within the analog domain, with limited processing capability. They execute all drive functionality strictly in the analog realm, delivering power based on an analog control signal.

On the other hand, digital servo drives have additional intelligence, allowing them to offer more functionality, enhanced diagnostic capabilities, and easier configuration compared to their analog counterparts. They work based on digital signals, providing precise control over the servo motor's position, velocity, and torque.

Beyond these two, there's another kind of servo drive known as Intelligent Drives or Smart Drives. These are a type of digital drives that incorporate a portion, or all, of the motion controller functionality with the high power electronics of a motor drive. They vary in the amount of control functionality and the type of communication interface, with two major types being fieldbus-based and deterministic bus-based.

Fieldbus-based intelligent drives integrate all components of a motion controller and communicate via a serial port or a fieldbus network. They are typically used for non-coordinated motion control applications. Servo2Go® offers a range of network options for connecting servo drives in a multi-axis configuration, with choices depending on various factors like required bandwidth, update rate, performance, and cost.

Deterministic bus-based intelligent drives incorporate interpolation and control loop into the drive but rely on a motion controller for trajectory generation. The benefits of both types of intelligent drives include all-digital communication, detailed diagnostics, reduced cabling, high axes count, and short wiring distance between the drive and motor.

• Advanced Motion Controls Servo Drive Catalog
• Kollmorgen Akm Motor With Akd Drive Selection Guide White Paper
• Kollmorgen Servo Systems Catalog