For warehouses and distribution centers that need their conveyors to be able to operate at different speeds, motion control company Lenze America has designed two new drives: the Lenze Smart Motor and the 8400 Motec Inverter Drive.
The Lenze Smart Motor is an electronically controlled gear motor that is tailored for conveyor applications. Using a smartphone or computer, the user can easily reset the conveyor motor to five different speeds. The speed of the motor can also be set right off the shelf before the motor is plugged into a power source.
Because the Smart Motor can be reprogrammed to run at different speeds, companies can buy one type of motor to perform many different applications. This reduces the number of spare drives a company has to keep in stock for maintenance purposes and therefore, reduces overall maintenance costs.
The Smart Motor also has a higher starting torque than traditional gear motors and is designed so that it reduces the temperature of the oil inside the motor, prolonging the lifetime of the oil and of the motor itself.
Lenze's 8400 Motec Inverter Drive is designed for conveyors that need to run at different speeds while in operation—for example, if the conveyor has to accelerate up a ramp or if the warehouse reduces the speed of its conveyors during slow periods. The distinguishing characteristic of the 8400 Motec drive is that its motor is smaller in size than a standard motor but generates the same amount of power. (The drive can also come with a standard-sized motor if preferred.)
