Meccanica Plus

Magnetic motor driven roller Lenze in conveying applicationsERT

Lenze has developed a new magnetic motor driven roller, the 0450 MDR, the result of a significant research programme and set to take a leading role in conveying tasks.

The o450 MDR is the most powerful motor driven roller currently on the market, says Lenze, adding that conveying applications will also benefit from less complexity, fewer variants, more efficiency, and simpler, faster commissioning and maintenance.

The o450 MDR, launched at Global events such as Modex in Atlanta and LogiMat in Stuttgart last March, will integrate directly into existing conveyor systems and deliver an output of 115 watts, making it more than twice as powerful as comparable systems on the market. Due to the unique design, this motor has significantly lower copper and iron losses overall, which means that less heat is generated within the roller. This results in a positive effect regarding efficiency as cooler copper windings have lower resistance (and therefore lower copper losses).
The cooler magnets have a higher magnetic flux linkage and can therefore achieve the same torque with a lower current.

Depending on the speed, the MDR would therefore fulfil efficiency classes IE7-IE9 and the customer can save up to 30% of energy compared to conventional systems. The o450 from Lenze can handle up to 30 kg. Even at low speeds, it offers the full nominal torque, which is hugely advantageous for accelerating conveyed goods.

The motor transfers its rotational energy via its rotor directly to the conveyed goods or the conveyor belt. The motor is based on the Vernier principle and combines a 3-phase AC motor with a loss-free magnetic gearbox. A big advantage over a conventional drive system is that the motor roller operates at 24 V or 48 V, which means non-electricians can replace, maintain or install the roller.

Variances are also reduced by 85% with this gearless MDR. This minimises design resources while minimizing excess inventory in a warehouse. According to the company, competitors currently have up to ten different gear ratios in their portfolio. In addition, the cabling effort is also significantly reduced. While comparable products require cables for speed and temperature monitoring in addition to the power connection, the latter two are integrated into the roller of the Lenze o450.