A 22mm brushless motor, developed for the oil exploration industry, has rewritten the rule book on shock, vibration and temperature tolerances expected from commercial electric drives.
The electrically commutated EC22 HD (heavy duty) was designed to drive downhole technology at depths of 5,000m, in boreholes up to seven miles long.
Maxon says it is the most robust motor the firm has ever produced, and explains that it uses new concepts of rotor manufacture and a new modular hall-effect device – with testing successfully completed at temperatures up to 240°C from high vacuum to 1,700bar.
It also resists impulses and impact forces of 100G – 50 times the rate expected on Maxon's motors in Formula 1 cars.
And it can operate while fully submerged in oil – trebling its initial 80W output rating, because of improved heat dissipation, to deliver 240W from its 22mm-diameter frame.
Maxon now expects interest from plant engineers across industry where reliability is key. An efficiency rating of 88% in air (over 70% in oil) also make its EC22 HD good for battery-powered applications.
