When it comes to compact, innovative, and advanced motion, B&R Industrial Automation has an extensive portfolio. Partnered with ABB, B&R offers a wide selection of industrial PCs (IPCs) and PLCs, along with servo motors and drive systems in various sizes. Recently, B&R released several new products to reduce cabinet sizes and future-proof communications.
ACOPOS M4 Servo Drive
The ACOPOS M4 is a four-axis servo drive, capable of powering synchronous, asynchronous, linear, or torque motors. Compared to B&R’s earlier models, the latest M4 version offers a 60% size reduction while still providing corrected power at nearly 99% efficiency. To help reduce cabinet space, the new drives have an embedded EMC filter and do not require external braking resistors or regenerative chokes. Further space savings are possible with an optional liquid cooling ability, while air-cooled options are still available. The servo drive is available in power ratings from 1.5 kW to 200 kW.
ACOPOS X2 / X4
B&R has expanded its ACOPOS family with two new models. The X2 is a stepper / DC motor controller capable of controlling either two stepper motors, two brushless DC motors, or one of each with a combined power rating of 1 kW. The X2 is capable of feedback from various types of encoders or can operate motors without encoders. For safety, the X2 is integrated with a safe torque off function, which will stop all power going to the motors in the event the safety circuit opens.
The X4 is a four-axis servo drive that is integrated into B&R’s X20 platform, which creates a very compact drive system. With a power rating of up to 1 kW and a scan time of 50 µs, the X4 is suitable for small servo motion control. For safety, the X4 is integrated into B&R’s SafeMotion technology, reducing field wiring and allowing designers to create a dynamic and faster responding safety system.
Metal-To-Metal Upgrade for ACOPOStrak
The ACOPOStrak system is a linear servo conveyor capable of high-speed transport of shuttles. The caveat is that the payload of the shuttle is limited, and if maximum speed is required, the payload must be as small as possible. B&R’s new metal-to-metal upgrade allows for a payload of up to 10 kg per shuttle at speeds up to 5 m/s. The upgrade uses an additional support underneath the track with additional bearings. The upgrade also allows for cantilevered pallet designs without having to reduce the payload.
OPC UA FX for Field Devices
OPC UA is an open source and non-vendor-specific protocol. The protocol can be used to send live data between HMIs and PLCs or PLCs to PCs. All of B&R's IPCs, as well as their X20 PLC product line, come fully equipped with support for OPC UA, and now the latest ACOPOS M4 drive will have the ability to communicate with OPC UA FX. The FX addition stands for field exchange, meaning the protocol has additional security measures designed for communication to field-level devices. With the OPC UA FX protocol now supporting authenticity and security certificate management, B&R is hoping to make OPC UA FX the next machine communication protocol. Keep an eye out for further releases from B&R with OPC UA FX technology.
AI-Optimized Industrial PC
B&R is well known for its rugged IPCs, and with AI technology gaining speed, they have released a PC designed with AI in mind. The APC50A IPC is essentially a high-end power-house PC that is configurable and capable of running the latest Intel i9 chipset. Additional hardware can be added, such as full-sized graphics cards or AI deep learning hardware. The PC is geared toward processing or graphics-intensive applications such as advanced vision inspections or 3D rendering applications.
Six-Axis Codian SR Robot
The Codian robot product line is fully integrated into B&R's control system, meaning a B&R PLC can directly control any one of its Codian robots. B&R’s new Codian SR is a six-axis articulating robot capable of a 600 mm to 1,400 mm range. The SR robot uses a high-stiffness transmission to maintain rigidity and precision even in demanding conditions and is designed for use in most industries, including pharmaceutical, consumer packaged goods, and electronics manufacturing.