How to choose the right motor for your robot

As an industry and a whole set of technologies, robotics is changing and developing rapidly. Whether as a hobbyist or an experienced robotics engineer, you need to understand every component inside and outside. In some cases, you should also know how to choose between several different variants.

This is the case with robot motors. No matter how smart the robot`s joints are, you need the right product to provide all the motion, strength and range of metal and plastic.

What types of robot motors are there?
There are multiple robot motor categories. Each has subtypes, has its own applications and advantages. This is a summary of the types available today.

Robot actuator
There are three types of actuators:

Pneumatic actuators: These actuators use compressed air to function. With few moving parts, they are reliable and easy to maintain. They lack control over other types of speed, position, and accuracy, but they are ideal for warehousing tasks, such as picking and storage.
Hydraulic actuators: These are a good choice for large robots with heavy loads. They use air-pumped oil-based fluids instead of air to provide movement. Although they are larger and noisier than other types, they are accurate but cause fluid leakage over time.
Electric actuator: The electric motor converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. These are the most common types of all robot categories today, because electricity is a relatively abundant resource. They can also perform well in robots of all sizes, are compact relative to their power output, and are easy to maintain and have almost zero pollution.
Although electric actuators are the most common and have the widest range of functions in robotics, they can pose risks in environments containing explosives. Compared with other motor types, they also require a more complex command system.

electric motor
In the motor category, there are several different types. This category includes the following types:

Alternating current (AC) motor: AC power is provided in an ordinary wall outlet. AC motors use this abundant energy source to generate electromagnetic induction. Engineers like to use AC Machinery where consistent speed is required. However, outside of industrial-scale high-torque robot technology, they are rare sights.
Direct current (DC) motors: DC motors usually replace wall sockets and are powered from batteries. Compared with the plug-in model, the DC mechanism has a wide range of sizes, and the load range varies greatly, and the response time is fast and the mobility is strong.
Servo motors: also referred to as "servo", including industrial servos, are some of the highest precision motors. They almost support immediate error adjustment at runtime. If you need precise positioning and high torque in a small package, these motors are ideal for robotic arms and other types of robots and collaborative robots. There may be a delay between movement and when the servo system is working.
Stepper motors: Stepper motors run in small increments to provide high torque while holding objects-and precise positioning at each step. The accuracy of these motors is often on the order of 0.01 degrees and 0.1 mm. The total torque is similar to a servo motor. As far as the required power is concerned, the operating cost of a stepping motor is higher than that of other types of motors.

How to choose the right motor for the robot?
You can check the above points to narrow the range of motor selection for the next robot project. However, before re-reading everything, create a list of unmissable features your robot needs.

What task will it perform, and where is your motion error?

Study the regulatory environment carefully to understand your tolerance for pollution. Motor pollution is not only the main cause of motor failure, but also a threat to product quality in a risk-averse manufacturing environment.

In other words, you don't have to match hydraulic actuators with high-precision, high-cleanliness equipment such as food and pharmaceutical manufacturing.

These are other key points to look for when you are researching various robot motor types:

Size/power ratio: what scale do you want to build? Does the robot need to navigate in cramped places, or is raw power more important than size?
Load limitation: The type of drive you choose for the robot requires sufficient torque to cope with the load it is expected to bear.
Accuracy: What is the tolerance for abnormal motion when the robot is moving? Do you need to provide instant, accurate error correction motors?
Reliability: How complete is your maintenance department staffing? How often do you want to perform maintenance on the robot?
Resource consumption: Not every robot motor is as kind to the environment as other robots. Stepper motors consume power even in standby mode, but sometimes they are the only option.

Every robot has a motor

From the consumer level to the large-scale deployment of robotics, motors are everything. If you study the regulations and working environment in advance, you will quickly find that every robot project has a type of motor. If you know Suzhou Schole, you will also find that we are not only producing Ball Screw.