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Ultrasonic ceramic linear motor actuators and rotary stages

Compact High-Speed Piezo Motor Motion

Ultrasonic Actuators: Linear and Rotary Stages

Ultrasonic ceramic motors use high-frequency piezo oscillations to generate fast, compact linear or rotary motion. They are self-locking at rest, stable without servo dither, and well suited for miniature positioning systems where high speed and compact design are required.

How Ultrasonic Actuators / Motors Work

Ultrasonic linear motor operating principle

PILine® ultrasonic piezo ceramic motors provide rapid acceleration and high speed. They are based on a patented ceramic drive developed by PI. At the heart of each motor is a rectangular piezo ceramic actuator segmented by electrodes.

Depending on the desired direction of motion, one electrode is excited to produce high-frequency ultrasonic oscillations. A motion transfer tip attached to the plate couples nanometric movements at high frequency into a ceramic runner. The same principle can also drive circular runners in rotary actuators.

These ceramic actuators / motors provide lower force than PiezoWalk® type ceramic motors, but much higher velocity. They are stable and self-clamping at rest with no heat generation or servo dither.

Ultrasonic Linear and Rotary Actuator Products

M-663 ultrasonic motor linear table

Compact Ultrasonic Actuator Linear Stage, with Linear Encoder

  • Patented ultrasonic piezo linear motor
  • Fast, precise and self-locking at rest
  • Maximum velocity 250 mm/second with rapid acceleration
  • Smallest translation table with closed-loop linear motor and encoder
  • 18 mm positioning range
  • Models with up to 10nm resolution linear encoder
  • Very compact XY actuator combinations

This small, closed-loop micropositioner is driven by a very compact ultrasonic actuator, providing high velocity to 200 mm/second and sub-micron resolution. An integrated linear encoder supports high precision and repeatability.

Ultrasonic Motor / Actuator Overview

M660 U651 rotary actuator stage

M-660 / U-651 Ultrasonic Rotary Actuator

  • Patented ultrasonic piezo motor
  • Fast, precise and self-locking at rest
  • 360° positioning range
  • 4 µrad resolution
  • 540°/second velocity
  • 14 mm ultra-low profile
  • Direct metrology encoder

This compact ultrasonic rotary actuator stage provides an extremely low profile of only 14 mm. An integrated direct metrology encoder provides high resolution and high repeatability.

Ultrasonic Rotary Actuator Specs, Drawings, Part Numbers

Ultrasonic Actuators Overview

Learn more about compact ultrasonic linear motor stages and piezo motor positioning systems.

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