Automatica, Munich, 3 – 6 June 2014
Synapticon: Hall A4, Stand 128
Motion control kits support advanced robotics applications
First product includes 120W BLDC motor driver, EtherCAT communications and motion control
Bristol and Munich, 4 June 2014 – XMOS and Synapticon today announce a new range of development kits that allows embedded designers to quickly and easily create a wide variety of innovative motor control and motion control applications. The kits allow developers to address new opportunities in rapidly growing sectors such as consumer and professional robotics, transportation, and the $170bn factory automation market, enabling emerging trends such as Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing.
Based on the xCORE range of multicore microcontrollers from XMOS and Synapticon’s SOMANET technology, the new kits enable efficient, standards-compliant and safe motion control applications, ranging from simple single-axis solutions to innovative distributed motion control systems.
The first product in the family includes a SOMANET control subsystem, an EtherCAT communications module, 120W motor driver and an example brushless DC (BLDC) motor. The compact kit measures just 40mm x 50mm x 15mm when assembled, making it ideal for use by designers seeking to add intelligence “close to the node” in their automation projects. Options are provided for Hall Sensor and Quadrature Encoder sensing, with support for CiA® 402, the CANopen device profile for drives and motion control.
Configured and programmed in a high-level C-based environment via the XMOS xTIMEcomposer integrated development suite, the hardware package is augmented with robust, proven motor control IP modules from Synapticon that implement position, speed and torque/current control loops. The powerful xCORE multicore microcontroller subsystem is equipped with up to 32 processing cores, providing up to 2000MIPS of raw performance.
Synapticon’s SOMANET™ technology allows the construction of a range of robotic and cyber-physical systems*, from simple motor controllers to complex motion control solutions where the intelligence is distributed and runs alongside the sensors and actuators. This allows the systems to react much faster, improving precision and quality as well as enabling new advanced applications. SOMANET technology delivers high levels of energy efficiency, functional safety and standards compliance. The new development kit allows users to take the first steps on the road to creating these intelligent embedded systems, with fast and easy creation of both single- and multiple-axis control systems.
The kits are the first results of an extension, also announced today, to the existing partnership between XMOS and Synapticon. Synapticon has built its complete range of SOMANET technology on the xCORE multicore microcontrollers. The two companies have now agreed to collaborate on a range of joint development, support and marketing initiatives.
The new motor and motion control kit is available immediately via the XMOS global network of representatives and distributors, priced at $909 for the Hall sensor-only version and $999 for the version equipped with Quadrature Encoder sensing. Visit www.xmos.com/motioncontrol for more details.
* Cyber-physical systems combine collaborative computing elements, sensors and actuators to allow software programs to interact with the physical world
About XMOS
XMOS is a young fabless semiconductor company based in Bristol, UK. The wide range of xCORE™ multicore microcontrollers with Hardware-Response™ provide a unique combination of parallel multitasking, deterministic performance, support from a large library of software-defined peripherals, allowing you to meet your exact design requirements. This makes xCORE multicore microcontrollers ideal for demanding embedded applications in audio, automotive, consumer and industrial products, where other microcontrollers struggle. XMOS provides xTIMEcomposer™ Studio, an easy to use development system, that makes it simple to design complex embedded systems.
For more information please visit www.xmos.com
Media contact
Alex Perryman/Joe McNamara
EML Wildfire Technology PR
xmos@emlwildfire.com
+44 208 408 8000
About Synapticon
Synapticon is a young embedded systems company based in the region of Stuttgart, Germany. They specialize in hardware and software for sensor & actuator-intensive, internet-connected systems. Customers benefit from their cross-domain expertise through a range of customizable products and turn-key solutions for robotics, autonomous vehicles, smart industrial automation, special machinery and the internet of things. The Synapticon DYNARC platform for distributed computing & control comprises the vertical product lines SOMANET, NEOCORTEX and OBLAC. It enables developers of cyber-physical systems to easily configure, build and program a distributed computer for fully integrated actuator control, sensor data acquisition and high bandwidth data processing.
For more information please visit www.synapticon.com
Media contact
HighTech communications GmbH
Brigitte Basilio
Grasserstrasse 1c
80339 München Germany
Phone: +49 89 500778-20
E-mail: b.basilio@htcm.de
www.htcm.de
