H2W Technologies designed a custom gold plated, voice coil positioning stage (VCS10-023-BS-01-MCS-R) for a laser beam steering application. It utilizes H2W's voice coil linear actuator (NCC10-15-023-1X).
It has a stroke length of 1.0 in. (25 mm), a continuous force of 2 lbs (8.9 N) and a peak force of 6 lbs (26.7 N) and has a payload capacity of 2 lbs (.91 Kg) and a positioning resolution of 1 micron.
It is ideal for short stroke closed loop positioning applications where intricate position, velocity, and acceleration control is necessary.
Its compact size (3.75 in. long x 4.375 in. wide x 3.52 in. high) allows it to fit into small spaces. The stage has a very low electrical and mechanical time constant. The low moving mass allows for high accelerations of light payloads.
The iron-less core coil assembly has no magnetic attractive force to the stationary magnet assembly, which reduces the load on the bearing system, which increases the life of the bearing. There are no magnetic drag forces (hysteresis), which allows for higher accelerations.
These actuators are wound in such a way that no commutation is required for motion to occur. Electrical devices such as Hall Effects are not necessary. The result is a much simpler and more reliable system.