Electric Actuator FAQs

Tolomatic actuators are offered at configurable stroke lengths to fit your machine design. Rod style actuators up to 60 in. (1524 mm), Rodless screw-drive are offered with strokes up to 120 in. (3048 mm) and belt-drive actuators up to 292 in. (7417 mm). Max stroke lengths will vary and depend on the actuator series, screw technology, and options selection.

Tolomatic’s Your Motor Here® program provides hundreds of standard motor mounts for many different manufacturers.  For the few motors not available in the Your Motor Here® program, the option to do a custom motor mount is always available. Detailed information on the Your Motor Here® can be found here https://www.tolomatic.com/info-center/tools/your-motor-here/

Electric actuators should never be driven into the end of stroke repeatedly during operation. This repeated impact may shorten life and lead to early unexpected failures. Adding over travel to the actuator stroke ensures that the actuator can run its working stroke without contacting the internal hard stops and bumpers. Tolomatic recommends two inches of additional stroke or “over travel” to allow extra travel for mounting, adjustment and limit switch positioning.

The basic application information necessary to select an electric actuator is orientation, distance, load, force, move time, cycle rate and environment.  As a guide to gathering all of the necessary data please reference the Application Checklist.

Link to Electric Application Check List https://www.tolomatic.com/info-center/resource-details/electric-rod-style-actuator-application-checklist/

There are multiple limit switch types available for the electric actuators resulting in varying functionality.  They all are triggered by a magnet moving with the actuator.   To troubleshoot limit switch operation, a few initial troubleshooting steps should be followed:

1. Confirm the wiring diagram for the switch matches the physical circuit.
2. Check the voltage range required for the switch and compare to the circuit.
3. Confirm the text on the switch is facing out or away from the magnet or the sensing side is facing the magnet.
4. Try a different magnet to confirm magnetic field presence.
5. Install the switch in a different location or different groove.

When working with Tolomatic electric actuators, the inertia ratio is referring to the ratio between the actuator’s reflected inertia and the motor’s rotor inertia. The inertia ratio is important for tuning of the motor. If the ratio is too high then overshooting the commanded position could occur. For Tolomatic motors a ratio of 10:1 or less is recommended.

The actuator’s reflected inertia can be calculated using the Tolomatic sizing software and the motor’s rotor inertia is can typically be found as a publish value from the motor manufacturer. The ratio is determined as the actuator reflected inertia divided by the motor rotor inertia.

Both Add-On Profiles (AOP) and Add-On Instructions (AOI) are tools used to help integrate Tolomatic’s ACSI integrated servo motor with compatible Allen Bradley PLCs. The AOP contains the EDS file and AOIs to allow the quickest integration. The AOIs are instructions that can be imported into the PLC ladder logic. Some AOIs examples are Start Motion, Home, Incremental Move and Absolute Move.

AOP & AOI Resources

The static IP rating has two parts. First, static means the equipment is stopped or not moving. Second, IP or Ingress Protection is rated based on the ability for the equipment to resist particles or liquid from getting inside. All published Tolomatic IP ratings are considered static.

Tolomatic Motion Interface software program is a flexible program and is designed for operating all of the Tolomatic ACS(I) drives. The software recognizes the drive type and automatically shows selections for only the connected drive type. The Tolomatic Motion Interface software is available below:

TMI Software