Ultra-Low Power Consumption Electromagnetic Actuator Based on Potential Magnetic Energy Harnessing: Principle of Operation and Experimental Validation

This paper presents a novel rotary electromagnetic actuator designed for high-speed and high-precision positioning with ultra-low power consumption, intended for industrial and scientific applications such as rotary index tables, pick and place robots, or optical systems, among others. The actuator is based on harnessing electromagnetic potential energy and its transformation into kinetic energy to enable accurate and rapid changes between different equilibrium positions of the device. A prototype with an outer diameter of 86 mm and a thickness of 25 mm and a mass of about 0.57 kg has been manufactured and tested. It presents eight equilibrium positions evenly separated to 45 degrees, reachable in just 48 ms with a positioning accuracy of 20 arcmin. Experimental results demonstrate that the device generates a torque of 590 mNm, maximum angular speed and acceleration up to 663 rpm and 14,500 rad/s2, respectively, with an input current of ±500 mA and a maximum power consumption of just 6.3 W. This value of power consumption represents a power saving up to 80% when compared to a conventional electromagnetic actuator that reproduces the same motion profile. An energy saving up to 38% is calculated for a change between two adjacent equilibrium positions. This innovative technology provides a new tool for precise positioning in highly dynamic applications with unprecedented energy and power savings.