A gear motor is made with the main purpose of transmitting power. Therefore, the two most vital elements at the output shaft of any gearbox are the speed and how much work the gear can handle or the amount of torque it can produce. The typical role of gearboxes is to take motor power, magnify their torque, and reduce their speed. So, when you need gear motor for your specific use, it’s best to pay attention to the amount of torque and speed available at the output shaft. But when you want to increase the energy efficiency of gear motor, focus on the motor type and its gearing efficiency.
One possible way to increase the efficiency of a gear motor is to replace a permanent split capacitor ac motor with a permanent magnet dc motor. Even if the former may promise a greater maximum efficiency potential, its efficiency during the actual application can be much lower. It is also important to know that 3-phase driven gear motor is usually much more efficient than their single-phase version.
Plus, they are more reliable due to their simplified design. This is why in cases where a 3-phase gear is not available, a variable frequency drive or VFD is needed. In fact, VFDs are now preferred more since they can help increase machine life while reducing mechanical shock. So, overall, to maximize the efficiency of a geared system, it’s advisable not to negate the motor efficiency gains with the inefficiency of the gearing.
Specifically, you may want to use spur and helical gear motors for parallel-shaft reducers because they are almost 98% efficient, whereas right-angle worm gears provide only about 50% efficiency. To conclude, when specifying a gear motor, it’s crucial to know if the output power specification works for the motor only or it may also refer to the efficiency of the gearbox.
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