Tolomatic food-grade servo actuator designed for high-force food and beverage processing

New options provide superior actuator protection in sanitary washdown environments.

The Tolomatic IMA electric linear actuator, the company’s most powerful integrated servo motor rod actuator, is now available with a food-grade white epoxy coating and stainless steel components for washdown applications in the food and beverage industry. The compact, durable IMA actuator series integrates a servomotor and a ball or roller screw for long service life to meet many different budgets. The IMA actuator’s unique integrated motor design is well suited for applications such as slicing control, pressing, valve control and volumetric filling.

“Many applications within the food and beverage industry require high-force electric actuators that can withstand the rigors of sanitary washdown,” said Aaron Dietrich, marketing manager, Tolomatic, Inc.  “New IMA actuators with a food-grade white epoxy coating and ingress protection rating of IP67 are an economical alternative to custom stainless steel actuators. With a wide range of available modifications, the IMA can be tailored to virtually any food and beverage application.”

Available in four sizes, the IMA line of integrated servo motor rod actuators features stroke lengths from three to 18 inches (76.2 to 457.2 mm) and peak thrusts from 200 to 6,875 pounds force (890 to 30,594 N) at speeds up to 24 inches per second (610 mm/sec).

With its integrated servomotor, the IMA actuator also is shorter for a given stroke length than other types of electric rod actuators. Its patent pending design allows for easy re-lubrication of the screw without disassembly, increasing service life compared to other rod actuators without this feature. The IMA offers seamless integration with Rockwell Automation Kinetix® platform with approved custom motor files (CMF/BLB) for the PLC and integrated motor actuator.

Available modifications

In addition to food-grade white epoxy, a variety of modifications to the IMA expand the range of operating environments, including:

• Food-grade greases to provide the lubrication actuators require and comply with international food/health & safety regulations.
• Stainless steel for all external assembly and mounting.
• Stainless steel external components to provide greater corrosion resistance.

The IMA actuator series features a hollow-core rotor design that allows the nut of the screw to pass inside the rotor, creating a very compact package. This can decrease overall actuator length compared to standard actuators due to the elimination of a separate motor, motor mount and gearbox. In addition, the motor features skewed stator windings to minimize cogging of the motor and provide more efficient motion with improved force repeatability. Tolomatic’s sizing and selection software makes selecting an IMA actuator easy.