Belt Driven Parallel Lifting Stage

This stage was rated for 500Lbs and moved 48″ in an impressive 6.5 seconds. This custom triangular shaped vertical lifting stage was based upon a 3 point lift using MacBuilt 14Z belt drive actuators. Three 50:1 worm drives gearboxes were used to fail-safe the system from uncontrolled descent in the case of total power loss.

The three independent axis design required the motors to be “cam’ed” (synchronized) electrically. A digital controller provided a perfectly level lifting action by matching motor speed and position.

A double fail safe was designed in the case of controller failure, as an electromagnetic brake couples the motor and gearbox. Upon loss of power these brakes would automatically engage on all 3 axis simultaneously and stop the system within a few milliseconds.