High power density Piezo motors for critical environments

Abstract:
Piezoelectric motors offer many advantages for applications in numerous industrial sectors. The requirements for which these solutions are developed are focused on their main advantages such as non-magnetic and radiation compatibility, high force/volume ratio, good unpowered stall force and low power consumption. Such applications are typically concerned by exotic working conditions on which the piezoelectric motors still need to improve regarding the technological readiness level. The presence of friction elements, seen as one of the key elements of such actuators, and forecasting their behaviour with relative to the several environments, is one of the improvement areas for the technology. For these motors, the main challenge will be to ensure the nominal performances through a large thermal environment, under cryogenic or high temperature, in air and vacuum environment, or even submitted to high radiation doses. To explore and validate the good behaviour of the piezoelectric motors, Cedrat Technologies (CTEC) worked on projects to study several designs which will be developed to sustain Aircraft, Space, Defense and Nuclear environmental conditions to improve the repeatability, the reliability and the technological readiness level.