The Casella photovoltaic plant is assembled by helicopter
The delivery and placement of about 12,000 solar panels on a large, and not too robust,  40,000 sq mt existing industrial roof raises some serious technical issues. Phase resolved those by engineering a ultra lightweight, stiff aluminum mounting latticework, which was computer verified for wind, snow and seismic loads and connects to the roof over an unusually long 5 m pitch. The panels were then loaded right in the right places by helicopter. The loading of all panels by a specialized crew took a mere 4 hours/MW and made a very unusual spring day for the small Casella town!

> Additional pictures of the plant

TW7: a complete 20 kW servo package in the smallest frame enters production
The new TW7 integral servo motor successfully completed qualification tests and was sampled to the first customers. The integral servo motor package is capable of handling 20 kW continuous, 30 kW peak power with output torque up to 60 Nm. The package has a single water cooling circuits which conditions both motor and drive and is therefore ideally suited for compact, cabinet free automation, as well as auxiliary or primary motion control in vehicles. The drive can be supplied with built in resolver, single turn or absolute multi turn position encoder. The built in drive receives commands (typically position targets) through the CanOpen or optional EtherCat interface, interpolates the targets and closes all loops including position at 8 kHz rate. The PWM ripple frequency is b16 kHz guaranteeing noise free operation. A safety input is provided as well as a built in PM safety brake option for vertical loads. The built in drive solution is particularly optimized for EMI compatibility. There are no wires between motor and drive, and the whole of the high frequency part is fully encased in the motor system thus providing an effective shield. The built in drive is vibration proofed, high temperature rated and is designed without electrolytic capacitors to guarantee a very long operational life. The drive is rated IP 65.

The Hagzhou Sapphire plant nears completion
As of March, 2010 most of the structure of the 40,000 sq.m . integrated motion control plant is complete. The high speed lamination bay is fitted with a coil slitting line and a set of high speed presses with 30kton/year capacity. The rest of the plant is being completed toward the planned November, 2010 inauguration. When operational, the Sapphire’s production facility, which encompasses lamination, magnet production, winding, metrology, clean room assembly, as well as electronic design and a complete SMD production line, will be capable of high volume, high quality, integrated production of both PM servo motors and advanced, integrated drive systems. With this investment, Phase intend to become a major player in the future, highly integrated mechatronic systems world.

Phase Motion Control unveils the Proxima Science park project

Phase motion Control completed the purchase of a 200,000 mq forested valley near the town of Genoa, Italy, which will be turned into a Company promoted R&D and science park.

The Proxima project encompasses the reclaim of the once terraced, now abandoned land, the reshaping of the brook and lake of the site; and the realization, at the bottom of the valley, of the science park with the new Phase Motion Control headquarters, an auditorium, and additional labs for synergic R&D activities by third parties. The project is completed by an experimental farm and a small astronomical observatory manned by the town amateur astronomers.

The new Phase Motion Control headquarters, designed by the Architect Roberto Pellino, the same designer of the Hagzhou Sapphires, provides for 10,000 sq mt of office, lab and workshop areas with an advanced “communication” design, studied to ensure close cooperation between design offices, prototype labs and factory floor. The new workshop is tooled to allow assembly and testing of the new 6 m diameter class DD generators for wind and tidal power generation. The factory sports the highest energetic efficiency; it will be the first Class A industrial building in Italy. It is designed to blend naturally in the park with a “green” roof which is crossed by the trails going up to the lake.

The science park adds another 5000 sq mt of office and lab space, and a common auditorium, to additional R&D oriented activity, synergic to the energy and cybernetics theme of the Company.

All the valley area will be operated as a park and experimental bioagricolture project.

Additional information on the Proxima project are found at www.progettoproxima.org

The highest efficiency and power density in high power DC-AC converters ir reached by the new Ax-W range. Production started of the high power, water cooled Ax-W range of Dc-Ac converter drives rated 250,300 and 400 amp, up to 700 V Dc input. Ax-W converter drives complement at the high power lever the Ax-M range of programmable drive platforms. They pack up to 250 kVA power conversion capacity in the smallest package yet, within a volume of only 500x200x150 mm and 18 kg. The water cooled converters are specifically designed for continuous process where energy efficiency and long life are at a premium, especially when coupled with the high efficiency Phase Motion Control high speed PM motors. Full power efficiency is guaranteed in excess of 97% and the design life of the drive at rated power exceeds 100,000h.
All Ax-W drives share the advanced control platform of the Ax-M drives, with programmable, built-in PLC, CanOpen and Ethernet daisy chain bus communication. Applications range from high power industrial drives, fluid compressors and pumping, to traction of industrial and military vehicles, battery operated or hybrid.

Construction work starts on “Hangzhou’s Sapphires”, the new, 36000 sq mt Phase Motion Control plant located at the southern end of the new, 37 km long Hangzhou Bay Bridge, 40 min from Shanghai international Airport. Production start up is planned in June, 2009. The new plant will cover all Phase processes from high speed punching of electric laminations, to winding, mechanical machining and assembly. Another module is dedicated to drive assembly from SMD to power controls. Initial plant capacity is 50,000 ton/year of electrical steel. The plant houses a new R&D center, as well as technical and commercial support for the SE Asia market. The additional capacity will enable Phase Motion Control to produce in excess of 100,000 drives - generator units per year. The design of the plant, aptly named “Hangzhou’s Sapphires”, was awarded to the Argo Group in Italy, Architect Roberto Pellino.

The 2.05 MW photovoltaic power plant in Casella is entering the erection phase.

Phase designed and is commissioning one of the largest roof mounted, grid connected photovoltaic plants in Europe. The plant covers the 40,000 sq meter roof of an existing logistic hub located in Casella, northern Italy. The plant is endowed with distributed, radio controlled sensing and is organized in 12 independent modules and 2 medium voltage substations. The 12, 250 kW rated solar inverters located in the two substation use Phase Motion Control AxW water cooled power platforms and achieve 97.5% conversion efficiency. The inverters are controlled with a novel MPP algorithm and software developed in cooperation with the University of Genova, The panels are monocrystalline silicon with 18% efficiency. Full commissioning is planned by May, 2010.

Modular, double axial air gap PM generator technology in very large Direct Drive generators for multi MW wind power systems.

Conventional windmill technology is based on a geared speed multiplier and a high speed generator. The multi MW speed multiplier gearboxes have high cost, use large quantities of potentially polluting oil, and have significant maintenance requirements and failure rate. Direct drive technology, on the other hand, dictates very large electrical machines which, in conventional design, are generally considered too bulky and expensive. With over a decade of supply experience of the largest direct drive motors, up to 18 m in diameter, Phase Motion Control developed a modular, locally balanced double axial air gap technology for large PM machines which addresses size cost, assembly issues in an optimal form. The Phase generators reach multimegawatt power levels with no component over 1000 kg; the modularity and redundancy of the design offer unprecedented levels of availability, low mass and efficiency in excess of 98%. DD generators in development span up to 4 MW, 3 to 6 meter diameter.

Direct drive PM generators for mid size gearless wind power systems.

High efficiency, low speed PM generators were developed for mid size wind power systems in the 20-80 kW range, with full power rotational speed as low as 40 rpm and efficiency optimised for very low power output. DD generators range from 450 mm to 115 mm frame diameter, air over frame cooling, protected airgap area. Speed between 30 and 100 rpm. The Phase Motion Control proprietary technology delivers ultra light generators which are suitable for direct integration on the rim of the propeller hub, without additional bearings or shafts. The magnets are completely encased in a sealed, preloaded carbon fiber sleeve, stators are vacuum potted for additional lifetime protection. All generators are designed for a maximum operational temperature rise below 70 K.

The new TK-D direct drive low speed generators reach 97.5% conversion efficiency at 300 kW, 250 rpm.

TK-D low speed, direct drive PM generators, with 1.15 m diameter, have been tested in a mini hydro application on a variable speed turbine operating over the 230-280 rpm speed range, at 300 kW output. The adoption of direct drive, variable speed PM technology eliminated the noise and maintenance needs of the geared solution; at the same time, the extremely high conversion efficiency, coupled with the option of adapting the generator speed to the optimum turbine working point, allows a retrofitted power plant to generate a significantly larger output than before. Phase designs and delivers high performance PM direct drive generators, framed or frameless, with liquid or forced air cooling, for direct drive wind and mini hydro power generation, with speed range 25-50 rpm for eolic plants and 200-400 rpm for mini hydro; torque ratings from 500 to 1,000,000 Nm

The Ultract III servo motor series now is available with water cooling option to 800 Nm and in a new larger frame up to 1200 Nm

Internal water cooling option is now available on Sizes 7, 10 and 13 in the high performance servo motor line Ultract III. Water cooled motors provide from 35 to 800 Nm S1 rated torque. Water cooling doubles the torque/size ratio of servo motors allowing higher acceleration and hiterto impossible performance levels, while completely shielding the machine from the motor heat and preserving its dimensional accuracy. Water cooling also allows high speed (6-10000 rpm) applications, so far unavailable with high performance servos.

The Ultract range was expended to the new Size 16 340 mm square frame size. The new size, with natural convection cooling, is intended for heavy duty applications in lifting, flying cutters, extrusion and injection, siderurgical. The new motors are available flanged or with foot mount up to 1200 Nm S1 torque.

The TW 302.50.4 expands the TW range to the 75 mm square size

Now available in production, the smallest motor in the TW range, with a 75 mm square frame and 14 mm universal shaft, expands the TW range to high speed applications up to 5000 rpm by virtue of a novel, high efficiency magnetic design.

The new integral DSP driver accepts DC Bus voltages from 300 to 550 Vdc, thus enabling applications fed from three phase mains or from the DC bus of large drives.

Novel features implemented in the TW3 are the possibility of separating the power supply from the auxiliary power to implement safe shutdown routines, and the monitoring and control of the safety brake on the bus if required.

TW 302.50.4 is capable of 650 W continuous power in just only 2.9 kg

The TK series of high speed, flux control torque motor now spans up to 2000 mm. The new TK 1900 motors, capable of 50,000 Nm and constant power operation all the way from 25 to 250 rpm without winding commutation, expands dramatically the applicatioon potential of direct drives in high torque equipment. Typical applications include vertical lathes with milling ability, forging presses, electric bending, forming and stamping; extruders, large index tables in the glass industry, PM generators for wind and hydro energy.