Motion

Motion In Vacuum

Motorization is available for most motion instruments featured throughout this catalog. High, medium and low torque, DC stepper motors as well as conventional AC motor options are available. Please note that motor controls are not included with motorization options and must be purchased separately. Detailed motor specifications as well as control electronics are offered in the motorization section.

Precision motion instruments detailed herein are available for either high or ultrahigh vacuum service. High vacuum products are mounted on ISO standard KF flanges. Better known in the industry as the MDC Kwik-Flange™, these versatile flanges provide quick-make and quick-break installation, making them ideal for vacuum systems requiring frequent assembly and disassembly. Sealing is achieved by compressing a Viton® elastomer between two mating flanges fastened with a single, hinged aluminum clamp. 

Ultrahigh vacuum devices are fitted with industry standard, Conflat® compatible, Del-Seal™ CF metal seal flanges. MDC Del-Seal™ CF flanges are designed with a standard knife-edge sealing geometry which produces a seal through cold-flow deformation of a copper gasket. Del-Seal™ CF flanges are typically used in UHV environments where high temperature bakeouts are a must. Bakeout temperatures greater than those specified may be achieved by disassembling and removing temperature sensitive components. Please reference feedthrough instruction manuals or contact MDC’s technical staff for higher temperature ratings and detailed instructions on instrument disassembly and low temperature component removal. For maximum vacuum integrity, reliability and extended service life all motion device actuator seals incorporate edge welded stainless steel bellows

Rotary Motion

Standard rotary motion feedthroughs are a practical and economical solution for rotary motion in most vacuum applications. Rotary motion position is measured along a 360° laser etched scale graduated in 5° increments. Welded stainless steel bellows with a unique off-axis wobble design, combined with rotary shaft bearing supports, provide rotary motion of unsurpassed reliability and performance. In contrast to standard rotary motion products, the high temperature standard rotary motion devices are constructed entirely of 304 stainless steel to endure the rigors of high temperature vacuum service.

Pneumatic drive rotary products are designed for in-vacuum shutters and other light-duty two-position motion applications. Pneumatic drive rotation is adjustable from 30° to 90°. Miniature rotary motion feedthroughs are specifically designed for in-vacuum light-duty service where torques will not exceed 20 ozin. Their small footprint makes them ideal for applications with severe space limitations.

Precision rotary motion instruments are a step higher than standard rotary motion products. They offer greater precision with very low backlash and a display resolution of 0.1°.

Magnetically coupled rotary motion feedthroughs provide basic rotation and UHV compatibility without the use of bellows . This product is intended for light-duty service not exceeding 20 oz-in of torque. Direct drive rotary motion products provide basic rotation with HV compatibility. Vacuum integrity is maintained by a single preloaded Viton® elastomer shaft seal. Fitted with dual rotary bearing shaft supports, this device can be manually or mechanically operated at intermittent speeds of up to 300 rpm. They are mounted on MDC Del-Base™ 1" baseplate mounts.

Differentially pumped direct drive rotary motion feedthroughs provide 100 lb-in maximum rotational torque and 500 rpm maximum rotation. The rotary shaft is supported by two radial bearings located inboard of dual Viton® elastomer shaft seals. The region between the seals can be differentially pumped through a 1/8" female pipe thread port provided to attain UHV compatibility to 10-9 Torr. 

Linear Motion

Standard linear motion feedthroughs are the perfect solution for most linear displacement vacuum applications. Linear position is measured along both radial and linear scales laser etched on actuator barrel and housing. Radial and linear scales are graduated in 0.001" and 0.025" increments respectively. One revolution of the barrel translates into 0.025" of linear travel. The housing’s linear scale also includes graduation in 1mm increments for added convenience. Edge welded stainless steel bellows, a 40 pitch lead screw design and the use of linear bearing shaft support provide devices with excellent durability and performance. Unlike the standard motion products the high temperature linear motion feedthroughs are constructed entirely of 304 stainless steel to endure the rigors of high temperature vacuum service.

Compact high temperature linear motion feedthroughs have a small footprint and are constructed with high temperature vacuum grade materials. Linear position is measured along a laser etched stainless steel barrel graduated in 20 equally spaced increments. A full revolution of the barrel translates into 1.25mm of linear travel. Formed stainless steel bellows, a 1.25mm fine pitch lead screw design and the use of radial bearings provide this product with excellent durability and performance. All drive mechanism components are located on the atmosphere side of the reentrant formed bellows.

Miniature linear motion feedthroughs are specifically designed for light-duty service. Full revolution of the barrel translates into 0.025" of linear travel. 

Push-pull linear motion feedthroughs are the most basic of the manual motion devices offered in this catalog. They provide quick action linear motion via a stainless steel hand-held actuator shaft. They are typically operated by observing instrument motion through a vacuum viewport. For quick and easy positioning the feedthrough body has been laser etched with linear travel graduation marks in increments of 0.025". The actuator can be locked in position by tightening an integral lock knob located on the actuator housing.

Rack and pinion linear motion feedthroughs are very similar to push-pull devices, but provide finer control of linear motion. The 90° rack and pinion drive mechanism provides a quick-action drive with greater control than push-pull devices. For quick and easy positioning the feedthrough body has been laser etched with linear travel graduation marks in increments of 0.025". A 1-1/4 turn on the handle generates 1 inch of linear travel. The actuator can be locked in position by tightening an integral lock knob located on the actuator housing.

Pneumatic linear motion feedthroughs provide two-position fast action linear motion. Typical motion applications would include on-off, open-close and in-out motions similar to those of in-vacuum shutters. Linear travel can be shortened or lengthened via an integral stroke adjustment knob. For quick and easy positioning the feedthrough body has been laser etched with linear travel graduation marks in increments of 0.025" Heavy duty manual, pneumatic and push pull linear motion feedthroughs allow linear displacement of heavier samples and components. With the exception of the precision micrometer fitted unit, these devices do not provide position indication. Position of samples or components being moved must be verified visually. Unlike conventional motion feedthroughs, heavy duty models employ reentrant welded bellows construction.

Multi-Motion

Multi-motion feedthroughs are instruments with more than one degree of freedom. This product category includes combinations of linear, rotary and wobble motion. 

Rotary-linear standard devices offer 360° of rotation and one inch of linear travel via two separate drive knob actuators. Both rotary and linear positions are measured along a laser etched actuator barrel and housing. The 360° rotary scale is graduated in 5° increments. The linear scale has both a linear and rotary scale component, the linear portion is graduated in 0.050" increments while the rotary portion is graduated in 0.001" increments. Full revolution of the linear scale produces 0.025" of travel.

Precision rotary-linear motion instruments are a step higher than the standard rotarylinear products. They offer greater precision with very low backlash, a rotary display resolution of 0.1°, and 0.500" of micrometer precision linear travel with 0.001" resolution.

Wobble stick multi-motion devices with linear, angular wobble, rotary and articulated pincer configurations are available in this product category. The most elaborate device provides 360° sample rotation, 4.50" of push-pull linear travel, 22° of angular tilt or wobble and a mechanical pincer jaw with 0.880" diameter sample capacity.