The BL300-0 of 3Men, Taiwan, is rated at 24V DC, 10A and comes with internal and external speed control

Motor controllers are expected to take a bigger chunk of suppliers' total production and sales in the future as demand climbs for integration and energy efficiency.

Most motor controller suppliers are also motor manufacturers, and many of these manufacturers already integrate their motor controllers into their motor products.

Production is projected to grow at annual rate of 10 percent on average, as more manufacturers venture into the production of motor controllers in mainland China.

Dong Sun, the president of Hong Kong-based maker DynaCity Technology (HK) Ltd, estimates that the mainland market is worth about $2.5 billion. The influx of more foreign-owned motor suppliers in China is expected to contribute to the increase in supply and bring in new manufacturing technology.

Makers are generally optimistic of the market in view of increasing demand coming from industrial and office automation, medical equipment, home appliances and consumer electronic applications. One factor behind the market growth is the growing awareness for energy efficiency-a key factor in the rising popularity of motor controllers.

With direct exports still at low levels, widening export reach is one priority among makers alongside production expansion. At present, sales from motor controllers take up only a small share of total motor sales. Most mainland suppliers have yet to reach their full capacity utilization, using 60 percent to 90 percent of capacity on average.

More makers are expected to produce more motor controllers, partly for their own supply and partly as an additional product line. Most mainland makers plan to raise their output by 10 percent to 20 percent.

Wolong Electric Group Co. Ltd, for one, targets to a 20 percent increase in production this year through next year. Changzhou Zeming Automatic Equipment Co. Ltd, on the other hand, recently doubled its production from 500 units to 1,000 units.

Unlike mainland makers, Taiwan suppliers outsource their manufacturing processes and ship the bulk of their output. Most of Taiwan's motor controller makers are located in Taipei and Taoyuan and have close business relations with motor makers.

These makers mostly bundle products as complete motor solutions that are shipped to worldwide clients. Industrial automation and medical equipment are the key applications, while home appliances and transportation are secondary applications. Over 90 percent of Taiwan's motor controller makers are small- and midscale companies with 10 to 20 workers. Most of them conduct product development in-house and outsource their manufacturing processes.

One maker, Microrad Technologies Inc., expects its output to escalate by 200 percent when it releases several new models this year, as it expects increasing demand from the medical and chemical industries. With a monthly output of 200 to 300 units, the bulk of Microcad's sales come from motor controllers.

Another company, 3Men Technology Co. Ltd, expects its output to grow by at least 50 percent to reach sales of $940,000. Industrial automation remains the company's main demand driver. About 70 percent of 3MEN's sales come from motor controllers with monthly sales ranging between $60,000 and $90,000.

DynaCity outsources the final manufacturing processes of its motor controllers on the mainland. Its monthly capacity is variable.

Linix Motor Co. Ltd offers motor controller models that are already built into a brush-less DC motor, rated at 12V or 24V at 30W. The company says its product features complete control functions, easy operation, high precision and is low on maintenance. The company has established technical partnerships with the 21st Research Institute, Zhejiang University and Xi'an Electronic Science and Technology University.

Taiwan-based Aurotek Corp. provides PC-based motor controllers for stepping and servo motors, with main applications related to industrial automation. Its MC104A model is a packaged stand-alone four-axis motor controller for use in servo, stepping and micro stepping motors. The product is suitable for robots, electronic equipment and factory automation equipment. Aurotek's motor controller used by Panasonic servo motors can control 32 axes.

3Men offers motor controllers for brushless DC motors and stepper motors. It takes the company three to six months to develop and release a new product. Its newest launch is the BL300-0 brushless DC motor controller featuring dimensions of 72x108x21mm, a flat torque performance, acceleration and deceleration time set-tings, and brake-stop function. Servo motor controllers will be 3Men's R&D focus in the next six months. The company also cooperates with the Teco Group for providing complete motor solutions.

Microrad, meanwhile, provides motor controllers specifically for brushless DC motors and stepping motors, as well as integrated solution products. The company develops and releases four to six new products every year and are generally applied to industrial automation and medical equipment. One of its new product offerings is the MCR-BL2406G brushless DC motor controller rated at 24V DC or 12V DC, which operates at -40°C to 85°C and runs at 50rpm to 25,000rpm.

Focusing more on miniaturization, DynaCity offers a line of motion control products that integrates motion control and a servo amplifier into one unit to save space and reduce wiring complexity. The products provide motion performance using DSP and FPGA technologies. The controllers and amplifiers of DynaCity's motion control products are digital. These are used in many types of motors, such as brushless DC, servo AC and stepping motors.

DynaCity currently offers three models--the DCT0020, the DCT0030 and the DCT0040, which are two- three-and four-axis motor controller/drivers. System specifications include up to takes one month to deliver, while it takes 3Men 45 days.

3Menhasbeenmanufacturing motor controllers for 10 years. It sources core components from US and European suppliers, then exports about 50 percent of it output back to the United States and Europe. Microrad obtains its key components from Japan and the United States. Most of its sales come from direct and indirect exports, mainly from Europe and Japan. Aurotek, which ships 30 percent of its output, designs and develops its own motion control ICs.

Among DynaCity's core competencies is it integrates the motion controller and amplifier with distributed architecture. Another is its advanced technology for the controller and amplifier, which helps the company produce compact modules. DynaCity has set up a sales and support office in Shenzhen and there are plans to set up a subsidiary company in the city.