What is the reducer used for?

Reducers are also called speed reducers. They are widely used in mechanical products. According to their use occasions and fields, their specific functions and effects are mainly as follows

1. Reduce the speed. As the name suggests, the first function of the reducer is to reduce speed. The main deceleration object is the motor. Whether it is a servo motor or a stepper motor, it has the same effect. Because in many practical occasions of the motor, it is difficult for us to fully use the rated speed of the motor, because this involves many other functional requirements and matching principles, so we will reduce the speed of the motor. It is a very common practice to reduce speed through a reducer.

2. Increase the torque effect. The reducer is indeed a very wonderful thing. While reducing speed, it can also increase the output torque of the motor accordingly.

3. Reduce the inertia of the motion mechanism. People who do mechanical structure research and development know that the motion inertia of the equipment is a very annoying thing. If the inertia of a certain motion mechanism is not well matched, the stability, accuracy and life of the motion will be greatly affected. However, we cannot infinitely increase the choice of motors for the purpose of inertia matching, so the reducer will be meritorious at this time.

4. Locking mechanism. The reducer has another very important function, which is the locking mechanism. For example, the worm gear reducer has a self-locking function. When its reduction ratio reaches a certain ratio, it can almost completely shield the reverse impact of the motion mechanism on the motor, or even completely lock the movement of the entire mechanism.

5. Reduce product production costs. Because the reducer has the function of reducing speed and increasing torque, we can often make it into a "small horse pulling a big cart" transmission form, using a small power motor to achieve greater torque output, thereby achieving cost savings. However, when using it in this way, we must pay attention to the balance of two parameters, that is, the balance of torque and speed. Do not reduce speed without limit, because there will be no speed, although you can get a lot of torque, especially in the non-standard automation industry. Many truss manipulators use such a structure, and the balance of speed and torque is very important.

6. Optimize mechanical structure design. Many times, because of the use of reducers, we can choose a smaller power motor, thereby simplifying our entire product design structure, so that many functional components can be made more refined and compact, and avoid looking "stupid and clumsy". This is also one of the reasons why mechanical design engineers are willing to choose to use reducers.