At Actuonix, we pride ourselves on offering the widest variety of affordable micro actuators available anywhere. Our actuators drive the motion element of some fascinating and useful products. We regularly add new products to our lineup as the needs of our customers evolve. In recent years, more of our clients have been asking for affordable motion solutions that have a higher accuracy than our standard products found in the L12, L16, PQ12, P16 and T16 lines. This lead us to develop the S20 line of stepper actuators. The S20 is built off of our popular L12 platform, and while highly accurate, is still too large for some projects. For some time now, we've been working on a stepper actuator that is smaller than the S20, and even the PQ12 actuator, to fit into the tightest applications requiring long life and high positional accuracy.
Introducing the Actuonix P8 Line of Stepper Actuators
We’re proud to announce that our new P8 line of stepper actuators is now officially available in our store! The P8 is a rod-style actuator that is a completely new, unique design. The body of the P8 is physically smaller than both our S20 stepper actuators as well as our PQ12 actuators. The P8 offers high-accuracy positioning in a super compact package that is perfect for applications where space is limited and high-accuracy is required. The P8 is available in five different stroke lengths: 10mm, 25mm , 50mm, 75mm and 100mm to ensure that the proper stoke length is available to suit your application.
Stepper Actuator Driver
If you don't already have a plan for how you will drive your stepper actuator, we recommend the Pololu TIC T825 Stepper Driver Board. The Pololu Tic family of stepper motor controllers makes it easy to add basic control of a bipolar stepper motor to a variety of projects. These versatile, general-purpose modules support six different control interfaces – USB for direct connection to a computer, TTL serial and I²C for use with a microcontroller, RC hobby servo pulses for use in an RC system, analog voltages for use with a potentiometer or analog joystick, and quadrature encoder for use with a rotary encoder dial – and offer many settings that can be configured using Pololu's free configuration utility (for Windows, Linux, and macOS). This software simplifies initial setup of the device and allows for in-system testing and monitoring of the controller via USB (a micro-B USB cable is required to connect the Tic to a computer).
S and P Series Models Now Available
December 2023 update!
When the P8-ST was originally released, there were two other P8 models in development. We're pleased to announce that the P8-S and the P8-P are now available in our store. As with our other actuator lines, the -S series features internal limit switches, and the -P series is compatible with our Linear Actuator Control (LAC) Board.
The P8 line of micro actuators is the latest in high-precision micro actuators from Actuonix. As design engineers continue to search for smaller and smaller actuators to meet their specifications, Actuonix continues to rise to the challenge with new products. The P8 is our smallest micro actuator yet, and we're seeing it open up new possibilities for product designs.
Common Questions About P8 Actuators
Is the P8 smaller than the PQ12?
The body of the P8 is thinner, and shorter than the PQ12, though a little taller. This does not account for the shaft, which varies in length depending on which specific model you choose.
What is the maximum force that the P8 can handle?
The highest gear ratio P8 with a DC motor (S or P series) has an impressive maximum force of 155N (34.8lbs).
Can I change the end tip on my P8 actuator?
To make the P8 as compact as possible, the end tip has been integrated into the shaft itself. It is not a replaceable part.