Product Description:

The SMC-500 is a stepper drive and motion controller manufactured by Kollmorgen for the SMC Motion Stepper Drives series. It combines command generation, sequencing, and power switching in a single package. The controller moves two-phase stepper motors with precise velocity and position profiles in automated machinery, pick-and-place stations, and small gantries.

This controller employs a bipolar chopper output stage; this topology modulates the supply voltage at high frequency so winding current remains constant even as back EMF rises with speed. The power section draws from a supply range of 16–32 VDC, allowing operation with common 24 V control supplies while tolerating modest bus variation. Phase current is limited to 2 A, a setting matched to NEMA 17 and NEMA 23 motors that need moderate torque without excess heating. Position resolution is improved through microstepping, which subdivides each full step into smaller increments to reduce vibration and increase smoothness during low-speed moves. Command signals enter through optically coupled terminals; the optically isolated design prevents ground loops and protects upstream electronics from switching noise.

Machine I/O resources are integrated into the controller. Four digital inputs and four digital outputs share an open-collector topology capable of a standard 500 mA sink, while a dedicated high-current channel can switch up to 750 mA for brakes or relays. Up to 8 axes can be daisy-chained on a multidrop bus controlled over RS-232C, simplifying multi-motor layouts without additional interface cards. The housing measures 152.4 mm in width, 104.9 mm in height, and 28.6 mm in depth, permitting dense panel mounting beside other low-voltage devices. The drive supports two motor phases and uses open-collector outputs, allowing external pull-up resistors to establish the required logic level.