Drives make waves in fitness training market

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Feb 25, 2003

AC Tech has provided customised MC Series stainless-steel water-resistant drives for use on the latest generation of training and rehabilitation devices from America.

AC Tech has provided customised MC Series stainless steel water resistant drives for use on the latest generation of training and rehabilitation devices from America, which simulate swimming against a current in a room-sized pool.

The MC Series drive was chosen because the paddle system needed to be controlled by a small, flexible and easily programmed unit to create the most attractive package for professional athletes and specialist sports clinics.

The stainless steel MC Series from AC Tech boasts a protection rating up to IP65 and is designed for use in harsh environments such as those found in the food, pharmaceutical and other processing industries.

The tough design combined with high levels of functionality and ease of programming also make it ideal for use in leisure industry products, such as this latest fitness training aid from America, the SwimEx machine.

The SwimEx is effectively a room-sized swimming pool, which provides the resistance needed for the user to remain stationary against a current created by a paddle system, which continually circulates water from the back to the front of the machine.

In order for the propulsion system to produce the required water speeds of up to 10.5km/h, the machine needs to create a flow of more than 110,000 litre/min through a trough hidden underneath the body of the glass-fibre pool.

This current is achieved using a 5.5kW variable speed gearmotor controlled by an AC Tech MC Series drive to provide 45 different water speeds.

Flow speeds are controlled by pneumatic air switches, also supplied by AC Tech, which allow the user to change resistance levels whilst swimming.

Commenting on the decision to use the AC Tech drive in the project, Mark Fryer, Product Engineer at SwimEx explained that; "We had looked for an inverter that would be capable of dealing with the pool's circuit breaker".

In addition, according to Fryer, "The drive had to be the right size - there's no room for old-fashioned, clumsy designs in these sleek machines where space is at a premium - and of course, it had to be cost-effective, too".

Although the MC Series units are small enough to be specified in the SwimEx machine, they offer all the functionality of larger drives thanks to use of the latest technology, such as dedicated Intel motor control processors.

Benefits of working with AC Tech drives also became apparent at the development stage of the project as Fryer commented; "AC Tech worked with us, which sometimes is easier said than done.

They describe themselves as 'drive specialists', and that's how they work in real life.

They knew we had very definite needs and took the time to understand them, and meet them".

For example, AC Tech even designed custom software to lower the audible noise created by the motor and make operation smoother.