Can G320 drive 2 motors in series?

[pixpop]

Is it OK for me to connect two motors to a single G320? I have 2 motors driving a single axis, with a single encoder. I'm using 2 as it was a simple way to get more torque, given that I have plenty of identical motors.

Would it be best to connect them in series or parallel?

They are about 40 inches apart.. so the G320 can't be close to both of them. Should I just put it halfway between them? Or should I put it close to the one that has the encoder?

(These motors are not huge, and the G320 can easily supply enough current & voltage if I put them in series).

Thanks,

Neil

[DSL PWR]

No. You need 2 drives.

[joecnc2006]

Originally Posted by DSL PWR No. You need 2 drives.

I have driven two motors from one G201 drive, not sure about G320's.

Joe

[pixpop]

Originally Posted by DSL PWR No. You need 2 drives.

Can you say why?

Neil

[Mike Nash]

If the combined armature voltage of the motors is less than or equal to the available voltage from the G320, it should work fine. This assumes that the motors are driving a common thread/shaft/pinion whatever. This is done with large motors at times, especially in days gone by. The advantage of series connecting the motors is that both have to share the load equally. It won't matter on lead length of one versus the other either. Two motors tied in parallel may share the load equally, but only if the motors are very closely matched and lead length differences could be an issue. The parallel connection is often seen in conjunction with shunt field motors having a means to vary the field current in one motor so the current is shared equally.

If the two shafts are not rigidly tied to each other or through the load, it may or may not work well. Most likely not.