Kollmorgen AKD

The Kollmorgen AKD is a family of industrial servo drives designed for precise control of rotary servo motors and linear positioning systems. The platform offers broad connectivity options and advanced control technology for manufacturing automation.

AKD drives support multiple industrial Ethernet protocols including EtherCAT, EtherNet/IP, PROFINET RT, Modbus/TCP, and CANopen. The WorkBench graphical interface provides auto-tuning capabilities and real-time performance feedback for commissioning. Plug-and-play compatibility with Kollmorgen motors simplifies system integration.

The product family includes several variants: AKD-P (position indexer), AKD-N (IP67 decentralized drive for cabinet-free installation), AKD-T (torque/velocity mode for external controllers), AKD BASIC (with built-in BASIC programming), and AKD PDMM (combining servo drive with EtherCAT master controller supporting up to 32 axes).

Feedback device support includes Smart Feedback Devices (SFD), EnDat 2.2/2.1, BiSS, analog sine/cosine encoders, incremental encoders, HIPERFACE, and resolvers. Power ranges span from 300W to 50,000W continuous output with various current ratings.

Limitations

• Requires Kollmorgen motors for plug-and-play functionality; third-party motors need manual configuration
• Commercial proprietary platform with no open-source firmware or hardware
• WorkBench software runs on Windows only; no native Linux or macOS support
• Safety functions limited to STO (Safe Torque Off) on most variants; advanced SafeMotion only on AKD2G
• AKD-N decentralized drives require specific cabling infrastructure for single-cable power/feedback
• Higher cost compared to entry-level servo drives from Asian manufacturers