The ever-growing demand for electric motors can be attributed to several factors including the growing interest in eco-friendly and fuel-efficient motors and improved living standards in a number of densely-populated countries around the world. Plus, new innovations in home appliances are not only driving the demand for electric motors, it’s changing the way they are shaped, sized and put together.

So, how exactly do electric motors work?

An electric motor is in pretty much every electronic appliance. The motor is what turns electricity into mechanical movement. When an electric motor is charged with electricity, the axle, or metal rod turns and creates movement. The motor itself is powered by two opposing magnets – the permanent magnet and the electromagnet. When electric current is applied to the electromagnet, it pushes against the permanent magnet creating rotary or linear movement.

The inside of an electric motor. (Source: Stiavelli)

Many parts of electric motors are made of electrical steel, including the motor core. Electrical steel is an alloy of iron and silicon and can generate various magnetic properties. High-quality electric steel such as POSCO’s Hyper NO will have a small hysteresis curve that minimizes energy loss. POSCO’s technology also reduces core loss by 5 percent as well as motor noise by 5dB.

Electric Motors in Home Appliances

Home appliances currently account for about a third of total energy consumption and attribute to 45 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in an average household. Energy-efficient home appliances are in high demand due to increasingly stricter environmental regulations, consumers’ desire to save on utility bills as well as their desire to lower noise output from appliances such as dishwashers and dryers.

In order to maximize energy efficiency, engineers and manufacturers turn to high quality non-oriented electrical steel such as POSCO’s Hyper NO to meet consumer needs.

SEE ALSO: Why Electrical Steel Can Make All The Difference In EV Motors

Next Generation of Home Appliances

Aside from traditional home appliances, there is a growing number of innovative, next-generation home appliances that rely on high-quality electric motors for maximum efficiency, cost effectiveness and also range of movement.

These days, robots are part of the average household in the form of vacuums, personal home assistants, alarm clocks and more. Unlike traditional home appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines that are stationary, innovative robot appliances move in different directions. This is where actuators come in. Actuators are electric motors in a gearbox, and the gearbox essentially gives electric motors added torque, or rotational force, that allows the robot to move in a variety of directions, including twisting and turning.

Actuators are what propels a variety of movement in robots. (Source: Motion Control Tips)

Moreover, engineers are now working with modular actuators to build robotic structures for a greater range of movement, speed and positions through segmented parts. Highly efficient, relatively low-cost and diverse actuators are coming together with AI sensors, voice recognition and smart controllers to breed a new generations of home appliances.

There are 3 different types of actuators based on how they are powered, and electrical actuators are most commonly found in home applications. Compared to the other types of actuators, electric actuators have lower speed and power, but are easy to install and control. Because they are often modular and can be applied for customized purposes, the resulting robots have a great range of motion to fit the new roles home robots are taking on.

Examples of Applications in the home

Here are some of the latest robots for the home that require advanced electric actuators and are changing the way people think of home appliances.

Aeolus Bot

The prototype for the Aeolus Bot was introduced at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. The robot can move around the nooks and crannies of the home learning different objects and places with its smart software. It can also retrieve different objects and clean the house using other home appliances.

The Aeolus Bot responds to voice commands. (Source: Unbox Holics)

Not only that, Aeolus also has Amazon’s Alexa software, recognize its owner’s face and can alert family members of any disturbances.

Sony Aibo

Sony’s Aibo looks and moves like a dog. With its voice recognition software it can respond to commands, recognize faces and perform tricks. Although the furless bot may not be able to swim or jump the fence, it can pick up a objects, sit, roll over and move much more dynamically than other home robots.

The Sony Aibo can do simple tricks on command. (Source: The Verge)

The changing face (and shape) of home appliances is putting actuators to full use with their wide range of movement, speed and positions. Highly-efficient electric motors and actuators will continue to be in high demand as new innovations in home appliances and robots keep rolling out.

Cover photo courtesy of GE Reports.

Since last February, CEO Kwon has visited Siemens, GE and other businesses in Silicon Valley to explore new technologies and expand POSCO Group’s smartization plan. At CES 2018, CEO Kwon saw first-hand the latest smart technologies and plans to implement them to all of POSCO’s core businesses including steel, construction, IT and energy. He also met officials from leading smart companies such as GE and DPR Construction, and examined possibilities for cooperation over commercializing POSCO’s smart solutions.

POSCO Kwon met Heilmann Matthias, President and CEO of Digital Solutions at Baker Hughes General Electric (BHGE). Matthias oversees the digital solution business of GE Group, and the two discussed the development of PosFrame, POSCO’s proprietary smart platform, its compatibility with Predix, GE’s smart platform, as well as the possibility for joint commercialization.

In particular, POSCO ICT is planning to sign an MOU with DPR Construction, the world leader in Smart Construction, to collaborate on smart projects and find opportunities to apply new ICT technologies to construction. Through this MOU, the two companies will cooperate on projects such as constructing and operating highly-efficient, low-cost data centers and smart factories controlled by PosFrame.

CEO Kwon also visited the automobiles, home appliances, smart city and smart home exhibition booths. He examined the latest tech trends of IT utilization in steel-consuming industries to develop compatible materials and steel solutions.

He also made sure to explore electric vehicle (EV) batteries and new IT technologies surrounding EVs, as lithium materials are the new growth engine of the company. CEO Kwon also evaluated the possibility of securing new markets for the group’s construction business at home and abroad.

POSCO Group plans to continue searching for new, innovative solutions to apply to its smartization efforts and actively develop domestic and overseas data centers and smart factory markets.

Cover photo courtesy of BGR.

In this spirit, The Steel Wire highlights the innovative use of metals in household appliances and electronic devices from air conditioners and cameras to laptops. Read on to see how innovative applications of metals have the power to present a new, more efficient way to live.

Breeze-Free Air Conditioner with Metal Cooling Panel

There may have been those even in the heat this past summer who didn’t want to use air conditioners due to direct blasts of cold air. Here’s good news: Samsung’s “breeze-free” air conditioner, Q9500, maintains a stable room temperature without blasting a single column of strong and direct wind.

How can air conditioners be “breeze-free”?

The company used a metal cooling panel and a micro hall-based air current passage system that constantly changes the direction of the air. Cold air is sent through 135,000 tiny holes and the short airways can reduce energy use by 65 percent. Also, climate control settings can be adjusted directly via smartphones using IoT technology based on weather data.

Samsung’s breeze-free air conditioner, Q9500, comes with metal cooling panels and 135,000 micro holes which maintain a stable room temperature without blasting strong and direct cold air. (Source: Flickr)

The even distribution of cool air allows air conditioners to naturally blend in as part of any space or room it occupies and eliminates the discomfort of direct, cold air.

Lightweight & Durable Cameras with Magnesium Construction

Global camera brands have long been searching for ideal materials to meet consumers’ needs for lightweight, mobile and durable cameras. For this reason, one of the prestigious features of top-end cameras in the market today is magnesium construction. This is due to magnesium’s lightness, strength and ability to shield users from electromagnetic waves. Magnesium is, in fact, the lightest structurally-used metal in the world with a greater strength-to-weight ratio than that of aluminum. This allows magnesium electronics bodies to be thinner and lighter.

For instance, the exterior shell of the Nikon D3 is made of a magnesium alloy. The product’s magnesium-alloy camera frame effectively protects the camera from invasive dust, moisture and electromagnetic interference with a self-diagnostic shutter mechanism tested to exceed 300,000 cycles.

The Nikon D3s’ magnesium-alloy camera frame effectively protects the camera from invasive dust, moisture and electromagnetic interference.(Source: Flickr)

Ultra-light Laptop with Duralumin

Over the years, new technologies have pushed PC makers to build ever lighter and thinner laptops with premium materials. Samsung also started to pursue metals that are lightweight yet durable. In the past, the company used magnesium-lithium sheets from overseas suppliers in order to keep their laptops lightweight. The sheets had good machinability but low hardness, making them vulnerable to dents. In order to overcome this, the company turned to POSCO’s specially designed magnesium sheets, duralumin*, known for its high-strength and lightweight qualities. In 2016, POSCO began supplying its magnesium sheets for the Notebook 9 that is just 840g. In 2017, the Samsung Notebook 9’s weight was brought down even further to 799g.

These magnesium sheets, made with a rapid solidification process that is capable of precision control, are tempered several times and undergo special heat treatment until they reach a final thickness of 0.5mm. POSCO succeeded in increasing the surface hardness by more than 20 percent and the yield strength by more than 50 percent, compared to its competitors, while still maintaining a high level of machinability.

Such advancements in lightweight and high-strength materials have allowed people the flexibility, mobility and convenience to work on the go and reduce inefficiencies.  

*Duralumin is a high-strength aluminum alloy made by mixing copper, magnesium and other elements.

POSCO supplies magnesium sheets for Samsung Electronics’ 2017 model of Samsung Notebook 9 that touts ultra-light, high-strength metal materials. (Source: Samsung Newsroom)

In today’s world, it’s hard to imagine life without electronic appliances and devices that provide a better quality of life. In a way, the invention and evolution of such products have redefined the way people live, work and play. The application of innovative materials has sped up and continues to allow manufacturers to add value to their products.