Vibration Machine Motor Types
The motor is the heart of a vibration machine. They are critical in powering the machines to success. Motors can be analyzed from different perspectives, and in the subsequent paragraphs I go deeper into the details.
AC vs DC
As far as the type of power (electricity) is concerned, there are two types of motors: AC and DC. While there are good AC motors and good DC motors, there is one factor that often gets discussed in this context. And that is, electro-magnetic fields (EMF). There have been a number of scientific studies on finding whether the EMF generated by AC machines are harmful for health and the body. Unfortunately, there has been no conclusive proof in either direction. However, there are studies that suggest to avoid exposure to EMF.
Having said that, it is important to note that DC motors will never produce any EMF, while AC motors will produce EMF. Also, while there has been no conclusive proof of EMF being harmful for the body, some individuals do complain about feeling physically uneasy when they are exposed to EMF (and other individuals explicitly specify that they do not feel anything at all by EMF exposures). So to be on the safe side, it may be a good idea to prioritize machines with DC motors. In other words, if all other factors are the same and you get to choose between an AC and a DC motor powered machine, I would recommend the DC one.
Brushless vs brush
Another factor that characterizes motors is the type of motor brushes. Should you go with a brush motor or a brushless motor? I recommend the brushless ones. The reason behind this is simple: the vibration quality practically remains unchanged irrespective of the brush; however, a brush motor would experience a lot faster wear and tear compared to the brushless ones.
Single vs dual motor machines
One key question that you would want to ask is, whether you ought to use a vibration machine with a single motor, or a dual motor. Now, before I go deeper into this discussion let me correct a popular misconception right at the beginning. Many people believe that a machine with two motors (dual motor) is better than one with a single motor, because each motor will experience less strain and hence the longevity of the machine will be more. And they also believe, having two motors is great because that will generate more power in total.
The problem with the above thought process is that, it is entirely wrong. The approach is wrong, and hence the conclusions are wrong to the point of almost being funny. If you have a machine with two motors both moving in the same direction, and both moving together, that's wonderful. Now, imagine what happens when these two motors go even slightly out of synch (which is very realistic - even at 20 Htz we are talking of 20 full vibration cycles every second, and we are talking about mechanical motors here, not about super-refined Swiss watches). While one motor is trying to push you up, the other is trying to push you down. These two motors are fighting against each other, and the platform will experience a lot of stress leading to early damage. Plus, the vibration you would experience would be likely to be worse than a single-motor machine.
Clearly, the above thought process is all wrong. One does not use a machine with multiple motors powering the same direction. The right approach is to think of each motor powering a different direction of vibration. And for each individual direction, the right option is to use one motor with sufficient power, for example a commercial grade motor. That will ensure performance in each direction of vibration.
So, when to use a dual motor vibration machine?
Dual motor vibration machines will have one motor powering one direction and another motor powering another direction. Clearly, this is precisely the case that two of the best modern vibration technologies use: (a) the spiral vibration technology and (b) the tri-planar vibration technology. In the former, the motion is a mix of oscillating and pivotal vibrations. In the latter, it is a mix of linear and pivotal vibrations.
And why are dual motor machines good choices for these vibration technologies? They are good because the two motors have two separate things to do. For example, in the spiral machine, one motor will be responsible for producing the oscillation motion and the second one will be responsible for generating the pivotal motion, leading to a vibration having a shape like "8". The motions will not conflict with each other. The situation with tri-planar machines is also similar, with the two vibration directions being somewhat different from the spiral machines. The second motor (pivotal) is usually less powerful in these machines, but adequately powered to meet the needs.
A great benefit of dual motor machines is that the individual motors can be controlled. That makes these multi-user machines - great to use for families where different members could have different vibration requirements. You could have low-frequency oscillation vibrations and high-frequency spiral ones, and enjoy all the benefits of each with the same machine.
So in summary, unless you are opting for sonic machines, a DC brushless dual motor machine is technically a great choice, though an AC motor would not be too far behind if all other factors are the same.
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