A motion controller is used to achieve precise position control, speed control, acceleration control, torque or force control of mechanical motion. Motion controllers can be classified by structure into PLC programmable logic controllers, microcontroller controllers, independent motion controllers, PC based motion control cards, and network controllers.
For example, an electric motor can be controlled by a travel switch to drive an object up to a designated position and then down, or a time relay can be used to control the motor’s forward and reverse rotation or to rotate for a while and then stop again and again. The application of motion control in the fields of robots and CNC machines is more complex than in specialized machines, as the latter have simpler motion forms and are commonly referred to as General Motion Control (GMC).
