EP-FAD Series High-Speed Precision Planetary Gearbox | Round Flange

EP-FAD Series — Round-Flange High-Speed Planetary Gearbox

Circular output flange for direct ISO round-flange integration. 10,000 rpm max input and a 30,000-hour design life set the EP-FAD apart wherever throughput and service intervals matter most.

EP-FAB — Square Flange

Four-bolt square output flange. Standard mounting for servo motors with ISO square-flange interfaces. 20,000 hr life. Backlash P0 ≤1 arc-min.

EP-FAD — Round Flange

Circular bolt-circle output flange. Direct bolt-on to rotary tables, actuator housings, and round-flange servo systems. 30,000 hr life. 10,000 rpm max input.

The EP-FAD uses the same profile-ground helical planetary gearset as the EP-FAB, but the output end carries a circular (round) flange with a bolt-circle pattern — the preferred interface for rotary table drives, direct-mount actuators, and machinery complying with ISO 9409 round-flange standards.

The bearing and housing system is upgraded for 30,000 hours of service life — 50% longer than the EP-FAB's 20,000 hr — making the EP-FAD the right choice for continuous-duty high-speed axes where scheduled maintenance is difficult or costly.

Note that the EP-FAD includes special gear ratios — i=16, 21, 31, 61, and 91 — in addition to the standard series. These are available in select frame sizes and cover gaps not served by the standard 1-stage (4–10) and 2-stage (20–100) ratio steps.

EP-FAD: round flange output, 7 frame sizes 047–255 mm

Round Output Flange

Circular bolt-circle flange for direct ISO-standard round-flange integration. Bolt patterns match EP-FAD047 (D1=12 mm) through EP-FAD255 (D1=100 mm) standard rotary actuator faces.

10,000 rpm Max Input

EP-FAD047 and EP-FAD064 accept up to 10,000 rpm — supporting ultra-high-speed spindle motors and linear motor direct-drive configurations in semiconductor equipment.

30,000 hr Design Life

Upgraded bearing selection and enhanced lubrication geometry achieve 30,000 hours — equivalent to roughly 12 years of continuous two-shift operation. Reduces lifetime maintenance cost significantly.

Special Ratios i=16/21/31/61/91

Five non-standard ratios fill critical gaps in semiconductor pitch-matching and FPD transport speed requirements — available in EP-FAD064 through EP-FAD255.

High Bending Moment Rating

The round-flange output carries a maximum bending moment from 42.5 Nm (EP-FAD047) to 5,900 Nm (EP-FAD255), supporting cantilevered load configurations without external support bearings.

Profile-Ground Helical Gears

Same DIN 5 profile-ground helical planetary gearset as the EP-FAB inline. Efficiency ≥97% (1-stage), ≥94% (2-stage).

EP-FAD clamp-ring adapter assembly and round-flange output dimensions

Motor input assembly uses the same clamp-ring adapter system (C1–C10) as the EP-FAB and EP-FABR — the eight-step assembly process is identical. Three considerations specific to the round-flange output:

Semiconductor Equipment

Wafer stage theta-axis, wafer handler wrist, and die bonder rotary axis. 10,000 rpm input and P0 ≤1 arc-min (EP-FAD090+) meet the most demanding IC positioning specs.

FPD Manufacturing

Large glass panel transfer robots and exposure machine theta stages. Special ratios i=16/21/31 match glass substrate pitch exactly without fractional-ratio compromises.

CNC Rotary Tables

Direct bolt-on to 4th and 5th axis rotary table housings. Round flange eliminates the adapter plate required by square-flange gearboxes, reducing table height and backlash stack-up.

High-Speed Robot Joints

Robot joints requiring high cycle rate and round-flange integration with the link structure. 30,000 hr life reduces total robot cost of ownership on continuous 3-shift production lines.

Linear Motor Actuators

Rotary-to-linear conversion units for high-speed linear motor systems. Round-flange mounting integrates directly into the actuator body without external brackets.

Medical & Lab Automation

Sample carousel drives and diagnostic instrument axes. Low noise (≤56 dB at EP-FAD047), IP65 sealing, and lifetime lubrication suit cleanroom-adjacent environments.

Right-angle (90° bevel) version of the EP-FAD. Same round-flange output, high-speed input, 30,000 hr life — choose when motor axis must be perpendicular to the output.

Square-flange inline version. Lower cost, P0 ≤1 arc-min available from EP-FAB042. Choose when square flange is standard and 20,000 hr life is sufficient.

Low-cost right-angle reduction for non-precision, low-speed applications. Self-locking capability useful in vertical load-holding axes that do not need servo precision.

Constant-velocity couplings for downstream articulation. Useful when EP-FAD output drives a rotating arm or linkage with angular misalignment.

Q: Why is P0 grade not available for EP-FAD047 and EP-FAD064?

The very small gear geometry in the 047 and 064 frames limits the planet gear count and planet gear size relative to the ring gear — the inherent geometric constraint means the minimum achievable backlash in 1-stage is approximately 2–3 arc-min rather than ≤1 arc-min. From EP-FAD090 upward, the larger gear geometry allows the tighter manufacturing tolerances needed for P0 grade. For applications requiring P0 in small frame sizes, the EP-FAB042 or EP-FAB060 square-flange series achieves P0 ≤1 arc-min and can be used with a round-flange adapter plate.

Q: What are the special ratios (i=16, 21, 31, 61, 91) for, and why are they not in the standard series?

Standard planetary gearbox ratios are constrained by the gear tooth count relationship: (ring teeth) = (sun teeth) + 2 × (planet teeth). This limits available ratios to specific integer values. The special ratios 16, 21, 31, 61, and 91 are achieved through an alternative gear tooth count combination that requires a different planet gear count or a modified ring gear geometry — making them a separate product variant. They are specifically useful in semiconductor and FPD equipment where the substrate pitch or transport speed dictates an exact output speed that the standard ratio series cannot match without a fractional-ratio external reduction.

Q: How does the 30,000-hour life compare to the EP-FAB, and what is the actual test basis?

The 30,000-hour rating is a calculated L10 bearing life under the stated conditions: rated torque at 50% mean load, rated input speed, and standard operating temperature (−10°C to +90°C). It is 50% longer than the EP-FAB's 20,000-hour rating, achieved through a combination of larger bearing bore sizes in the output section and a more favourable load-to-bearing-capacity ratio. In intermittent duty (S5) at ≤60% ED, or at loads below 50% of rated torque, actual service life will be significantly higher. The 30,000-hour figure is not a warranty but a design-basis service-life calculation per ISO 281.

Q: Can I use the EP-FAD with a DDR (direct-drive) or torque motor instead of a standard servo?

Yes, with the appropriate adapter. DDR and torque motors typically have large hollow-shaft outputs; the EP-FAD input uses the standard clamp-ring adapter (C1–C10) which is designed for solid servo motor shafts. A custom adapter flange can be machined to bridge the DDR output flange to the EP-FAD input bore. This is a common configuration in FPD equipment where a DDR provides fast coarse rotation and the EP-FAD provides the final precision reduction. Contact Korea Ever-Power with the DDR motor model for adapter dimension verification before ordering.

Q: What is the bending moment limit, and when does it apply?

The bending moment limit Mₘₐₓ applies when the output flange carries a cantilevered load — for example, when a rotary table platter is bolted to the output flange and the workpiece weight creates a moment about the flange face. If the cantilevered load mass (m) acts at a radius (r) from the flange centreline, then M_actual = m × g × r, and this must be less than Mₘₐₓ for the selected frame. For EP-FAD047 (Mₘₐₓ = 42.5 Nm), this limits cantilevered mass-radius products to approximately 4.3 kg·m. For EP-FAD255 (Mₘₐₓ = 5,900 Nm), the limit is approximately 601 kg·m — suitable for large rotary table applications.

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"Switched from a European competitor to EP-FAD140 on our 5-axis rotary table line. Round flange bolts directly to our table housing — eliminated the 12 mm adapter plate height we had with the square-flange gearbox and reduced table runout by 8 arc-sec."

"Our wafer handler ran EP-FAD047 at 9,500 rpm input for 14 months straight. No thermal issues, no bearing noise, backlash still measures P1. The 30,000 hr life claim appears credible — our previous gearbox needed replacement at 18,000 hr."

"Used EP-FAD200 (i=31 special ratio) for a large glass panel robot. The ratio matched our transport pitch perfectly — no encoder correction factor needed. Lead time for special ratio was 4 weeks, slightly longer than standard, but worth it for the accuracy improvement."