maxon ESCON Amplifier - Tutorial
maxon ESCON 50/5
(updated on 4/14/2025)
General Information ​
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There are many options for amplifiers as the EMB system is controller, amplifier, and DAQ agnostic. Our recommendation, and standard offering, is the ESCON 50/5 manufactured by maxon (Switzerland). This amplifier can be configured for current and velocity modes, and can drive our brushed and brushless motors (EMB-AM2, EMB-AM3, and EMB-AM4).
For more information regarding the amplifier itself, check the resource below.
1) Link to maxon ESCON 50/5 Hardware Reference Document: Link (external link to maxon)
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When you purchase an EMB plant with the ESCON, we wire the drive to the motor, power supply (leads), and DAQ (connector or leads). We also configure the drive to either current or voltage mode, per your request. Our default, and recommendation, is to use current control. Below you will find details about our standard configuration of the ESCON.
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You can download the EDC configuration file (Escon Device Configuration) and flash to your own ESCON drive, should you need to (reset drive, purchased a drive separately, or want to explore different configurations).
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To flash the EDC file, configure, troubleshoot, or monitor internal parameters of the ESCON amplifier, you will need a USB cable and the software provided by maxon called ESCON Studio Software. It is free from maxon's website and easy to learn/use.
1) Link to maxon ESCON 50/5 Software: Link (external link to maxon, ZIP (886 MB))
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You can download our standard EDC configuration by clicking here: R5_EMB_MAXON_ESCON_CURRENT.ZIP (63KB)​ or from our GitHub. Make sure to always use the latest version and to fully validate that your DAQ and plant are working as expected, especially the safety features.
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Digital Inputs and Outputs ​
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This port is used to connect the Maxon ESCON amplifier to our DAQ.
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Digital Input 1: PWM. Typically connected to EMB-DAQ1 PORT A/B pin 1. Note that, as a safety feature, the ESCON PWM input range is from 10% to 90% (0.1 to 0.9).​​
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Digital Input 2: Enable signal. Typically connected to EMB-DAQ1 PORT A/B pin 2. It is the return of the E-STOP and a DAQ Digital Output.
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Digital Input 3: Direction signal to the amplifier. Typically connected to EMB-DAQ1 PORT A/B pin 3.
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Analog Outputs ​
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This port is used to connect the Maxon ESCON amplifier analog outputs to our DAQ. We use a DAQ analog input to read current measurement (averaged) from the ESCON's analog output 1.
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Analog Output 1: Typically connected to EMB-DAQ1 PORT A/B pin 5. Note that the ESCON analog output range is from 0V to 4V. We configure -5A as 0V and +5A as 4V (linearly interpolated, 0A is 2V).​​
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