Rotary Energy Supply Systems – Slip ring alternatives
Slip rings come with a lot of issues; for example, they are very susceptible to corrosion and being unreliable due the ingress of dirt. Above all they are very limited in what they can transmit which is normally just power or basic data. You can’t use a slip ring for fluid, air, water or fibre optic cables. Rotary energy chain systems work well because you can put any service down them. You can have a mixture of air, water, power, servo, encoder and fibre optic cables together side by side. The energy chain itself guides the cables and hoses and keeps them secure within an enforced bend radius and with physical protection. These concepts are not possible for slip rings. Also, rotary energy supply systems not only offer a very universal system but can easily be upgraded later. This means that you can remove individual cables and replace them as and when you need to.
