ABSTRACT
The single biggest difference between automated lighting and conventional lighting is that automated lighting has the ability to receive data and translate it to mechanical motion, whether this is moving the fixture or changing an effect like a color or gobo wheel. The most common way to produce movement is to use stepper motors. There are three types of stepper motors: variable reluctance motors, permanent magnet motors, and hybrid motors. The majority of stepper motors used in automated lighting are hybrid motors, although some moving yoke fixtures use permanent magnet motors in multi-phase configurations because they provide more torque at low speeds. As with any other motor, a stepper has a stator and a rotor. By alternating between single-phase and dual-phase excitation, the rotor will move in half steps, resulting in twice the resolution but about 15% less torque than dual-phase stepping.
