In the morning, as the first rays of sunlight filter through the curtains, you flick the switch at your bedside, and the curtains automatically slide open. Entering the office, the glass partition door silently slid back. Returning home from work, the garage door automatically opened in the glow of your headlights—behind these everyday conveniences lies a hidden technological force: the tubular motor. This cylindrical power device, typically ranging in diameter from 45mm to 102mm, is reshaping the way humans interact with architectural spaces in a nearly invisible way. Unlike the exposed structure of traditional motors, the tubular motor, with its unique design philosophy of “hiding within while appearing on the outside,” perfectly embodies the aesthetic of modern technology’s pursuit of “invisible service.” From smart homes to commercial buildings, from medical equipment to industrial automation, this seemingly simple electromechanical product is quietly sparking a revolution in spatial boundary management.
The tubular motor’s technological lineage can be traced back to the wave of industrialization in mid-20th-century Europe. In 1954, German manufacturer Somfy launched the world’s first tubular motor designed specifically for rolling shutters. This innovation revolutionized power transmission in the traditional door industry. Unlike conventional motors, which rely on external transmissions to drive their loads, the revolutionary feature of tubular motors lies in integrating the rotor directly into the hollow shaft, achieving a structural breakthrough in “combining the power and the load into one.” This design not only significantly saves installation space but also significantly improves energy efficiency by eliminating intermediate transmission links. Modern tubular motors typically consist of a rare earth permanent magnet synchronous motor, a planetary gear reduction mechanism, an electronic control module, and thermal protection. Their torque density can reach 3-5 times that of traditional motors. A 2018 mechatronics research report released by the Vienna University of Technology reported that tubular motors achieved a spatial efficiency score of 92.7, far surpassing both conventional servo motors (67.3) and stepper motors (58.9), demonstrating their unique structural advantages.
In the field of dynamic spatial management in buildings, tubular motors have demonstrated remarkable application flexibility. Take the MQ series developed by Japan’s Yaskawa Electric, for example. With a diameter of only 58mm, it can output up to 150Nm of torque. This “small size, big power” feature allows it to be easily integrated into various building components. In modern high-end commercial buildings, adjustable glass partition systems rely on tubular motors to achieve flexible space divisions. Lead-protected doors in hospital operating rooms are synchronously driven by multiple tubular motors to ensure radiation safety. And automatic revolving doors in five-star hotels utilize their precise start-stop capabilities to ensure smooth passage. Even more impressive is the dome opening system at the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, where 32 specially designed tubular motors work in unison to fully open the 80-ton steel dome in just 120 seconds. This engineering feat won the 2019 International Building Technology Innovation Award. In these applications, tubular motors not only provide power but also redefine the flexibility and intelligence of architectural spatial boundaries.
The smart home trend has opened up new value dimensions for tubular motors. According to Strategy Analytics, the global smart curtain market reached $4.6 billion in 2022, with a compound annual growth rate of 17.3%. Tubular motors, as core drive components, account for 32% of the value chain. Compared to traditional curtain motors, smart tubular motors with integrated Wi-Fi/Bluetooth modules can automate lighting management via a mobile app and proactively adjust indoor lighting by learning user habits. The Aquaris series from Danish manufacturer Fischer even incorporates a light and heat sensor that automatically lowers sunshades to protect furniture when strong ultraviolet rays are detected. At Milan Design Week, Italian brand Nice showcased its “Invisible Living” concept house, where all furniture movement and partitions are driven by hidden tubular motors, allowing visitors to reconfigure their entire living space through voice commands. This “invisible intelligence” is becoming a standard feature in high-end homes, with tubular motors playing a key role as “space magicians.”
The pedigree of tubular motors in industrial applications is equally impressive. In the automotive manufacturing sector, the welding production line at Mercedes-Benz’s Stuttgart plant utilizes over 200 IP65-rated, dust- and waterproof tubular motors for precise positioning of body parts. Amazon’s automated sorting systems rely on hundreds of 24V DC tubular motors for parcel diversion, achieving a mean time between failures exceeding 50,000 hours. In medical equipment, Siemens Healthineers’ CT scanner bed lift mechanism utilizes specialized low-noise tubular motors, ensuring both patient comfort and positioning accuracy of 0.1mm. These industrial applications place stringent demands on motor reliability. Test data from Bosch Rexroth shows that its ILF series tubular motors can operate continuously for over 2 million cycles under full load, far exceeding the lifespan of traditional linear motors. This exceptional durability is making tubular motors increasingly replace pneumatic components in industrial automation, becoming the new choice for precision motion control.
From a technological evolution perspective, tubular motors are undergoing a transformation from single drive components to intelligent system nodes. The latest R&D trends focus on three key areas: material innovations enable lighter designs. For example, Tesla’s motor division uses a carbon fiber composite housing, which reduces motor weight by 40%. Intelligent control algorithms enhance motion precision. Switzerland’s ABB’s Ability
system achieves synchronization errors of less than 0.01° for multiple motors. Regarding energy efficiency optimization, Denmark’s VELUX solar tubular motors have achieved off-grid operation, saving 85 kWh per unit annually. Over the next five years, with the deep integration of IoT technology and modular building concepts, tubular motors are expected to evolve into micro-power nodes in a building’s “nervous system,” enabling adaptive reconfiguration of architectural space through swarm intelligence coordination. In the “living building” concept proposed by the Harvard School of Design, arrays of tubular motors will act like muscle fibers, enabling building facades to autonomously open and close according to the weather. This dynamic architectural paradigm has the potential to radically change the traditional perception of static space.
In an era of “invisible design,” tubular motors, with their unique balance of concealment and functionality, perfectly embody the “invisible” realm of technological products. While they don’t capture public attention like smartphones or electric cars, they quietly underpin the convenient infrastructure of modern life with billions of units shipped annually. French philosopher Bruno Latour once said, “True, mature technology fades into the background, becoming an invisible aid to human activity.” Tubular motors exemplify this technological philosophy—hidden within curtain tracks, door frames, and furniture structures, their silent operation redefines the power relationship between people and space. While we enjoy the convenience of automatic doors, perhaps we should recognize that these unseen, silent technological revolutionaries are quietly reshaping every subtle moment of our interaction with the material world.
Company Name：RITSCHER INTERNATIONAL LIMITED
City, State, Country：China
Address：MWH 2376 RM1007, HO KING CTR. MONGKOK HONG KONG
Contact Person：Lucy Hu
Email：lucy@hkritscher.com
Tele：+86 18062623914
Website: https://www.hkritscher.com/
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