Development and manufacturing of integrated servo drives, actuators, safety and motion control software for robotics and automation.
Synapticon GmbH
Schönaich (DE) · Redwood City (US) · Shanghai (CN) · Belgrade (RS)New on Amplifa
About Synapticon
Synapticon GmbH, headquartered in Schönaich (Baden-Württemberg), develops and produces integrated motion control technology for robotics and industrial automation. The portfolio includes highly integrated servo drives (SOMANET Node, Circulo, Integro), integrated servo motors and precision actuators (ACTILINK-S, ACTILINK-JP, ACTILINK-JD/JD DUO), the POSITRON Safety AI safety platform, the motion software MOTORCORTEX and the commissioning tools OBLAC Drives. Attached are engineering, consulting and integration services (Synapticon Intelligence) covering everything from system architecture to control and safety concepts through to custom actuators and complete robotics solutions. The products follow a software-first principle with model-predictive field-oriented control, EtherCAT/CiA-402 connectivity (250 µs sampling) and TÜV-certified safety functions up to SIL3 PLe. Customer groups include manufacturers of humanoids, cobots, multi-legged robots, AGV/AMR, and service robots, as well as machine and plant builders, including from semiconductor manufacturing, medical technology, packaging machinery and automotive. Founded in 2012, the company employs around 85 staff from 25 nations and manages global sales through 18 distributors in four sales regions.
- Site
- Schönaich
- Processes
- Development and manufacturing of integrated servo drives (SOMANET Node, Circulo, Integro), Drive control with EtherCAT/CiA 402 (PP, PV, PT, CSP, CSV, CST), internal sampling 250 µs, Engineering, consulting and integration (Synapticon Intelligence), System architecture, control and safety concepts, Custom actuators, Commissioning and installation (OBLAC Tools), Motion software (MOTORCORTEX, OBLAC Drives), CAD data and product documentation
- Materials
- Energy Harvesting / EtherCAT (CiA 402), FailSafe over EtherCAT, SOMANET Motion Cores (xCore and ARM architecture)
- Certificates
- TÜV-certified functional safety (STO, SBC) SIL3 PLe, EtherCAT Conformance, ISO 25785-1 (safety of dynamically stable robots, case study), Functional safety SIL3 PLe (STO, SBC), Safe Motion via FSoE (SS1, SS2, SLS, SLP, SLT), ISO 25785-1 (case study on dynamically stable robots)
- Founded
- 2012
- Employees
- 85
- Industries
- Robotics (humanoids, cobots, multi-legged robots), Automation technology, AGV/AMR and service robots, Semiconductor manufacturing, Medical technology / medical robotics, Packaging machinery
- 01
Engineering and system architecture
- 02
Development of servo drives and actuators
- 03
Safety concepts and certification (SIL3 PLe)
- 04
Motion software (MOTORCORTEX, OBLAC Drives)
- 05
Commissioning and customer support
- 06
Sales via distributors worldwide
Technologies and Processes
Energy Harvesting / EtherCAT (CiA 402)
Connection of the SOMANET drives via EtherCAT with the CiA-402 profile; all six main operating modes (PP, PV, PT, CSP, CSV, CST) at a 250 µs internal sampling cycle.
FailSafe over EtherCAT
Transmission of the SIL3-PLe safety functions (STO, SBC, SS1, SS2, SLS, SLP, SLT) with a 7 ms cycle time.
SOMANET Motion Cores (xCore and ARM architecture)
Highly parallel RISC processor architecture with 8 to 32 cores for deterministic real-time motor control.
Locations
Schönaich
DEHeadquarters (Steinbeisstr. 1, 71101)
- SOMANET Circulo 7/9 integrated motion modules
- MOTORCORTEX MCX IPC motion controller PC
Products and Components
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Development and manufacturing of integrated servo drives (SOMANET Node, Circulo, Integro)Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Drive control with EtherCAT/CiA 402 (PP, PV, PT, CSP, CSV, CST), internal sampling 250 µsEngineering | – | – | – | – | – |
2 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Integrated motion modules / actuators (products, not manufacturing machines) | Synapticon GmbH SOMANET Circulo 7 (72 mm) / Circulo 9 (92 mm) | – | – | – | Schönaich |
| Industrial motion controller PC | Synapticon MOTORCORTEX MCX IPC (4-Core Intel Atom, 4 GB RAM, 32 GB SSD, MCX-RTOS, EtherCAT) | – | – | – | Schönaich |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality and Certification
The SOMANET products are 100 % equipped with TÜV-certified safety functions (STO, SBC up to SS1/SS2/SLS/SLP/SLT) at SIL3-PLe level. In addition, the EtherCAT conformity of the drives is certified by the EtherCAT Technology Group.
| Evidence | Schönaich |
|---|---|
| Functional safety SIL3 PLe (STO, SBC) | |
| Safe Motion via FSoE (SS1, SS2, SLS, SLP, SLT) | |
| EtherCAT Conformance | |
| ISO 25785-1 (case study on dynamically stable robots) |
History
- 2012
Founded by Nikolai Ensslen, Andrija Feher and Martin Schwarz.
- 2016
Relocation to Filderstadt, opening of the Silicon Valley branch and strategic realignment towards products.
- 2018
Product premiere of SOMANET Node.
- 2019
Introduction of the SOMANET Circulo product line.
- 2023
Premiere of SOMANET Integro at SPS Nuremberg; headquarters in Schönaich.
- 2026
Announcement of the partnership with Reynolds & Moore.