This article provides an in-depth comparison between Direct Drive (DD) motors and harmonic rotary actuators, covering their transmission principles, advantages and disadvantages, and typical application fields.

Harmonic rotary actuators (typically integrated systems consisting of a harmonic drive reducer, frameless torque motor, encoder, and optional brake) are regarded as key components in medical equipment. The core reason is that they simultaneously meet the most stringent medical requirements for precision, compact size, safety, and controllability. The following explanation is structured from three perspectives: technical characteristics, application scenarios, and medical value.

High torque zero-backlash planetary rotary actuator for drilling equipment boosts hole accuracy, repeatability, and uptime with stable torque and compact precision motion.

Humanoid robots are rapidly transforming industries ranging from manufacturing and healthcare to logistics and public services. At the heart of every robot's movement is the actuator—the component responsible for converting electrical energy into precise mechanical motion. Among the different actuator technologies available today, harmonic rotary actuators have become the preferred solution for humanoid robots due to their compact size, high torque density, exceptional positioning accuracy, and reliable performance.