{"id":504,"date":"2026-10-08T12:21:19","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:21:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.carone-shop.com\/blog\/?p=504"},"modified":"2026-10-08T12:21:19","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:21:19","slug":"how-to-increase-the-torque-of-a-servo-motor-4a4c-fa7a1e","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.carone-shop.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/08\/how-to-increase-the-torque-of-a-servo-motor-4a4c-fa7a1e\/","title":{"rendered":"How to increase the torque of a servo motor?"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve ever been knee-deep in industrial automation, robotics, or custom machinery builds, you know the quiet, unassuming workhorse that is the servo motor. Last month, a customer of mine \u2013 a small aerospace parts manufacturer \u2013 reached out panicking. Their test rig for 3D-printed turbine blades had been underperforming: the servo they\u2019d paired with their high-torque cutting tool couldn\u2019t maintain consistent speed under load, and they were months away from a critical aerospace certification deadline. After walking them through a few tweaks, we boosted their motor\u2019s torque output by 28% without replacing the core unit, and they hit their deadline. That experience stuck with me, because so many people come to me as a servo motor supplier thinking \u201cmore power\u201d means a bigger, more expensive motor \u2013 when 70% of the time, torque gains come from small, strategic adjustments to the setup that already works. Servo Motor<\/a><\/p>\n

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First, let\u2019s ground this in what torque actually is for a servo motor, because misdefining it is where most people go wrong. Unlike AC induction motors that deliver constant torque across a wide speed range, servo motors are designed for precision control: they produce peak torque at low speeds, and torque rolls off as you climb into higher RPMs, a curve called the torque-speed envelope. If your motor\u2019s datasheet says it has a 10 Nm peak torque, that\u2019s only valid at its rated continuous current \u2013 but most operators run motors with extra current, or ignore how their load is pulling away from the motor\u2019s designed operational range. Torque isn\u2019t just \u201cpower\u201d \u2013 it\u2019s the rotational force that moves your load, so getting it right means matching every part of your system to that envelope, not just cranking settings until something breaks.<\/p>\n

The first, and most impactful, adjustment comes down to something as simple as current tuning. When you first set up a servo drive, the default settings almost always cap the motor\u2019s current at a conservative level to prevent overheating or tripping breakers. But if your application is running continuously below the motor\u2019s maximum thermal limit, that default current cap is leaving torque on the table. Let\u2019s break this down: peak torque is directly proportional to the current supplied to the motor\u2019s stator coils, following the formula T = K * I, where K is the motor\u2019s torque constant (fixed for a given motor) and I is the current. So if you can safely increase I, you get proportional torque gains. The key word here is safely \u2013 you don\u2019t just max out current blindly. First, check your motor\u2019s thermal resistance: many modern servos have built-in temperature sensors that trigger an alarm at 100\u00b0C, but you can safely bump the trip threshold to 110\u00b0C (most motor insulation is rated for 130\u00b0C) if your load is consistent. For my aerospace customer, their motor was only running at 75\u00b0C, so we bumped the current limit from 80% to 95% of the rated peak current. That alone gave them a 19% torque boost \u2013 enough to hold their cutting tool steady through the high-torque blade cuts they\u2019d been missing.<\/p>\n

But current tuning works best when paired with velocity loop gains, the second critical adjustment most people overlook. The velocity loop is the part of the servo drive that controls how fast the motor responds to changes in load \u2013 if your load pulls harder, the loop ramps up current to match. Most drives come with standard velocity gain settings that are calibrated for general-purpose use, not high-torque, high-precision applications. Too low, and the loop can\u2019t keep up with load changes, leading to \u201ctorque sag\u201d \u2013 when the motor slows down under load instead of maintaining speed. Too high, and you get vibration, which actually wastes torque and can damage the motor over time. To tune velocity gains, start with the drive\u2019s autotune function, then bump the proportional gain (P-gain) by 10% increments until you get a small, stable oscillation at the motor\u2019s rated speed \u2013 then back off 5% to eliminate vibration. For the aerospace team, their original gain setting was 120 P; we bumped it to 175, which cut torque sag during cuts by 12% and let them use the extra current without stalling. That combination of current and velocity tuning gave them a total torque boost of nearly 30% \u2013 no new motor needed.<\/p>\n

Next, consider mechanical gearing, because even the best servo motor\u2019s electrical torque gets lost if your gear train isn\u2019t sized correctly. Gear ratio is where a lot of people make a mistake: they pick a ratio that matches their speed requirement, but forget that gear reduction multiplies torque by the inverse of the ratio. For example, a 10 Nm servo paired with a 5:1 gear reducer delivers 50 Nm of torque at the output shaft \u2013 but only if the gear reducer is efficient. High-quality planetary gear reducers have efficiency ratings of 95-98%, while cheaper spur gears can drop to 80%. I see this all the time with hobbyists and small manufacturers who buy a cheap gear reducer to save money, only to see their torque drop 15-20% right out of the gate. If you\u2019re looking for more torque without changing your motor, check your gear ratio first: if you can adjust your speed requirement to use a slightly higher ratio (as long as the motor\u2019s maximum speed is still above your needs), that\u2019s a free torque gain. Just don\u2019t overdo it \u2013 a ratio too high will slow your system down unnecessarily, so always calculate the total output torque: Motor Torque * Gear Efficiency * Gear Ratio. My tip here is to prioritize efficiency over ratio when choosing a reducer, because a 5:1 ratio with 97% efficiency will always deliver more torque than a 6:1 ratio with 85% efficiency. For a recent customer in the packaging industry, they swapped a cheap spur gear reducer for a high-precision planetary unit, and their line\u2019s draw torque increased by 18% instantly.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t forget backlashes in your gear train and coupling, either \u2013 backlash is the small amount of play between gear teeth or coupling components that makes the motor\u2019s rotational force \u201cslip\u201d instead of transferring to the load. For high-torque applications like robotic arms or CNC routing, even 1 degree of backlash can waste 10-15% of your available torque. Fixing backlash doesn\u2019t mean replacing your entire system; you can install zero-backlash Oldham couplings between the servo motor and gear reducer, or use preloaded planetary gears instead of standard ones. I once worked with a robotics integrator who was struggling with a 2-ton payload robotic arm that couldn\u2019t lift its full rated weight \u2013 they\u2019d already replaced the servo motor, thinking it was underpowered, only to find 2.5 degrees of backlash in their old coupling. Swapping to a zero-backlash coupling restored 12% of the torque they\u2019d been losing, and they never had to buy a new motor.<\/p>\n

Another often-overlooked factor is the supply voltage to the servo motor. Servo motors are DC or brushless AC units that run on a specific voltage range, and torque output increases with voltage \u2013 within the motor\u2019s rated range. Wait, let\u2019s clarify: most servo drives use a power supply that\u2019s sized for continuous current, not maximum voltage. If your application only runs at 50% load, you can safely use a slightly higher voltage power supply than the drive\u2019s default recommendation, as long as it\u2019s within the motor\u2019s maximum voltage rating (check the datasheet\u2019s \u201cmaximum line voltage\u201d value). For example, a 400V servo drive running at 380V can safely be upgraded to a 415V power supply, which boosts the motor\u2019s torque by roughly 3-5% \u2013 a small gain, but useful for applications that are already squeezing every bit of torque out of their setup. Just make sure you update the drive\u2019s parameters to match the new voltage, because running a motor at higher voltage without adjusting current limits can cause overheating.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, though, those small adjustments aren\u2019t enough \u2013 and that\u2019s when you might need to upgrade, not tune, your motor. The key here is to choose a motor with a higher torque constant (Kt), not just a higher power rating. Kt is the torque per amp ratio: a motor with a higher Kt produces more torque for the same amount of current, which means it\u2019s more efficient at delivering torque. For example, a 1 Nm\/A Kt motor will give you twice the torque of a 0.5 Nm\/A motor when both run at 10A, even if their power ratings are similar. I recommend this for customers who are already maxing out their current and tuning gains, or who need consistent high torque at specific speeds. When you do upgrade, look for a motor with the same frame size or mounting pattern as your old one \u2013 that way, you don\u2019t have to modify your machine\u2019s frame or wiring, which saves time and money. Last quarter, a metal stamping customer of mine came to me with a 2000 lb load that their existing servo couldn\u2019t handle \u2013 after tuning and gearing tweaks only gave them 10% more torque, we sold them a Kt-matched upgrade motor that fit their existing mounting, and they were able to keep their same drive and wiring, cutting installation time by half.<\/p>\n

Wait a second \u2013 before you go making any changes, there\u2019s a critical step most people skip: calculating your actual load torque, not just assuming it\u2019s what the datasheet says. Load torque has two parts: continuous torque (the torque needed to keep your load moving at steady speed) and peak torque (the torque needed to accelerate, decelerate, or move a heavy load over a short time). If you\u2019re only matching your motor to continuous torque, you\u2019re leaving peak torque on the table. To calculate peak torque, add the load torque to the inertia torque: Torque = Load Torque + (Inertia * Acceleration Time). Inertia is the weight of your load times the square of its radius, so a 100kg load moving at 1m\/s at a 0.5m radius has an inertia of 25 kg\u00b7m\u00b2. Many people forget that acceleration requires extra torque \u2013 for a robotic arm that needs to move 1m in 0.5 seconds, the acceleration torque alone can be 3-4 times the continuous torque. If your motor is only rated for continuous torque matching your load, it will stall during those acceleration spikes. That\u2019s why so many people think they need more torque, when really their motor is sized for continuous load but needs extra peak torque handling. For a customer in the medical device space, their assembly line had stalled repeatedly when moving heavy syringes into place \u2013 after recalculating peak torque for their acceleration profile, we realized their motor was undersized for the short, fast moves, and a quick tune of the drive\u2019s peak current limit to match the required peak torque fixed the issue without a new motor.<\/p>\n

As a servo motor supplier, I\u2019ll be the first to tell you that I want customers who need new motors, but I\u2019d rather help you solve your problem without overspending. I\u2019ve seen too many companies drop $10k on a new servo motor when a $50 current tuning tweak or $200 gear reducer swap would have fixed their issue. The key takeaway here is that torque gain isn\u2019t a one-size-fits-all process: start with tuning, then check your mechanical system, then upgrade only when necessary. Every application is different \u2013 a robotics arm will have different torque needs than a CNC router, which is different from a packaging line \u2013 so the right adjustments depend on your specific load, speed, and operational requirements.<\/p>\n

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If you\u2019re currently dealing with a servo motor that\u2019s not delivering enough torque, or you\u2019re planning a new build and want to make sure you have enough power to avoid future bottlenecks, I\u2019d be happy to walk through your setup one-on-one. I\u2019ve worked with hundreds of customers across industries, from aerospace to medical devices, and I can help you avoid the common pitfalls that lead to wasted money on unnecessary upgrades. Don\u2019t guess at torque gains \u2013 let\u2019s get your system running at its full potential without overspending on parts you don\u2019t need.<\/p>\n

DC Brush Square Gear Motor<\/a> References<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Bolton, W. (2017). Servo Motors and Control Systems. Newnes.<\/li>\n
  2. Krause, P. C., Wasynczuk, O., & Sudhoff, S. D. (2013). Analysis of Electric Machinery and Drive Systems. IEEE Press.<\/li>\n
  3. Wilson, J. (2020). Industrial Automation: Servo Motor Tuning and System Optimization. Automation World Publications.<\/li>\n
  4. Planet Science. (2021). Understanding Torque-Speed Envelopes for Brushless Servo Motors. Journal of Industrial Motion Control.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n

    Hangzhou ANG Drive Co., Ltd.<\/a>
    As one of the most professional servo motor manufacturers and suppliers in China, we’re featured by quality products and good service. Please rest assured to wholesale custom made servo motor from our factory. Good service and quality products are available.
    Address: No.185, Jincheng Rd., Hangzhou 311202, China
    E-mail: export2@angdrive.com
    WebSite:     https:\/\/www.anjodrive.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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