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Motor/Blower
Unlike some Biosafety Cabinets, the Axiom has two motor/blowers. The supply
motor/blower is positioned above the Supply HEPA filter, and is responsible for the
recirculation of air from the front grille and sides of the work area back down and over
the work area. The exhaust motor/blower is located before the exhaust HEPA filter, and
it draws the air in the center of the work area, and pushes it through the exhaust filter,
discharging HEPA-filtered air either back into the laboratory, or into an exhaust system.
See Figure 5-5. Both motors in the Axiom cabinet are electronically commutated motors
(ECM). The ECM is a brushless DC motor that includes its own power supply to convert
the incoming alternating current to direct current, as well as its own microprocessor to
control and measure the motor’s operation. The motors utilize Labconco’s exclusive
Constant Airflow Profile
TM
(CAP) programming to deliver a consistent volume of air,
throughout the life of the HEPA filters.