Allegro Microsystems, LLC

Texas Instruments Corporation

Yisong Lu

Lyndon Ambruson

Ruochen Zhang

Wei Zuo

Christopher Alger

Kamyar Khosravi

Yew Tat Chuah

Pauy Guan Tan

A motor control system includes a motor; a motor and a motor control circuit coupled to the motor to provide power to the motor. The motor control circuit includes a power feedback loop having a power reference circuit to provide a reference power level and a power control circuit configured to provide a constant power level to the motor so that the motor operates with a substantially constant power output. The constant power level is proportional to the reference power level. Thus, the motor also provides substantially constant torque when the motor is at a constant speed.

Motor controller with power feedback loop

Methods and apparatus to control a three-phase BLDC motor with a curve transformer having an index value for each stored input value and output value for providing stored corner points for outputs of the curve transformer. The curve transformer can output interpolated data for input data between adjacent ones of the input values.

BLDC motor controller/driver

Methods and apparatus for controlling a three-phase motor and providing sinusoidal phase currents during startup. In embodiments, differential outputs from a magnetic field sensing element are used to generate a polarity signal used to provide a motor direction drive signal. An amplitude signal derived from the magnetic field sensing element and a measured motor current are used to generate a current amplitude signal. A PWM module generates signals for driving the motor with sinusoidal phase currents from the current amplitude signal and the motor direction drive signal.

Methods and apparatus for motor startup with sinusoidal phase current

A motor control system for reducing or eliminating current ripple error during current sampling comprises a motor having a plurality of phase coils, a motor driver circuit having a plurality of switches coupled to the plurality of phase coils to drive current through the phase coils, and a motor controller circuit configured to provide a plurality of output control signals coupled to the plurality of switches. A phase circuit modifies a first output control signal to produce a modified control signal that is out of phase with a second output control signal. A current measuring circuit is included to measure a current through the motor by measuring the current during a first time period when the first output control signal is active and measuring the current during a second time period when the modified control signal is active.

Motor controller with accurate current measurement

A circuit includes a processor that analyzes a pulse width modulated (PWM) signal feedback from a brushless DC motor to determine a transition between a mutual inductance zero crossing condition and a Back Electro Motive Force (BEMF) zero crossing condition of the brushless DC motor. A mutual inductance controller is executed by the processor to commutate the brushless DC motor at startup of the motor when the mutual inductance zero crossing condition is detected by the processor. A BEMF controller is executed by the processor to commutate the brushless DC motor after startup of the motor when the BEMF zero crossing condition is detected by the processor.

Process of operating a hybrid controller for brushless DC motor

Method and apparatus for providing error compensation for a magnetic field sensing element in a three-phase motor. In embodiments, a driving angle is determined from zero-crossings of the magnet pole-pairs and error compensation levels for the pole-pairs is determined to reduce distortions in the motor current waveform.

Methods and apparatus for three-phase motor control with error compensation

A system includes a motor circuit and a calibration test circuit configured to be coupled to the motor circuit to calculate a nominal motor constant representing operation of a motor in a nominal mode, calculate a motor impedance function comprising one or more motor impedance values at one or more motor frequencies, store one or more values of the impedance function in a memory of the motor circuit, and calculate a range of acceptable motor constant values based on the nominal motor constant. The motor circuit may be configured to calculate an operating motor constant value for the motor while operating, wherein the operating motor constant value is based on at least one of the stored values of the impedance function and compare the motor constant value to the range of acceptable motor constant values stored in the memory to detect if a motor stall has occurred.

Electric motor stall detection

Methods and apparatus to control a three-phase BLDC motor using phase current and phase voltage at zero current detection and a driving current derived from a bus current, for example. The driving current can be combined with a difference angle with an output provided to a controller to control a speed of the motor.

Motor control using phase current and phase voltage

Methods and apparatus for determining a position of a rotor in motor, such as a three-phase motor by determining first and second ones of sectors in which a first one of the magnetic poles of the rotor may be positioned by driving phase pairs with complementary signals and examining a voltage of a floating one of the phases. Embodiments can further include driving first and second currents towards the first and second ones of the sectors and analyzing a time for each of the first and second currents to reach a threshold to identify which of the first and second ones of the sectors is aligned with the first one of the magnetic poles of the rotor.

Determining motor position with complementary driving and detection and current injection

Methods and apparatus for determining a position of a rotor in a three-phase motor by determining first and second ones of sectors in which a first one of the magnetic poles of the rotor may be positioned by respectively driving phase pairs complementary signals and examining a voltage of a floating one of the phases. Embodiments can include applying torque to the motor by driving at least one phase pair with respective signals aligned in phase and unequal duty cycles to move the rotor a given amount from the rotor position in the first or second ones of the sectors for determining the position of the rotor.

Determining motor position with complementary drive and detect and slight move

Hybrid controller for brushless DC motor

A back electromotive force (BEMF) zero cross may be detected in a brushless direct current (BLDC) motor that is controlled by pulse width modulation (PWM). A phase input of the BLDC motor is tri-stated during PWM periods in which the phase input conducts motor drive current, and the tri-stating of the phase input is used to determine whether a BEMF zero cross has occurred in the BLDC motor.

BLDC zero crossing with BEMF, gating, and tri-state detect circuitry

Described embodiments provide circuits, systems and methods for digitally demodulating a pulse-width modulated (PWM) signal in a motor control system. An electronic circuit of the motor control system includes an input to receive a speed demand signal that is a PWM signal having a duty cycle associated with a requested speed of a motor. A PWM demodulator demodulates the PWM signal and generates an N-bit digital speed value representative of the requested speed of the motor, where N is a positive integer. A motor driver generates, based at least in part upon the N-bit digital speed value, one or more control signals to operate the motor.

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Shrewsbury, MA, United States of America

Yisong Lu