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<blockquoteclass="warning"markdown="1"><pclass="heading">⚠️ No drone ESCs!</p>
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Traditional drone ESCs are not suitable for FOC because they typically use a fixed commutation scheme (6-step usually), can only be velocity controlled and lack the necessary interfaces for connecting sensors and implementing advanced control algorithms.
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It is a pitty, because they are very cheap and widely available and very powerful!
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If doubting if your board is compatible or not, please ask in the [community forum](https://community.simplefoc.com), we will be happy to help you out!
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</blockquote>
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## Low power boards ( gimbal motors )
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Here are some BLDC driver boards that are designed for gimbal motors and work with the library *off-the-shelf*. Gimbal motors usually have more than 10 pole pairs and have an internal resistance >10Ω. They are designed for very smooth performance at low speeds. Gimbal motors are very versatile and are perfect for high-quality replacement of stepper motors and DC servo motors.
Finally, one of the cheapest possible solutions for running a gimbal BLDC motor is to use one of the dual DC motor motor drivers such as:
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Examples | Description | Specifications | Link | Price
@@ -54,7 +64,7 @@ It can also be a good board for beginner users, to get familiar with the FOC as
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</blockquote>
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## High performance boards
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<spanclass="simple">Simple<spanclass="foc">FOC</span>library</span> will support basically any BLDC motor driver which can be controlled using 3 PWM or 6 PWM signals. Additionally, drivers with current sensing can directly control torque, whereas all other drivers can use estimated current ([more info](voltage_torque_control)).
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<spanclass="simple">Simple<spanclass="foc">FOC</span>library</span> will support basically any BLDC motor driver which can be controlled using 3 PWM or 6 PWM signals. Additionally, drivers with current sensing can directly control torque, whereas all other drivers can use estimated current ([more info](torque_control)).
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Here are the boards that have been tested and are compatible with the library:
<pclass="heading">IFX007T and BTN8982 chips limitations</p>
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IFX007T and BTN8982 are based on relatively old transistor technology and have relatively long transistor rise times which can produce non-smooth operation.
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We suggest the boards based on these chips to be used only in closed loop mode, as the position sensor can correct possible noise from the driver.
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It can also be a good board for beginner users, to get familiar with the high-current FOC as an inexpensive solution, but with certain performance limits.
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</blockquote>
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<blockquoteclass="info"markdown="1">
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<pclass="heading">🔎 Find more boards</p>
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There are many more boards compatible with the library, the above tables bring just a few examples.
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To find more boards, you can search for the BLDC drivers mentioned in the tables, or simply search for "simplefoc" on your favourite shopping website.
You can also check the [community projects](https://simplefoc.com/community) to see what other users are using in their projects, and share your own project as well!
Traditional drone ESCs are not suitable for FOC because they typically use a fixed commutation scheme and lack the necessary control interfaces.
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</blockquote>
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-**Stepper Motors**:
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-**Dedicated [Stepper Driver](stepper_drivers)**: Best for 2-phase motors within standard current ranges (ex.NEMA17)
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-**Hybrid Mode**: You can actually use any [BLDC driver](bldc_drivers) to run a stepper motor.
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- ⚠️ **No Step/Dir Drivers**: Traditional "EasyDrivers" or A4988s (in step/dir mode) cannot be used for FOC because they do not allow direct phase voltage control.
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-**Hybrid Mode**: You can actually use any [BLDC driver](bldc_drivers) to run a stepper motor. - [See example](stepper_control_shield)
Traditional "EasyDrivers" or A4988s (in step/dir mode) cannot be used for FOC because they do not allow direct phase voltage control.
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</blockquote>
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### 2. Current Requirements
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-**Low Current (< 5A)**: Integrated driver ICs are cost-effective and easy to use.
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**Safety Steps:**
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-**Compare**: If $$I_{max}$$ exceeds your driver's rating, you must limit the voltage in software.
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-**Software Limit**: Use `driver.voltage_limit` and (`motor.voltage_limit` and/or `motor.current_limit`) to stay within safe bounds. - [see motor docs](motors_config)
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-**Power Supply**: If you can, use a current-limited lab bench power supply for your initial tests.
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-**Power Supply**: If you can, use a current-limited lab bench power supply for your initial tests.
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This library does not support stepper drivers with DIR+STEP (step and direction) interface such as A4988, DRV8825, TB6600, TB6560 and similar.
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</blockquote>
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<blockquoteclass="info"markdown="1"><pclass="heading">💡 Driving stepper motors with BLDC drivers</p>
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You can also use any (6PWM and 3PWM) 3-phase [BLDC motor drivers](bldc_drivers) to drive any stepper motor, using the hybrid stepper mode. This is sometimes a simpler solution as you can use the same board for both BLDC and stepper motors, and it can also provide better performance as the BLDC drivers are usually more powerful than the stepper drivers. See an example of NEMA17 with <spanclass="simple">Simple<spanclass="foc">FOC</span>Shield</span> in the [example projects](stepper_control_shield).
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</blockquote>
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The choice of stepper driver depends directly of the stepper motor you are using, basically make sure the stepper driver can provide the current the motor needs to perform.
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## Supported board examples
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Here are some stepper driver boards that are supported by this library.
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In short: use a dedicated stepper driver for the simplest setup, two DC drivers for higher current options, or two BLDC drivers when you also want hybrid stepper mode and board reuse.
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Examples | Description | Specifications | Link | Price
Finally you can also use two 3-phase [BLDC motor drivers](bldc_drivers). Each of the BLDC drivers has 3 half-bridges, from which you will need to use 2. When you combine two of them you will be using 4 output pins out of 6 they have.
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