A Friend of mine and I have developed a BLDC motor driver shield for the Arduino due. (basic functionality works now - motor turns according to my inputs XD ) I wonder if this could be something a larger community might be interested in.
The board is based on the FAN7388 chip from Fairchild. We are using current-sensors from Allegro (ACS711KLCTR-12AB-T ) to measure phase current. That enables us to run the motor in torque (current) control mode. Since the Arduino due has very power full PWM periphery - all the necessary PWM signals are directly generated from the due board. PWM frequency is currently running at 30kHz, therefore the board is suitable to run BLDC motors with relatively low inductance – like most model plain motors have. There is also an analog voltage controller (LM317) on board that allows the maximum DC link voltages of 40V. Output of the voltage controller is 10V which is used to run the MosFets and to supply the Arduino board. The MosFets have a D2Pack housing which allows a large variety on different types – currently I am using IRFZ44NS. The rotor position feedback is done by hall sensors at the moment but we also consider using sensorless control in future.
We also have written a library for the BLDC motor so that a motor command can be easily added to a sketch.
We intend to use the BLDC shield for a self made electric bicycle – but if anyone could use a shield like this for an other project we would be happy to share.
I would also enjoy a creative discussion about what kind for features a shield like this should have e.g.
- over current detection
- temperature monitoring
- Senosorless control
- encoder and vector control for precise positioning
- …
Thanks for your feedback!