Integrated Stepper-Motor Pre-Driver Quiets Industrial Apps

A configurable, integrated stepper-motor pre-driver, the first from Texas Instruments, implements a micro-stepping indexer, internal and external stall detection, and advanced current regulation that facilitates efficient motor tuning. External MOSFETs control the DRV8711 to minimize heat dissipation as well as provide 20% more scalable output current than other comparables, according to the company. A customizable gate drive supports up to 200 mA of source current per 300 mA of sink current with adjustable slew rate, dead-time, and on-time. The integrated micro-stepping indexer is capable of up to 1/256 micro-stepping. Adaptive blanking time and various current decay modes create a smooth profile to optimize motor performance. Configurability comes via an SPI interface, which allows for programming of the output current, micro-stepping mode, current decay mode, and stall detection. Overcurrent, pre-driver overcurrent, overtemperature, and undervoltage fault condition protection is included. Industrial applications include textile machinery, video surveillance, ATM machines, robotics, and others.

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