TI introduces sensorless field-oriented control trapezoidal control BLDC motor drive without programming

TI launches 70W BLDC motor driver with sensorless field-oriented control and trapezoidal control without programming, saving weeks of system design time

Integrated real-time control enables engineers to start up BLDC motors in less than 10 minutes while making the motor system quieter and 70 percent smaller

BEIJING (September 9, 2021) - Texas Instruments (TI) (NASDAQ: TXN) has introduced the industry's most advanced 70W brushless DC (BLDC) motor driver for providing programming-free, sensorless trapezoidal and field-oriented control (FOC). The newly released device enables engineers to start BLDC motors in less than 10 minutes, reducing the design time by weeks for engineers designing a variety of industrial systems (such as large and small household appliances) and medical applications (such as ventilators and continuous positive airway pressure machines). By integrating real-time control functions and up to 18 discrete components, including MOSFETs, the new driver speeds up system response and reduces board space by up to 70% while providing excellent acoustic performance. For more information, see MCF8316A and MCT8316A.

“The need for real-time motor control is more pressing than ever, driven by trends such as improved power efficiency and automation, as well as the need to design quieter motors,” said Noman Akhtar, senior research analyst at Omdia. “Industrial systems are increasingly transitioning from AC induction motors to more energy-efficient BLDC motors, but they require complex hardware and optimized software designs to deliver high performance. Meeting designers’ needs for faster motor response while shortening overall design cycles will be an important step forward for next-generation industrial systems.”

Reduce design time with sensorless motor control that requires no programming

The MCF8316A and MCT8316A brushless DC motor drivers include a unique set of commutation control algorithms that eliminate the need to develop, maintain and validate motor control software, thereby reducing weeks of design time. These algorithms and high levels of integration enable motor drivers to better manage key functions such as motor fault detection while implementing protection mechanisms to improve system reliability. These motor drivers integrate sensorless technology to determine rotor position, eliminating the need for external Hall sensors, reducing system cost and improving reliability.

In addition, the MCF8316A sensorless field-oriented control motor driver intelligently extracts motor parameters, allowing designers to quickly tune the motor while providing consistent system performance regardless of motor manufacturing variations. With the MCT8316A sensorless trapezoidal control motor driver, designers can tune the motor with only five hardware pins. This simplifies the system because no microcontroller interface is required. Read the technical article "3 Ways to Speed ​​Up Your Design Cycle Using Brushless DC Motors" to learn more.

Excellent acoustic performance

The MCF8316A and MCT8316A BLDC motor drivers provide advanced real-time control capabilities that help engineers achieve industry-leading acoustic performance in applications such as air purifiers, refrigerators, washing machines, and fans. The MCF8316A includes a patented precision automatic dead-time compensation technique that compensates for current distortion, enabling engineers to optimize motor acoustic performance. The MCT8316A includes different trapezoidal control techniques that designers can use to reduce motor noise. Read the application note, “How to Reduce Motor Noise Using Sensorless BLDC Motor Drivers Without Programming,” to learn how engineers can use these devices to achieve outstanding acoustic performance in appliance designs.

Accelerate system response with real-time control

The MCT8316A sensorless trapezoidal control motor driver can achieve a maximum motor frequency of 3.5kHz, which is faster than any other sensorless motor driver without programming. This speeds up system response in applications such as sweeping robots that require fast and precise motor control.

The MCT8316A and MCF8316A are also industry-leading products that provide a fast and controlled way to actively reduce motor speed, allowing engineers to shut down the motor 50% faster than traditional motor control techniques. In addition, these devices can selectively pump energy back to the power rail when shutting down the motor, protecting the system from damage.

Reduce board space by up to 70%

The MCF8316A and MCT8316A enable designers to reduce board space by up to 70% and lower the total cost of the motor system. These devices integrate three gate drivers and six high-side and low-side MOSFETs, each with an on-resistance (RDS(on)) of 50mΩ. This enables TI's advanced BLDC motor drivers to deliver up to 70W of power and 8A of peak current in 12V and 24V systems. These motor drivers also integrate components such as low-dropout (LDO) regulators, DC/DC buck regulators and current sense amplifiers, eliminating up to 18 discrete components.

Packaging and availability

Preproduction versions of the MCF8316A and MCT8316A in a 40-pin 5 mm x 7 mm QFN package are available exclusively on TI.com.cn. A variety of payment and delivery options are also available on TI.com.cn.

Watch product demonstrations at TI Live! TECH EXCHANGE

TI will demonstrate the MCF8316A and MCT8316A during TI Live! TECH EXCHANGE (September 27-29, 2021). During the event, TI experts will discuss real-time control, visual sensing, automotive and power management design trends in a series of keynote speeches, roundtable discussions, technical workshops and product demonstrations. For more information, visit ti.com/techexchange.

About Texas Instruments

Texas Instruments (TI) (NASDAQ: TXN) is a global semiconductor company that designs, manufactures, tests and sells analog and embedded processing chips for markets such as industrial, automotive, personal electronics, communications equipment and enterprise systems. We are committed to creating a better world through semiconductor technology that makes electronics more affordable and practical. Today, each generation of innovation builds on the previous one, making our technology smaller, faster, more reliable and more affordable, enabling the widespread use of semiconductors in electronics. This is engineering progress. This is what we have been doing for decades and even now.