The Motor Driver (Essay Sample)

The driver provides motion control capabilities for velocity control and positioning applications of bipolar stepper motors. The motor driver operates by collecting the step and direction pulse signals from the programmable controller and deciphering them into electrical signals to generate shaft rotation. By controlling the flow of current delivered to the stepper motor, the motor windings are energised to simulate motion. The on-board translator dictates the direction of current flowing in each winding as well as the input to the DACs.
Each pulse received from the programmable controller, in the form of a digital signal, translates to a single step and direction. However the speed at which the shaft rotates is directly proportional to the pulse frequency which is equivalent to the spacing between each pulse. Digital pulses are formed by LOW (0V) and HIGH (5V) signals and are generated by the digital outputs of the programmable controller. A pulse with a LOW to HIGH transition sent to the STEP input causes the motor to advance by one increment. Similarly, the clockwise/counter-clockwise rotational direction is determined a rising/falling edge respectively, and changes only take effect during the subsequent rising edge at the STEP input. Figure X shows the typical architecture of a timing diagram composed of a series of pulses. The logic interface in Figure 9 signifies moving 4 steps clockwise followed by 4 steps counter-clockwise.
The driver uses an open loop configuration to perform control functions by transmitting pow