How To Control Stepper Motors, MC54113 ICs, Pan & Tilt, and More

The October 2024 edition of Motion Control News includes the most recent PMD news, resources, and announcements.

In this edition of Motion Control News:

How To Control Stepper Motors
In this article we take a comprehensive look at how to control two-phase stepper motors. We will start with the basics of how step motors work and their strengths and weaknesses relative to other positioning motor types. Then we will show you how they are controlled using traditional techniques and continue with advanced techniques that have come on the scene only recently. We will close with a review of implementation choices available to engineers for cost-effective high-performance step motor control solutions.
Single Axis Stepper Motor Control IC Provides Profile Generation and Ultra-Quiet Microstepping Operation
The Magellan® MC54113 Stepper Motor Control IC provides trajectory generation, microstepping, quadrature encoder input, stall detection, closed loop stepper control, advanced performance motion trace, and more. It can be driven with pulse & direction signals or can perform internal profile generation. Available profile modes include trapezoidal point-to-point, s-curve point-to-point, velocity contouring, electronic gearing, and continuous contouring with multi-axis synchronization. The MC54113 directly generates PWM amplifier control signals for a two-phase step motor with shoot-through protection and direct leg-current signal input. PMD’s proprietary digital current loop technology provides ultra smooth, ultra quiet stepper motor operation.

Pan & Tilt Pointing
Pan & tilt pointing means motion control of a mechanical system that can ‘pan’ (rotate around a vertical axis) and tilt (rotate around a horizontal axis). There are a large variety of machines that use a pan & tilt pointing mechanism including security cameras, laser pointing systems, fire control systems, film production equipment, radar control systems, and more.