Date: 07/05/2009

High current PWM motion control ICs for DC Motor

Cirrus Logic has released SA303-IHZ and SA53-IHZ the high current pulse width modulated (PWM) ICs for driving three-phase brush and brushless DC motors.
Cirrus Logic says, These new ICs offer a lower per unit cost of up to 40 percent for industrial motor applications such as fans, pumps and robotics operating on supplies up to 60 V and requiring output current in the 3 A range (10 A PEAK).

"The earlier launch of the SA306-IHZ and SA57-IHZ has garnered strong customer interest because of the performance and protection features they offer in a very small package," said Greg Brennan, vice president, Cirrus Logic Apex Precision Power business unit. "With the addition of the SA303-IHZ and SA53-IHZ, Cirrus Logic can now provide this same mix of product benefits to customers with applications in a lower power range and at a lower cost."

The SA303-IHZ and SA53-IHZ are available in same 64-pin power quad package used in its already popular SA3XX and SA5X series from Cirrus Logic. Cirrus Logic claims, with a footprint of less than two centimeters square, the ICs require up to 70 percent less board space compared to alternate discrete solutions with comparable power requirements.

Another advantage of SA303-IHZ and the SA53-IHZ are, they use smaller filter components due to higher switching frequencies (up to 100 KHz).

The price for each varies in the range of $5.86 to $9.05, based on the motor type, current rating, and supply voltage. All the ICs are available both in sample and volumes.

The other features are,

1. Deliver cycle-by-cycle current limit to precisely control motor current in real time
2. Support soft-start the motor
3. Offer easy interface to either a digital microcontroller (MCU) or a DSP.
4. Topside and bottom side output FETs on these PWM drivers can be individually controlled via direct signals from the processor. This communication includes current sensing for each phase. Each current path is supplied as an individual input to the ADC of the processor.
5. Protection features provided includes under voltage and over temperature and short circuit.