Date: 01/08/2011

Hall effect based fan driver IC can drive fan using PWM or anlog signals

Melexis has released a new Hall effect based fan driver IC MLX90287, which has the ability to control cooling fan speed using PWM or Analog signals used in applications include information technology equipment such as Desktop Computers, Gaming Consoles and cooling fans in automotive applications like LED Headlights.

MLX90287 features a one-chip solution for driving low noise speed-controlled single-coil brushless cooling fans, operating at a supply voltage range of 4.5V to 16 volts, and can drive 550mA continuous output current is targeted for the widely used "12 volt" cooling fan applications. It operates within temperature range from -40 to 150 degree Celsius making it suitable for harsh environments like automotive, industrial, military and aerospace.

Melexis explains that important step in cooling designs is to control and optimize cooling fan rotation speed depending on the system thermal load, taking the example of a computer processor, while regular office work creates low system load, on the contrary playing intense 3D games requires the highest system load, hence constantly keeping the maximum cooling capabilities leads to a waste of energy and high acoustic noise from the fan airflow.

Melexis says MLX90287 provides a wide PWM frequency range from 100Hz to 100KHz without any external circuitry and also can regulate cooling fan speed via a mere potentiometer, a solution used by many extreme gamers for total control, or even a simple thermistor for a more automatic regulation responding on the real system temperature.

More information can be found online at : http://www.melexis.com/mlx90287