Motor Controller System: Design And Solution

Questions:

1.Demonstrate an ability to analyse an electronics engineering problem and design a solution
2.Demonstrate an ability to apply the solution and evaluate it

The Motor Drive

The motor controller is a group of devices which their function is to manage in encoded routine the whole electric motor recital. The starting and the stopping method of the motor controller might be manual or automatic by regulating and selecting the speed, forward or reverse rotation selection, limiting the torque and also guarding against the faults and the overloads.

It is believed that every motor comprises of a controller which have different traits in accordance with the workability of the motor. The most basic and primary instance is the switch which connects the motor to the source of power. The switch may be operated on manual basis or also might be relayed to the sensor in order for the motor to be started and stopped automatically.

The motor controller system therefore can be automatically be simulated using the KiCAD software before this is practically constructed using the Arduino board systems.

But before the motor controller system is practically constructed or simulated, there exists some crucial steps that have to be followed in the process of developing the motor controller system. The steps includes the simulation of different devices which later makes the motor controller system. This includes the following; The motor drive, the encoding system and later the fully functioning motor controlling system.

Putting into considerations of the drive which in this case has more than one meaning, but here we have to restrict our knowledge to electronic devices which gives out modifiable speed control to the motor. It is worthy noting that the motor can either be Alternating current or Direct current. The motor drive gives out so many functions to the motor, the drive contains  several forms of rectifications which happens in order to give intelligent control for motors. The internal power conversion is not to be considered since the requirements of the power of the drive and that of the PLC are always fingered in separate ways. The motor controller can only be connected to the logical function of the drive, Philip(2006).

Keeping into consideration of the simplified diagram, this shows the very basic part of the electronic motor drive. 

If the user is very new in the to the applications of the motion actions, the user might try to think that immediately the signals are received by the motor drive from the controller system of the motor, that the signals contains some traits with can be integral and that has effects on the velocity and the direction of the shaft of the motor. But to the contrary, when we come to the reality of facts, all the four outputs of the controller always look the same as far as electronic is concerned.

The Encoder Circuit

The signs are just discrete ON/OFF signs. What makes them distinctive is the place they are associated with the drive. It is the insight of the drive (and not the HSC) that decides how the signs influence the engine task. The PLC only exploits the I/O usefulness that has been pre-modified inside the drive itself. A few drives (or savvy engine controllers) will have associating terminals checked CW, CCW , or possibly deceleration or brake. In these cases the terminals have been inside set up by the drive maker to appropriately utilize the signs got. By and large however there are no such markings. You will program the I/O indicates on the drive play out whatever capacity you wish from those accessible on your drive. It could be to alter engine course, change speed, or any number of capacities. You at that point, have the obligation of coordinating up the drive I/O with the best possible yield signals from the motor controller. 

In accordance with Kuvl (2014),The word encoder can be a befuddling term to the individuals who have never utilized them. There are numerous kinds of encoders and the word itself can have as wide or thin of a definition as a specific application may direct. We will restrain our exchange here to incremental encoders. Notwithstanding narrowing the degree down to this group of encoders can display a significant extensive cluster of items offered by different makers. We won't endeavor to depict each compose, and will just cover the subject in the most well-known and general sense. From the point of view of the HSC, it is searching for a square heartbeat prepare (or prepares in the instance of a quadrature encoder). It doesn't generally mind how they were created or the physical appearance of what has sent the signal(s). For whatever length of time that the approaching signals have the best possible width prerequisites and are not being gotten quicker than 100 kHz, the HSC can tally them. The most widely recognized encoder is the revolving incremental optical encoder. Inside its lodging, are generally five fundamental segments: light source (more often than not a LED), an opened plate, a cover, a photograph identifier, and square wave hardware. A quadrature encoder has a moment light source and sensor (Phase B) situated over the plate track. A solitary flag (non-quadrature) encoder is appeared in the outline underneath.

The amount of spaces on the plate is equal to the quantity of heartbeats per turn. Most quadrature encoders likewise give a solitary secluded space on the plate called the Z marker. It is lined up with its own different LED. The beat from this channel gives a reference once per unrest. The programmed home inquiry work, incorporated with the HSC, makes utilization of the Z-marker when you associate a quadrature encoder to the HSC with the Z-marker connected to INZ. The Z-marker serves to all the more nearly characterize a home base to which the working mechanical assembly can be precisely returned. It's sort of like "best right on target" on a crankshaft for motivations behind planning your start with the right cylinder position. The D4-HSC does not utilize the Z-motion for mistake recognition or amendment of any lost heartbeats or additional heartbeats that are related with a specific upset of the encoder. The HSC simply utilizes the Z-flag to ensure the opened circle of the encoder is continuously similarly situated toward the beginning of each work cycle

The Motor Controller System

According to Hurtler(2012),The motor controller system is a system which acts as the intermediate in between the robots microcontroller batteries and the motor itself.  Normally, the micro-controller are normally supplied with the alternating current as the source of its power.  Since it uses the AC power supply, the power which is coming in the motor controller is always at a frequency which is set. On the workability of the motor controller, the controller first changes the alternating current to direct current, it then thereafter changes the Direct current to alternating current at its right frequency.  In order to make the direct current, the motor controller has a special device which is called the rectifier  , which is purposely used for making the direct current. The rectifier which is found in the motor controller has the diodes, the diodes are used as the one way valve. Supposing that the alternating current is in its negative half of its phase, the diode which is devoted to the negative wire allows it through but still the diode which is devoted to the positive wire will eventually stop it. The moment the alternating current is in its positive half of its phase,  the diode which is attached to the positive wire allows it through but the diode which is attached to the negative wire stops it therefore the alternating current flows down the positive wire. Although, all the negative current is pushed into the wire and also all the positive current is moved into the other wire therefore making the direct current.

The Final advance is influencing Alternating Current to control at the correct recurrence. The engine controller has little, rapid switches which turn on and off a great many times each second. Each switch makes a little increment or reduction in voltage. Together, they make a stair-step wave- - a wave that finds a way to copy the bend of a genuine AC wave. The wave is sufficiently comparable to genuine AC to control the engine. 

The above diagram represents the electric circuit constructed using the kiCAD software which is then software used to design the electric circuit before they are constructed through the wiring and the Arduino boards 

Conclusion

From the above discussion over the simulation of the motor controller system, it is noted that the construction of the system entails the construction of the two major parts of the system which in this case includes the motor drive and , the encoder circuit. This devices are used as the intermediary in robot and the motor.

The motor controller can therefore be used in managing the routines for the performance of the  electric motors, this automates the electric motor to a more well defined device.

References 

Hurtler, A. (2012). EDUCATION IN DEVELOPMENT OF ELECTRONIC MODULES USING FREE AND OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE TOOLS. Hidraulica.

Kuvl (2014). Free open source software in electronics engineering education: a survey. International Journal of Modern Education and Computer Science, 6(5), 15.

Philip (2013, December). Oscad: An open source EDA tool for circuit design, simulation, analysis and PCB design. In Electronics, Circuits, and Systems (ICECS), 2013 IEEE 20th International Conference on (pp. 851-854). IEEE.