Motors & Motor Drives of

Robotics

OHOL S. S.
Mechanical Department,
College of Engineering, Pune.
Basic Parts Of Our Mobile Robot

 Locomotion system (Done in Part I)

 Sensory devices for feedback
 Sensor Data processing unit
 Control system
 End actuators
 Power supply system (Done in Part I)
End Actuators

 They convert the electrical energy into

meaningful mechanical work
 Mechanical output can be rotational or
linear (straight line)
 Motors provide rotational motion
 Electromagnets provide linear motion
Motors are of various kinds

 AC Motors : Not used much in robotics

 DC Motors : Finds extensive general use
 Stepper Motors : For controlled rotation
 Servo Motors : For controlled rotation
DC Motors

 As the name suggests,

a motor which uses a
DC (Direct Current)
power
 Can run in both
directions
 Speed Controllable
DC Motor Working
DC MOTOR DC MOTOR

1
V DC + +

A A
- V DC -

2
 Direction of rotation controlled by polarity of
current / voltage
 Speed of rotation controlled by average
energy (power) fed to the motor
DC Motor Specifications

 Operating Voltage : Recommended

voltage for powering the motor
 Operating Current : Current drawn at a
certain load on the shaft
 Stall Current : Maximum current drawn,
when motor not allowed to rotate
 Stall Torque : Rotation force needed to
hold the motor in stall condition
DC Motor Characteristics

 Free running torque & current are ideally

zero
 Increased load implies, increased torque,
current drawn & power consumption
 Power supplied by a motor is the product
of output shaft’s rotational velocity &
torque
DC Motor Characteristics Cont...

 DC Motors are inherently high–speed,

low-torque devices
 Using gears, the high speed of the motor
is traded off into torque
DC Motor Characteristics Cont…

 Zero speed at 100%

90%
maximum load 80%
(stall torque) 70%
POWER

60%
 Highest speed
50%
while free running 40%
LOAD

(zero load) 30%

20%
 Highest power at 10%
half speed & half 10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
load
SPEED ------>
Simple Direction Reversal

MG3 DC MOTOR U5

2 1 NC1
A
-

+
COM1 V3
NO1
V DC
NC2
COM2
NO2
A

S1
B

Relay _DPDT_nb

 S1 “off” Motor rotates in the default direction

 S1 “on” Motor rotates in the opposite direction
Electronic Direction Control

 H – Bridge Circuit Diagram

VCC

DC MOTOR
Q1 Q3
2

2
NOT GATE NOT GATE

2
A 1
-

+
Q2 Q4
L R
1

1
GND
H – Bridge Working
VCC VCC

ON ON OFF ON
DC MOTOR DC MOTOR
Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3
2

2
NOT GATE NOT GATE NOT GATE NOT GATE
A

A
2 1 2 1
-

+
Q2 Q4 Q2 Q4
L R L R
1

1
OFF OFF ON OFF
0 0 1 0

GND GND
VCC VCC

ON OFF OFF OFF

DC MOTOR DC MOTOR
Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3
2

2
NOT GATE NOT GATE NOT GATE NOT GATE
A

A
2 1 2 1
-

+
Q2 Q4 Q2 Q4
L R L R
1

1
OFF ON ON ON
0 1 1 1

GND GND
H-bridges
the simplest, reversible drive circuit is the H-Bridge

Closed
switche Polarity Effect
s

motor spins
A1 & A2 forward
forward

motor spins
B1 & B2 reverse backwar
d

motor acts as
A1 & B1 brake
a brake

motor floats
None free
freely
DC Motor Speed Control

 Operating Voltage is kept constant

 Reducing Operating Voltage will reduce
speed of rotation but also the output
torque & power
 A trick is done to achieve speed control
without sacrificing the output torque
 Instantaneous Operating Voltage is kept
constant, but it’s average value is
reduced
DC Motor Speed Control Circuit
CONTROL SIGNAL

VOLTAGE
CONTROL
CIRCUIT DC MOTOR

1
+

OPERATING A
VOLTAGE
-

2
 Input is the operating voltage & control signal
 Output is a part of the operating voltage
depending upon the control signal
Stepper Motors

 Used for measured

rotation
 Can be held at a
particular position
of the shaft
 Ideal for many
autonomous robots
requiring higher
precision
Stepper Motor Working

1000 0100 0010 0001

Stepping Sequences for Single Coil Excitation
Only one coil is active at a given instant of time
Single Coil Excitation
Stepper Motor Working Cont…

1100 0110 0011 1001

Stepping Sequences for Double Coil Excitation
Two coils active at any given instant of time
Double Coil Excitation
Differences

 Single Coil  Double Coil

 Consumes Less  Consumes Double
Power Power
 Less Torque  More torque
generated generated
 Settling time is more  Settling time is less
Interleaved Stepping (Half Step)
References

 Stepper Motors :
http://www.doc.ic.ac.uk/~ih/doc/stepper/
 IC 555 : Any book on Basic Electronics /
Digital Electronics
 Search at www.google.com , there’s
nothing you can’t find at Google !
Thank
YOU