Brushless 24 Click

How does it work?

Brushless 24 Click is based on the DRV10866, a fully integrated three-phase BLDC motor driver from Texas Instruments. The DRV10866 motor driver comes with integrated power MOSFETs with current drive capability up to 800mA peak (based on populated 3.9k resistor), specifically designed for low-noise energy-saving fan motor drive applications connected to the terminals labeled as U, V, W, and COM. It provides PWM/enable control interface (PWM pin of the mikroBUS™ socket), wide operating voltage range, robust on-chip protection features, low RDSON, and efficient switching algorithms to ensure excellent thermal performance and high drive capability.

The DRV10866 implements a 150° commutation (sensorless BEMF control scheme) for a 3-phase motor alongside a synchronous rectification mode of operation that achieves increased efficiency for motor driver applications. In addition, the DRV10866 has a frequency generator pin (FG) that outputs a 50% duty cycle of PWM waveform in the normal operation condition. The FG represents the motor speed and phase information, detectable through an interrupt pin of the mikroBUS™ socket and a blue LED indicator marked as FG. During the Start-Up sequence, the FG output will stay at high impedance until the motor speed reaches a certain level and BEMF is detected, while during lock protection conditions, the FG will remain high until the motor restarts and the Start-Up process is completed.

Apart from this function, the DRV10866 can also output either full FG or half of the FG to indicate motor status with open-drain output through the FGS SEL selection jumper. When FGS SEL is placed in a VCC position, the FG output frequency is half that when the jumper is set to a GND position. The DRV10866 has multiple built-in protection blocks, including UVLO, overcurrent protection, lock protection, and thermal shutdown protection.

This Click board™ can operate with both 3.3V and 5V logic voltage levels selected via the VCC SEL jumper. This way, it is allowed for both 3.3V and 5V capable MCUs to use the communication lines properly. However, the Click board™ comes equipped with a library containing easy-to-use functions and an example code that can be used, as a reference, for further development.

Specifications

Pinout diagram

This table shows how the pinout on Brushless 24 Click corresponds to the pinout on the mikroBUS™ socket (the latter shown in the two middle columns).

Notes	Pin					Pin	Notes
	NC	1	AN	PWM	16	PWM	PWM Signal
	NC	2	RST	INT	15	INT	Motor Speed
ID COMM	CS	3	CS	RX	14	NC
	NC	4	SCK	TX	13	NC
	NC	5	MISO	SCL	12	NC
	NC	6	MOSI	SDA	11	NC
Power Supply	3.3V	7	3.3V	5V	10	5V	Power Supply
Ground	GND	8	GND	GND	9	GND	Ground

Onboard settings and indicators

Brushless 24 Click electrical specifications

Software Support

We provide a library for the Brushless 24 Click as well as a demo application (example), developed using Mikroe compilers. The demo can run on all the main Mikroe development boards.

Package can be downloaded/installed directly from NECTO Studio Package Manager (recommended), downloaded from our LibStock™ or found on Mikroe github account.

Library Description

This library contains API for Brushless 24 Click driver.

Key functions

• brushless24_set_duty_cycle Brushless 24 sets PWM duty cycle.

• brushless24_pwm_start Brushless 24 start PWM module.

• brushless24_get_int_state Brushless 24 get INT pin state.

Example Description

This application is a schowcase of controlling speed of brushless motor using Brushless 24 Click.

void application_task ( void )  
 { 
     static int8_t duty_cnt = 1; 
     static int8_t duty_inc = 1; 
     float duty = duty_cnt / 10.0; 

     brushless24_set_duty_cycle ( &brushless24, duty ); 
     log_printf( &logger, "> Duty: %d%%rn", ( uint16_t )( duty_cnt * 10 ) ); 

     Delay_ms( 1000 ); 

     if ( 10 == duty_cnt )  
     { 
         duty_inc = -1; 
     } 
     else if ( 0 == duty_cnt )  
     { 
         duty_inc = 1; 
     } 
     duty_cnt += duty_inc; 
 }

The full application code, and ready to use projects can be installed directly from NECTO Studio Package Manager (recommended), downloaded from our LibStock™ or found on Mikroe github account.

Other Mikroe Libraries used in the example:

• MikroSDK.Board
• MikroSDK.Log
• Click.Brushless24

Additional notes and informations

Depending on the development board you are using, you may need USB UART click, USB UART 2 Click or RS232 Click to connect to your PC, for development systems with no UART to USB interface available on the board. UART terminal is available in all Mikroe compilers.

mikroSDK

This Click board™ is supported with mikroSDK – Mikroe Software Development Kit. To ensure proper operation of mikroSDK compliant Click board™ demo applications, mikroSDK should be downloaded from the LibStock and installed for the compiler you are using.

For more information about mikroSDK, visit the official page.