Chips Combine Stepper Motor Control with Bus Interface

Oct 19, 2005 5:40 PM
By David Morrison, Editor, PETech

AMI Semiconductor, a manufacturer of integrated mixed-signal and structured digital products, has introduced two single-chip stepper motor controller ICs. Supplied in micro leadframe (MLF) packaging, the Green AMIS-30621 and AMIS-30622 are said to be the smallest devices of their kind. These mixed-signal ICs provide highly integrated solutions for remote and multiple axes positioning applications requiring LIN and serial connectivity, respectively.

Both the AMIS-30621 and AMIS-30622 integrate a bus connection, positioning and control electronics and a motor driver in a single 32-pin, “near chip-scale” (NQFP) package with a profile of less than 1 mm and a footprint of 7 mm × 7 mm. As a result, they require eight times less volume than previous devices and can be mounted on just a third of the pc board area. Small package size also facilitates direct mounting onto the motor for further space saving and reduced circuit complexity. By employing an exposed die pad design that significantly improves thermal resistance, the ICs also offer more efficient heat dissipation from IC to pc board than previous solutions.

Providing 800-mA 2-phase motor control, the AMIS controller ICs are ideal for small-positioning automotive applications, such as headlamp leveling and swiveling, cruise control, idle control, and HVAC systems. The devices also suit industrial applications such as X, Y, Z tables, robots, climate control and process control, and security and surveillance systems requiring camera positioning. Medical electronics provide other possible applications since the controllers may be useful in fluid control and laboratory equipment.

“The market trend toward mechatronic solutions is challenging engineers to improve integration levels and save space,” said Bart De Cock, product manager of AMI Semiconductor’s motor control product line. ”As the only available products that integrate all of the features required for bus connectivity and stepper motor control into such a small package, the AMIS-30621 and AMIS-30622 allow engineers to address this challenge without performance or cost compromise.”

The AMIS-30621 with LIN interface is suitable for remote, single or multiple axes positioning applications. The device can be used in dedicated mechatronics solutions that are connected remotely to a LIN master. The AMIS-30622 with serial interface is able to act as a peripheral device next to a microcontroller on a single pc board, and is ideal for positioning multiple axes. This smart driver chip with high-level command interface and integrated positioner allows modular hardware and software design.

Flexibility of motion parameters like maximum speed, acceleration and driving current, allow the on-chip position controllers to work with different motor types, load conditions and positioning ranges. Both the AMIS-30621 and AMIS-30622 also feature hold current and very low stand-by current.

Available for sampling now, the AMIS-30621-ANA and AMIS-30622-ANA will be priced under $4.50 per piece in 10,000-piece volumes. For data sheets, see www.amis.com/pdf/amis_30621_ds.pdf and www.amis.com/pdf/amis_30622_ds.pdf.

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