Junction Temperature, T
Storage Temperature Range,
TS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -55°C to +150°C
† Fault conditions that produce excessive junction
temperature will activate device thermal shutdown
circuitry. These conditions can be tolerated, but
should be avoided.
Output current rating may be restricted to a value
determined by system concerns and factors.
These include: system duty cycle and timing,
ambient temperature, and use of any heatsinking
and/or forced cooling. For reliable operation, the
specified maximum junction temperature should
not be exceeded.
V
BB
BOOST
CHARGE
at T
PUMP
OUT
COMMUTATION
DELAY
SERIAL PORT
MUX
FLL
= +25°C
A
V
DD
C
24
23
DATA IN
22
CLOCK
21
CHIP SELECT
20
RESET
19
18
GROUND
DATA OUT
17
16
LOGIC
15
SUPPLY
SECTOR
14
DATA
1312
FILTER
Dwg. PP-040B
. . . . . . . . . . . . ±1.25 A
. . . . . . . . . 6.0 V
DD
See Graph
D
. . . . . . . +150°C†
J
D1
GROUND
OSCILLATOR
8906
The A8906CLB is a bidirectional three-phase brushless dc motor
controller/driver. The three half-bridge outputs are low on-resistance nchannel DMOS devices capable of driving up to 1 A. The A8906CLB
provides complete, reliable, self-contained back-EMF sensing motor
startup and running algorithms. A programmable digital frequencylocked loop speed control circuit together with the linear current control
circuitry provides precise motor speed regulation.
A serial port allows the user to program various features and
modes of operation, such as the speed control parameters, rotational
direction, startup current limit, sleep mode, diagnostic modes, and
others.
The A8906CLB is fabricated in Allegro’s BCD (Bipolar CMOS
DMOS) process, an advanced mixed-signal technology that combines
bipolar, analog and digital CMOS, and DMOS power devices. The
A8906CLB is provided in a 24-lead wide-body SOIC batwing package.
It provides for the smallest possible construction in surface-mount
applications.
PRELIMINARY INFORMATION
FEATURES
■ DMOS Outputs
■ Low r
■ Startup Commutation Circuitry
■ Back-EMF Commutation Circuitry
■ Direction Control
■ Serial Port Interface
■ Frequency-Locked Loop Speed Control
■ Sector Data Tachometer Signal Input
■ Programmable Start-Up Current
■ Diagnostics Mode
■ Sleep Mode
■ Linear Current Control
■ Internal Current Sensing
■ Dynamic Braking Through Serial Port
■ Power-Down Dynamic Braking
■ System Diagnostics Data Out
■ Data Out Ported in Real Time
■ Internal Thermal Shutdown Circuitry
Always order by complete part number, e.g., A8906CLB .
DS(on)
(Subject to change without notice)
March 1, 1999
Data Sheet
26301.4
Page 2
8906
BIDIRECTIONAL
3-PHASE BRUSHLESS DC
MOTOR CONTROLLER/DRIVER
6-7GROUNDPower and logic ground and thermal heat sink.
8OUT
9OUT
10CENTERTAPMotor centertap connection for back-EMF detection circuitry.
11BRAKEActive low turns ON all three sink drivers shorting the motor windings to ground.
12C
13FILTERAnalog voltage input to control motor current. Also, compensation node for
14SECTOR DATAExternal tachometer input. Can use sector or index pulses from disk to provide
15LOGIC SUPPLYVDD; the 5 V logic supply.
16OSCILLATORClock input for the speed reference counter. Typical max. frequency is 10 MHz.
17DATA OUTThermal shutdown indicator, FCOM, TACH, or SYNC signals available in real
18-19GROUNDPower and logic ground and thermal heat sink.
20RESETWhen pulled low forces the chip into sleep mode; clears all serial port bits.
21CHIP SELECTStrobe input (active low) for data word.
22CLOCKClock input for serial port.
23DATA INSequential data input for the serial port.
24C
D2
WD
A
B
C
RES
D1
One of two capacitors used to generate the ideal commutation points from the
back-EMF zero crossing points.
Timing capacitor used by the watchdog circuit to disable the back-EMF comparators during commutation transients, and to detect incorrect motor position.
Power amplifier A output to motor.
Power amplifier B output to motor.
Power amplifier C output to motor.
External capacitor and resistor at BRAKE provide brake delay.
External reservoir capacitor used to hold charge to drive the source drivers’
gates. Also provides power for brake circuit.
internal speed control loop.
precise motor speed feedback to internal frequency-locked loop.
time, controlled by 2-bit multiplexer in serial port.
One of two capacitors used to generate the ideal commutation points from the
back-EMF zero crossing points.
Page 6
8906
BIDIRECTIONAL
3-PHASE BRUSHLESS DC
MOTOR CONTROLLER/DRIVER
FUNCTIONAL DESCRIPTION
Power Outputs. The power outputs of
the A8906CLB are n-channel DMOS transistors with a total source plus sink r
DS(on)
of
typically 1 Ω. Internal charge pump boost
circuitry provides voltage above supply for
driving the high-side DMOS gates. Intrinsic
ground clamp and flyback diodes provide
protection when switching inductive loads and
may be used to rectify motor back-EMF in
power-down conditions. An external Schottky
power diode or pass FET is required in series
with the load supply to allow motor back-EMF
rectification in power down conditions.
Back-EMF Sensing Motor Startup and
Running Algorithm. The A8906CLB pro-
vides a complete self-contained back-EMF
sensing startup and running commutation
scheme. The three half-bridge outputs are
controlled by a state machine. There are six
possible combinations. In each state, one
output is high (sourcing current), one low
(sinking current), and one is OFF (high
impedance or ‘Z’). Motor back EMF is sensed
at the OFF output. The truth table for the
output drivers sequencing is:
Direction
ControlOUT
HighLowZ
ZLowHigh
LowZHigh
D2 Low
D2 High
LowHighZ
ZHighLow
HighZLow
A
OUT
B
OUT
C
At startup, the outputs are enabled in one
of the sequencer states shown. The back
EMF is examined at the OFF output by
comparing the output voltage to the motor
centertap voltage at CENTERTAP. The
motor will then either step forward, step
backward, or remain stationary (if in a nulltorque position). If the motor moves, the
back-EMF detection circuit waits for the
correct polarity back-EMF zero crossing
(output crossing through centertap). True back-EMF zero crossings are
used by the adaptive commutation delay circuit to advance the state
sequencer (commutate) at the proper time to synchronously run the
motor. Back-EMF zero crossings are indicated by FCOM, an internal
signal that toggles at every zero crossing. FCOM is available at the
DATA OUT terminal via the programmable data out multiplexer.
V
OUTA
V
OUTB
V
OUTC
FCOM
V
SOURCE ON
CTAP
BACK-EMF VOLTAGE
SINK ON
FCOM TOGGLES AT
BACK-EMF ZERO CROSSING
Dwg. WP-016-1
Direction Control. Serial port bit D2 controls the direction of
rotation (see sequencer state table). The motor should be at a complete stop before beginning a startup sequence that reverses the
direction of rotation.
Startup Oscillator. If the motor does not move at the initial startup
state, then it is in a null-torque position. In this case, the outputs are
commutated automatically by the startup oscillator after a period set by
the external capacitor at CST where
t
CST
=
4(V
I
ST(charge)
CSTH
- V
+ I
CSTL
) x C
ST(discharge)
ST
In the next state, the motor will move, back EMF will be detected,
and the motor will accelerate synchronously. Once normal synchronous back-EMF commutation occurs, the startup oscillator is defeated
by pulses of pulldown current at CST at each commutation, which
prevents CST from reaching its upper threshold and thus completing a
cycle and commutating.
Adaptive Commutation Delay. The
adaptive commutation delay circuit uses the
back-EMF zero-crossing indicator signal
(FCOM) to determine an optimal commutation time for efficient synchronous operation.
This circuit commutates the outputs, delayed
from the last zero crossing, using two
external timing capacitors, CD1 and CD2,
t
FCOM
FCOM
V
CWD
t
CD1
V
CD1
t
CD2
V
CD2
Dwg. WP-016-2
Blanking and Watchdog Timing Functions. The blanking and
watchdog timing functions are derived from one timing capacitor, CWD.
wheret
BLANK
andtWD =
=
VTH x C
VTL x C
I
I
CWD
WD
CWD
WD
The CWD capacitor begins charging at each commutation, initiating
the BLANK signal. BLANK is an internal signal that inhibits the backEMF comparators during the commutation transients, preventing errors
due to inductive recovery and voltage settling transients.
The watchdog timing function allows time to detect correct motor
position by checking the back-EMF polarity after each commutation. If
the correct polarity is not observed between t
and tWD, then the
BLANK
watchdog timer commutates the outputs to the next state to synchronize the motor. This function is useful in preventing excessive reverse
rotation, and helps in resynchronizing (or starting) with a moving
spindle.
V
t
TL
BLANK
Dwg. WP-022
V
CWD
BLANK
to measure the time between crossings.
I
where tCD = t
FCOM
x
I
CD(charge)
CD(discharge)
CD1 charges up with a fixed current from
its 2.5 V reference while FCOM is high.
When FCOM goes low at the next zero
crossing, CD1 is discharged at approximately
twice the charging current. When CD
1
reaches the CD threshold, a commutation
occurs. CD2 operates similarly except on the
opposite phase of FCOM . Thus the commutations occur approximately halfway
between zero crossings. The actual delay is
slightly less than halfway to compensate for
electrical delays in the motor, which improves efficiency.
V
CWD
BLANK
NORMAL COMMUTATION
V
TL
t
BLANK
t
WD
WATCHDOG-TRIGGERED
COMMUTATION
V
TH
Dwg. WP-021
Page 8
8906
BIDIRECTIONAL
3-PHASE BRUSHLESS DC
MOTOR CONTROLLER/DRIVER
Current Control. The A8906CLB provides linear current control
via the FILTER terminal, an analog voltage input. Maximum current
limit is also provided, and is controlled in four steps via the serial port.
Output current is sensed via an internal sense resistor (R
). The
S
voltage across the sense resistor is compared to one-tenth the voltage
at the FILTER terminal less the filter threshold voltage, or to the maximum current limit reference, whichever is lower. This transconductance function is I
nominally 0.2 Ω and V
POWER UP
ERROR FAST
FROM FLL
SPEED-CONTROL
V
DD
ERROR SLOW
C
R
FROM FLL
F1
F1
FILTER
C
I
c
I
d
F2
CHARGE
PUMP
OUT
FILTERTH
YANK
S Q
R
INITIALIZATION
+
x1
–
1.85 V
ERROR FAST
FROM FLL
= (V
FILTER
-V
FILTERTH
is approximately 1.85 V.
V
DD
MUX
–
+
I
V max
FROM
SERIAL PORT
REGISTER
D3 AND D4
MAX CURRENT LIMIT
) / 10RS, where RS is
SEQUENTIAL
LOGIC
C
RES
BOOST
CHARGE
PUMP
+
÷10
–
LINEAR
CURRENT CONTROL
V
BB
R
S
Dwg. EP-046
OUT
Speed Control. The A8906CLB includes a frequency-locked loop
speed control system. This system monitors motor speed via internal
or external digital tachometer signals, generates a precision speed
reference, determines the digital speed error, and corrects the motor
current via an internal charge pump and external filtering components
on the FILTER terminal.
A once per revolution TACH signal can be generated by counting
cycles of FCOM (the number of motor poles must be selected via the
serial port). TACH is then a jitter-free signal that toggles once per
motor revolution. The rising edge of TACH triggers REF, a precision
speed reference derived by a programmable counter. The duration of
REF is set by programming the counter to count the desired number of
OSC cycles
SECTOR
FCOM
OSC
COUNT
(3 x MOTOR POLES)
D20 &
D21
4-BIT
FIXED
COUNTER
ONCE-AROUND
PULSE
SERIAL PORT
REGISTER
D5–D18
14-BIT
PROGRAMMABLE
COUNTER
MUX
D19
REF
÷2
REF
TACH
ERROR
SLOW
REF
TACH
ERROR
FAST
TACH
Dwg. EP-045
60 x f
desired
total count
=
desired motor speed (rpm)
OSC
where the total count (number of oscillator
cycles) is equal to the sum of the selected
(programmed low) count numbers corresponding to bits D5 through D18.
The speed error is detected as the
difference in falling edges of TACH and
REF. The speed error signals control the
error-correcting charge pump on the FILTER
terminal, which drive the external loop compensation components to correct the motor
current.
Sector Mode. An external tachometer
signal, such as sector or index pulses, may
be used to create the TACH signal, rather
than the internally derived once around. To
use this mode, the signal is input to the
SECTOR terminal, and the sector mode must
be enabled via the serial port. When Switching from the once-around mode to sector
mode, it is important to monitor the SYNC
signal on DATA OUT, and switch modes only
when SYNC is low. This ensures making the
transition without disturbing the speed control
loop. The speed reference counter should be
reprogrammed at the same time.
Speed Loop Initialization (YANK). To
improve the acquire time of the speed control
loop, there is an automatic feature controlled
by an internal YANK signal. The motor is
started at the maximized programmed current
by bypassing the FILTER terminal. The
FILTER terminal is clamped to an internal
reference (the filter threshold voltage),
initializing it near the closed loop operating
point. YANK is enabled at startup and stays
high until the desired speed is reached. Once
the first error-fast occurs, indicating the motor
crossed through the desired speed, YANK
goes low. This releases the clamp on the
FILTER terminal and current control is
returned to FILTER. This feature optimizes
speed acquire and minimizes settling. The
Current Control Block Diagram illustrates the
YANK signal and its effects.
Serial Port. The serial port functions to write various operational
and diagnostic modes to the A8906CLB. The serial port DATA IN is
enabled/disabled by the CHIP SELECT terminal. When CHIP SELECT is high the serial port is disabled and the chip is not affected by
changes in data at the DATA IN or CLOCK terminals.
To write data to the serial port, the CLOCK terminal should be low
prior to the CHIP SELECT terminal going low. Once CHIP SELECT
goes low, information on the DATA IN terminal is read into the shift
register on the positive-going transition of the CLOCK. There are 24
bits in the serial input port.
Data written into the serial port is latched and becomes active
upon the low-to-high transition of the CHIP SELECT terminal at the
end of the write cycle. D0 will be the last bit written to the serial port.
SERIAL PORT BIT DEFINITIONS
D0- Sleep/Run Mode; LOW = Sleep, HIGH = Run
This bit allows the device to be powered down when not in use.
D1- Step Mode; LOW = Normal Operation, HIGH = Step Only
When in the step-only mode the back-EMF commutation circuitry
is disabled and the power outputs are commutated by the startup oscillator. This mode is intended for device and system
testing.
D2- Direction; LOW = Forward, HIGH = Reverse.
D3 and D4 - These two bits set the output current limit:
D3D4Current Limit
001.2 A
011 A
10600 mA
11250 mA
D5 thru D18-This 14-bit word (active low) programs the REF time to set
desired motor speed.
D20D21Motor Poles
008
014
1016
1112
D22 and D23-Controls the multiplexer for
DATA OUT:
D22D23DATA OUT
00TACH (once around or sector)
01Thermal Shutdown
10SYNC
11FCOM
Reset. The RESET terminal when pulled
low clears all serial port bits, including the D0
latch, which puts the A8906CLB in the sleep
mode.
Page 10
8906
BIDIRECTIONAL
3-PHASE BRUSHLESS DC
MOTOR CONTROLLER/DRIVER
V – V
FAULT
C
B
BRAKE
R
B
FAULT D
Braking. A dynamic braking feature of the A8906CLB shorts the
three motor windings to ground. This is accomplished by turning the
three source drivers OFF and the three sink drivers ON. Activation of
the brake can be implemented through the BRAKE input. The supply
voltage for the brake circuitry is the C
voltage, allowing the brake
RES
function to remain active after power failure. Power-down braking with
delay can be implemented by using an external RC and other components to control the brake terminal, as shown. Brake delay can be set
using the equation below. Once the brake is activated, due to the
BRAKE
ACTIVATED
V
t
BRK
BRK
Dwg. OP-004
inherent capacitive input, the three sink
drivers will remain active until the device is
reset.
V
t
= RBCB 1 – l
BRK
n
BRK
V
FAULT - VD
Centertap. The A8906CLB internally
simulates the centertap voltage of the motor.
To obtain reliable start-up performance from
motor to motor, the motor centertap should be
connected to this terminal.
External Component Selection. Applications information regarding the selection of
external component values is available from
the factory for external component selection,
frequency-locked loop speed control, and
commutation delay capacitor selection.
NOTES: 1. Webbed lead frame. Leads 6, 7, 18, and 19 are internally one piece.
1.27
BSC
NOTE 1
NOTE 3
2. Lead spacing tolerance is non-cumulative.
3. Exact body and lead configuration at vendor’s option within limits shown.
0° TO 8
Dwg. MA-008-25A mm
Page 12
8906
BIDIRECTIONAL
3-PHASE BRUSHLESS DC
MOTOR CONTROLLER/DRIVER
Allegro MicroSystems, Inc. reserves the right to make, from time to
time, such departures from the detail specifications as may be required
to permit improvements in the design of its products.
The information included herein is believed to be accurate and
reliable. However, Allegro MicroSystems, Inc. assumes no responsibility for its use; nor for any infringements of patents or other rights of third
parties which may result from its use.