TI intros breakthrough InstaSPIN-FOC motor control solution

USA: Motor control system designers can now concentrate on differentiating designs rather than spending weeks and months tuning their motor control systems.

With the new InstaSPIN-FOC (field-oriented-control) solution from Texas Instruments (TI), designers can now identify, tune and fully control (through variable speeds and loads) any type of three-phase, synchronous or asynchronous motor in five minutes or less.

This new technology removes the need for a mechanical motor rotor sensor to reduce system costs and improves operation using TI’s new software encoder (sensorless observer) algorithm, FAST (flux, angle, speed and torque), embedded in the read-only-memory (ROM) on TI’s 32-bit C2000 Piccolo microcontrollers.

InstaSPIN-FOC joins the previously introduced InstaSPIN-BLDC technology and will be followed with future InstaSPIN variations to make motor control development easier and more efficient.

Many industries have delayed the use and adoption of sensorless FOC motor techniques because of the lack of motor control system knowledge, despite the many system benefits these techniques provide. InstaSPIN-FOC eases development and reduces system cost and complexity for designers — even those with limited motor control experience — and enables premium solutions that improve motor efficiency, performance and reliability in all variable speed and load motor applications.

In traditional FOC motor designs, the use of a rotor sensor can impact a system with increased costs (sensor, power supply, special cabling and connectors, installation and maintenance) and potentially lower reliability (performance degradation in harsh conditions, electrical noise, temperature and humidity).

In addition, using a sensor in many applications, such as an enclosed compressor or a large traction machine, is also completely impractical.