Programmable 30A brushless DC motor controller serves robotics and industrial automation apps

Targeting designers of Industrial Automation systems, mobile robots, mechatronics, or other medium-power motor control application, the SBL1360 intelligent controller from Roboteq is capable of directly driving a hall-sensor equipped brushless DC motor up to 30Amps at up to 60V. The controller accepts commands from either analog pedal/joystick, standard R/C radio, USB, CAN or RS232 interface. Using the serial port, the controller can be used to design fully or semi-autonomous robots by connecting it to single board computers, wireless modems or WiFi adapters. Using CAN bus, up to 127 controllers can be networked on a single twisted pair network. The SBL1360 incorporates a Basic Language Interpreter capable of executing over 50,000 Basic instructions per second. This feature can be used to write powerful scripts for adding custom functions, or for developing automated systems without the need for an external PLC or microcomputer. The SBL1360 uses the motor's hall sensors to measure speed and travelled distance with high accuracy. The controller can operate the motors in open loop or in closed loop speed or position mode with a 1 kHz update rate. The SBL1360 features intelligent current sensing that will automatically limit the power output to 30A in all load conditions. The controller also includes protection against overheat, stall, and short circuits. The controller includes up to 4 analog, 6 digital and 5 pulse inputs. Two 1.5A digital outputs are provided for activating brakes or other accessories. The controller's operation can be optimized using nearly 80 configurable parameters, such as programmable acceleration or deceleration, amps limits, operating voltage range, use of I/O, and more. A free PC utility is available for configuring, tuning and exercising the motor. The controller can be reprogrammed in the field with the latest features by downloading new operating firmware from Roboteq's web site. The SBL1360 is built into a very compact 70mm x 70mm, board-level open frame design. The board comes equipped with an aluminum bottom plate that ensures sufficient heat dissipation for operation without a fan in most applications. Additional cooling can be achieved by mounting the board and its bottom plate directly against a metallic chassis. The SBL1360 is available now to customers worldwide at $225 in single quantities, complete with cable and PC-based configuration software. Roboteq