Phobia Motor Controller

PMC is an open project that aims to build the quality permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM) controller for use in a variety of scopes like RC or electric transport.

Brief description

PMC is ready to use in most intended applications. You can flash any supported third-party hardware to work with PMC or use our original hardware.

Read further in doc/GettingStarted.

There are a few videos about PMC on youtube.

Software features

• Sensorless vector control of PMSM by measurement of currents and voltages.

• Robust ORTEGA observer with gain scheduling against speed.

• Accurate KALMAN observer having convergence at HF injection.

• Flux weakening and MTPA control (EXPERIMENTAL).

• Three and two phase machine support.

• Hardware abstraction layer (HAL) over STM32F4 and STM32F7.

• Various controller hardware are supported (including VESC clones).

• Regular Command Line Interface (CLI) with autocompletion and history.

• Graphical front-end software based on Nuklear and SDL2.

• Non time-critical tasks are managed by FreeRTOS.

• USB protocol stack from CherryUSB.

• Least Squares estimate library LSE.

• Phase current sampling schemes includes two or three sensors configuration with inline or low-side placement.

• Self-adjustment of all onboard measurements (current and voltage) along symmetrical channels.

• Advanced SVPWM scheme provides:

  • Reduced switching losses and fully utilised DC link voltage.
  • Reduced voltage distortion for precise control.
  • Voltage hopping to get accurate ADC measurements with inline current sensors.
  • Prevent bootstrap circuit undervoltage condition.

• Terminal voltage measurements (TVM):

  • Compensation of the voltage distortion caused by dead-time insertion.
  • Back EMF voltage tracking to catch an already running machine.
  • Self-test of the power stages integrity and machine wiring.
  • Self-test of bootstrap retention time.

• Automated machine parameters identification (with no external tools):

  • Stator DC resistance (Rs).
  • Stator AC impedance in DQ frame (L1, L2, R).
  • Rotor flux linkage constant (lambda).
  • Mechanical moment of inertia (Ja).

• Automated configuration of external measurements:

  • Discrete Hall sensors installation angles recognition.
  • EABI resolution and direction adjustment.

• Operation at low or zero speed:

  • Forced control that applies a current vector without feedback to force rotor hold or spinup.
  • Freewheeling.
  • High Frequency Injection (HFI) based on magnetic saliency.
  • Discrete Hall sensors.
  • AB quadrature incremental encoder (EABI).
  • Absolute encoder on SPI interface (AS5047).
  • Analog Hall sensors and resolver decoder (TODO).

• Nested control loops:

  • Detached voltage monitoring.
  • Current control PI regulator with feedforward compensation.
  • Speed control PID regulator with load torque compensation.
  • Location control with constant acceleration regulator.

• Adjustable constraints:

  • Phase current (forward and reverse, on HFI current, weakening D current).
  • Hardware overtemperature protection (decrease phase current or halt).
  • Machine voltage applied from VSI.
  • DC link current consumption and regeneration.
  • DC link overvoltage and undervoltage.
  • Maximal speed (forward and reverse) and acceleration.
  • Absolute location maximal and minimal limit.

• Input control interfaces:

  • Analog input knob with brake signal.
  • RC servo pulse width modulation.
  • CAN bus flexible configurable data transfers.
  • STEP/DIR (or CW/CCW) interface (EXPERIMENTAL).
  • Manual control through CLI or graphical front-end.
  • Custom embedded application can implement any control strategy.

• Advanced CAN networking:

  • Up to 30 nodes in peer network.
  • Network survey on request (no heartbeat messages).
  • Automated node address assignment.
  • IO forwarding to log in to the remote node CLI.
  • Flexible configurable data transfers.

• Available information:

  • Machine state (electrical position, speed, load torque, etc.)
  • DC link voltage and current consumption.
  • Information from temperature sensors.
  • Total distance traveled.
  • Battery energy (Wh) and charge (Ah) consumed.
  • Fuel gauge percentage.

Hardware specification (REV5A, REV5B)

• Dimension: 82mm x 55mm x 35mm.

• Weight: 40g (PCB) or about 400g (with wires and heatsink).

• Wires: 10 AWG.

• Connector: XT90-S and bullet 5.5mm.

• Battery voltage from 5v to 50v.

• Phase current up to 120A (with IPT007N06N, 60v, 0.75 mOhm).

• Light capacitor bank (4 x 4.7uF + 2 x 330uF).

• PWM frequency from 20 to 60 kHz.

• STM32F405RG microcontroller (Cortex-M4F at 168 MHz).

• Onboard sensors:

  • Two current shunts (0.5 mOhm) with amplifiers (AD8418) give a measuring range of 165A.
  • Battery voltage from 0 to 60v.
  • Three terminal voltages from 0 to 60v.
  • Temperature of PCB with NTC resistor.

• Machine interfaces:

  • Discrete Hall sensors or EABI encoder (5v pull-up).
  • External NTC resistor (e.g. machine temperature sensing).

• Control interfaces:

  • CAN transceiver with optional termination resistor on PCB (5v).
  • USART to bootload and configure (3.3v).
  • RC servo PWM or STEP/DIR (5v pull-up).
  • Two analog input channels (from 0 to 6v).

• Auxiliary interfaces:

  • SPI port with alternative functions: ADC, DAC, GPIO (3.3v).
  • BOOT pin combined with SWDIO to use embedded bootloader.
  • External FAN control (5v, ~0.5A).

• Power conversion:

  • Battery voltage to 5v buck (~1A).
  • 5v to 12v boost (~100 mA).
  • 5v to 3.3v linear (~400 mA).

TODO

• Make a detailed documentation.
• Improve GUI front-end software.
• Add pulse output signal.
• Make a drawing of the heatsink case for REV5A.
• Design the new hardware for 120v battery voltage.