Texas Instruments (TI) recently launched DesignDRIVE, a single hardware and software platform that makes it easier for engineers to develop and evaluate solutions for many industrial drive and servo topologies. The DesignDRIVE kit and example software offer an easy path to begin exploring a wide variety of motor types, sensing technologies, encoder standards and communications networks, as well as easy expansion to develop with real-time Ethernet communications and functional safety topologies.
Based on the real-time control architecture of TI’s C2000™ microcontrollers (MCUs), DesignDRIVE is ideal for the development of industrial inverter and servo drives used in robotics, computer numerical control machinery (CNC), elevators, materials conveyance and other industrial manufacturing applications. 
TI’s new DesignDRIVE Kit offers an integrated design with full power stage to drive a three-phase motor, easing evaluation of a diverse range of feedback sensing and control topologies. The kit includes a 180-pin HSEC control CARD based on TI’s C2000 Delfino™ TMS320F28377D MCU, which integrates dual C28x real-time processing cores and dual CLA real-time co-processors, providing 800 MIPS of floating-point performance with integrated trigonometric and FFT acceleration.
The sophisticated sensing peripherals on the MCU, including eight sigma-delta filters, four high-performance 16-bit ADCs and eight windowed comparators, enable the DesignDRIVE Kit to support shunt, fluxgate/HALL, and delta-sigma current sensing simultaneously. For position feedback, the kit leverages integrated MCU support for interfacing to resolvers and incremental encoders. In addition, designers can also explore configuration options that allow the MCU to be placed on either side of the high-voltage isolation barrier. The DesignDRIVE Kit plugs into 110V/220V AC mains, delivers up to 8 A and is rated to drive motors up to one horsepower.
DesignDRIVE Software is supported by the C2000 controlSUITE™ package and includes specific examples of vector control of motors, incorporating current, speed and position loops. The Kit also comes with TI’s Code Composer Studio™ integrated development environment (IDE), providing code generation and debugging capabilities. Altair’s VisSim model-based simulation software tool is also supported for TI’s C2000 F28377D MCU.
The DesignDRIVE Kit (TMDXIDDK377D) includes the hardware, software and a high-voltage PMSM motor with QEP encoder for MSRP $1,199 USD. Alternatively, users can adapt their own motors and purchase the kit without a motor (TMDXIDDK377D) for MSRP $999. Both kits are available via the TI Store and authorized distributors. To further ease development, customers can download controlSUITE software technology from ti.com.
For more information, visit www.ti.com.
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