Dryer and method of controlling the same

A dryer comprising:

• a drum configured to accommodate laundry;
• a motor connected to the drum by a drive belt and configured to rotate the drum;
• a blow fan configured to circulate air through the drum in response to driving of the motor;
• a driving controller configured to apply operation power to the motor to operate and stop the motor, the driving controller being configured to control a rotation speed of the motor;
• a current sensing unit configured to measure a current value of the motor;
• and
• a controller that is configured to provide a control command to the driving controller, that is configured to control the motor to rotate the drum based on the control command, and that is configured to sense an amount of laundry based on the current value sensed by the current sensing unit during a rotation of the drum,
• wherein the controller is further configured to, in sensing the amount of laundry, control the driving controller to control the drum based on (i) an acceleration stage in which a rotation speed of the drum increases and (ii) a maintaining stage in which the rotation speed of the drum is maintained, and
• wherein the controller is further configured to, in the acceleration stage, increase the rotation speed of the drum at an acceleration gradient set in a range from 500 rpm/s to 1500 rpm/s.