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US 5,530,332 AGranted
Stepper motor drive circuit
AssigneeMars, Incorporated
InventorCharles E. Rees
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A drive circuit for a stepper motor intended to drive a load, which circuit is adapted to operate in a chopper drive mode during a motor acceleration phase, and an L/R drive mode during a subsequent cruise phase.
Claims29
A drive circuit for applying drive control voltages to windings of a stepper motor intended to drive a load, comprising:
- a control circuit means for causing the drive circuit to operate in a chopper drive mode during a motor acceleration phase comprising a plurality of steps of progressively increasing frequency for applying DC pulses directly to the stepper motor windings, and for causing the drive circuit to operate in an L/R (non-chopped) drive mode during a subsequent motor cruise phase comprising a plurality of further steps, wherein the drive circuit applies an intermittent higher voltage pulse to the motor windings during each of said plurality of steps of the motor acceleration phase, and the drive circuit applies a continuous lower voltage pulse to the motor windings during each of said plurality of steps of the motor cruise phase.
A method for using a drive circuit to operate a stepper motor intended to drive a load, comprising:
- driving the stepper motor in a chopper drive mode during a motor acceleration phase comprising a plurality of steps of progressively increasing frequency for applying DC pulses directly to the stepper motor windings;
- and
- driving the stepper motor in an L/R (non-chopped) drive mode during a motor cruise phase comprising a plurality of further steps, wherein windings of the stepper motor are provided with an intermittent higher voltage pulse during each of said plurality of steps of the acceleration phase and a continuous lower voltage pulse during each of said plurality of steps of the cruise phase.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.