Intermediate
30 min

Conquer any task with A3910 and STM32F412RE

Uncompromising power, unmatched reliability

DC Motor 21 Click with Fusion for ARM v8

Published Jul 25, 2023

Click board™

DC Motor 21 Click

Dev Board

Fusion for ARM v8

Compiler

NECTO Studio

MCU

STM32F412RE

Experience the power of integrated motor control. Upgrade your future projects and unlock a new level of excellence!

A

A

Hardware Overview

How does it work?

DC Motor 21 Click is based on the A3910, a dual half-bridge motor driver designed for low voltage power applications from Allegro Microsystems. This Click board™ is controlled via several GPIO pins of the mikroBUS™ socket and has a wide operating voltage range with an output current capacity of 500mA maximum. The integrated MOSFETs, which configure a half-bridge circuit inside the A3910, provide the possibility to drive dual DC motors and allow them to be used in the full-bridge configuration to drive a single bidirectional DC motor. Thanks to its plane features and benefits, this Click board™ is

targeted at the consumer market with end applications to low voltage equipment. Using an integrated MOS switch improves braking action for the motor, compared to implementation with a simple clamp diode. Besides, it also features built-in protection, such as crossover current and thermal shutdown protection, alongside “Sleep” Standby mode with zero drain-current. As mentioned in the product description, DC Motor 21 Click communicates with MCU using several GPIO pins. To turn ON the internal MOSFETs of the A3910, they need to be switched by the logic level, which is input to the control input pins: HN1, LN1,

HN2, and LN2 pins routed to the AN, CS, PWM, and INT pins of the mikroBUS™ socket. The Drive/Break/Coast/Sleep motor functions can be selected according to the state of its input control signals. This Click board™ can operate with either 3.3V or 5V logic voltage levels selected via the VCC SEL jumper. This way, both 3.3V and 5V capable MCUs can use the communication lines properly. The Click board™ comes equipped with a library containing easy-to-use functions and an example code that can be used, as a reference, for further development.

DC Motor 21 Click hardware overview image

Features overview

Development board

Fusion for ARM v8 is a development board specially designed for the needs of rapid development of embedded applications. It supports a wide range of microcontrollers, such as different ARM® Cortex®-M based MCUs regardless of their number of pins, and a broad set of unique functions, such as the first-ever embedded debugger/programmer over WiFi. The development board is well organized and designed so that the end-user has all the necessary elements, such as switches, buttons, indicators, connectors, and others, in one place. Thanks to innovative manufacturing technology, Fusion for ARM v8 provides a fluid and immersive working experience, allowing access anywhere and under any

circumstances at any time. Each part of the Fusion for ARM v8 development board contains the components necessary for the most efficient operation of the same board. An advanced integrated CODEGRIP programmer/debugger module offers many valuable programming/debugging options, including support for JTAG, SWD, and SWO Trace (Single Wire Output)), and seamless integration with the Mikroe software environment. Besides, it also includes a clean and regulated power supply module for the development board. It can use a wide range of external power sources, including a battery, an external 12V power supply, and a power source via the USB Type-C (USB-C) connector.

Communication options such as USB-UART, USB HOST/DEVICE, CAN (on the MCU card, if supported), and Ethernet is also included. In addition, it also has the well-established mikroBUS™ standard, a standardized socket for the MCU card (SiBRAIN standard), and two display options for the TFT board line of products and character-based LCD. Fusion for ARM v8 is an integral part of the Mikroe ecosystem for rapid development. Natively supported by Mikroe software tools, it covers many aspects of prototyping and development thanks to a considerable number of different Click boards™ (over a thousand boards), the number of which is growing every day.

Fusion for ARM v8 horizontal image

Microcontroller Overview

MCU Card / MCU

default

Type

8th Generation

Architecture

ARM Cortex-M4

MCU Memory (KB)

512

Silicon Vendor

STMicroelectronics

Pin count

64

RAM (Bytes)

262144

You complete me!

Accessories

DC Gear Motor - 430RPM (3-6V) represents an all-in-one combination of a motor and gearbox, where the addition of gear leads to a reduction of motor speed while increasing the torque output. This gear motor has a spur gearbox, making it a highly reliable solution for applications with lower torque and speed requirements. The most critical parameters for gear motors are speed, torque, and efficiency, which are, in this case, 520RPM with no load and 430RPM at maximum efficiency, alongside a current of 60mA and a torque of 50g.cm. Rated for a 3-6V operational voltage range and clockwise/counterclockwise rotation direction, this motor represents an excellent solution for many functions initially performed by brushed DC motors in robotics, medical equipment, electric door locks, and much more.

DC Motor 21 Click accessories image

Used MCU Pins

mikroBUS™ mapper

Motor 1 Control Input
PB0
AN
NC
NC
RST
Motor 1 Control Input
PA4
CS
NC
NC
SCK
NC
NC
MISO
NC
NC
MOSI
Power Supply
3.3V
3.3V
Ground
GND
GND
Motor 2 Control Input
PA1
PWM
Motor 2 Control Input
PB13
INT
NC
NC
TX
NC
NC
RX
NC
NC
SCL
NC
NC
SDA
Power Supply
5V
5V
Ground
GND
GND
1

Take a closer look

Schematic

DC Motor 21 Click Schematic schematic

Step by step

Project assembly

Fusion for PIC v8 front image hardware assembly

Start by selecting your development board and Click board™. Begin with the Fusion for ARM v8 as your development board.

Fusion for PIC v8 front image hardware assembly
GNSS2 Click front image hardware assembly
SiBRAIN for PIC32MZ1024EFK144 front image hardware assembly
GNSS2 Click complete accessories setup image hardware assembly
v8 SiBRAIN Access MB 1 - upright/background hardware assembly
Necto image step 2 hardware assembly
Necto image step 3 hardware assembly
Necto image step 4 hardware assembly
NECTO Compiler Selection Step Image hardware assembly
NECTO Output Selection Step Image hardware assembly
Necto image step 6 hardware assembly
Necto image step 7 hardware assembly
Necto image step 8 hardware assembly
Necto image step 9 hardware assembly
Necto image step 10 hardware assembly
Necto PreFlash Image hardware assembly

Track your results in real time

Application Output via UART Mode

1. Once the code example is loaded, pressing the "FLASH" button initiates the build process, and programs it on the created setup.

2. After the programming is completed, click on the Tools icon in the upper-right panel, and select the UART Terminal.

3. After opening the UART Terminal tab, first check the baud rate setting in the Options menu (default is 115200). If this parameter is correct, activate the terminal by clicking the "CONNECT" button.

4. Now terminal status changes from Disconnected to Connected in green, and the data is displayed in the Received data field.

UART_Application_Output

Software Support

Library Description

This library contains API for DC Motor 21 Click driver.

Key functions:

  • dcmotor21_set_out_1 - This function sets the state of output 1

  • dcmotor21_set_out_2 - This function sets the state of output 2

Open Source

Code example

This example can be found in NECTO Studio. Feel free to download the code, or you can copy the code below.

/*!
 * @file main.c
 * @brief DC Motor 21 Click Example.
 *
 * # Description
 * This example demonstrates the use of DC Motor 21 click board.
 *
 * The demo application is composed of two sections :
 *
 * ## Application Init
 * Initializes the driver and performs the click default configuration.
 *
 * ## Application Task
 * In the span of six seconds, it drives the motor in one direction, then switches the direction, 
 * and after that disconnects the motor. Each step will be logged on the USB UART where
 * you can track the program flow.
 * 
 * @note
 * For this example, a DC motor should be connected to OUT1 and OUT2 lines.
 *
 * @author Stefan Filipovic
 *
 */

#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "dcmotor21.h"

static dcmotor21_t dcmotor21;   /**< DC Motor 21 Click driver object. */
static log_t logger;    /**< Logger object. */

void application_init ( void ) 
{
    log_cfg_t log_cfg;  /**< Logger config object. */
    dcmotor21_cfg_t dcmotor21_cfg;  /**< Click config object. */

    /** 
     * Logger initialization.
     * Default baud rate: 115200
     * Default log level: LOG_LEVEL_DEBUG
     * @note If USB_UART_RX and USB_UART_TX 
     * are defined as HAL_PIN_NC, you will 
     * need to define them manually for log to work. 
     * See @b LOG_MAP_USB_UART macro definition for detailed explanation.
     */
    LOG_MAP_USB_UART( log_cfg );
    log_init( &logger, &log_cfg );
    log_info( &logger, " Application Init " );

    // Click initialization.
    dcmotor21_cfg_setup( &dcmotor21_cfg );
    DCMOTOR21_MAP_MIKROBUS( dcmotor21_cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
    if ( DIGITAL_OUT_UNSUPPORTED_PIN == dcmotor21_init( &dcmotor21, &dcmotor21_cfg ) ) 
    {
        log_error( &logger, " Communication init." );
        for ( ; ; );
    }
    
    dcmotor21_default_cfg ( &dcmotor21 );
    
    log_info( &logger, " Application Task " );
}

void application_task ( void ) 
{
    dcmotor21_set_out_1 ( &dcmotor21, DCMOTOR21_OUT_LOW );
    dcmotor21_set_out_2 ( &dcmotor21, DCMOTOR21_OUT_HIGH );
    log_printf( &logger, " \r\n Driving the motor...\r\n" );
    Delay_ms( 2000 );
    dcmotor21_set_out_1 ( &dcmotor21, DCMOTOR21_OUT_HIGH );
    dcmotor21_set_out_2 ( &dcmotor21, DCMOTOR21_OUT_LOW );
    log_printf( &logger, " Switch direction.\r\n" );
    Delay_ms( 2000 );
    dcmotor21_set_out_1 ( &dcmotor21, DCMOTOR21_OUT_HIGH_Z );
    dcmotor21_set_out_2 ( &dcmotor21, DCMOTOR21_OUT_HIGH_Z );
    log_printf( &logger, " The motor is disconnected.\r\n" );
    Delay_ms( 2000 );
}

void main ( void ) 
{
    application_init( );

    for ( ; ; ) 
    {
        application_task( );
    }
}

// ------------------------------------------------------------------------ END

Additional Support

Resources

Love this project?

'Buy This Kit' button takes you directly to the shopping cart where you can easily add or remove products.