Intermediate
20 min

Upgrade your projects with DRV8317H and dsPIC33EP512MU810

Improve your applications with our smart, reliable brushless motor driver!

Brushless 26 Click with Clicker 2 for dsPIC33

Published Nov 15, 2023

Click board™

Brushless 26 Click

Dev. board

Clicker 2 for dsPIC33

Compiler

NECTO Studio

MCU

dsPIC33EP512MU810

Whether you're building drones or robotics, our brushless motor drivers offer the perfect blend of power and agility, ensuring your devices perform at their peak.

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Hardware Overview

How does it work?

Brushless 26 Click is based on the DRV8317H, a three-phase PWM motor driver from Texas Instruments. Its integrated protection features include VM undervoltage lockout, VM overvoltage protection, charge pump undervoltage, overcurrent protection, overtemperature warning and shutdown, and fault condition indication pin. The motor driver provides two configurable schemes, a 6x or a 3x PWM, which can be used to implement sensor or sensor-less field-oriented control (FOC), sinusoidal control, or trapezoidal control using an external microcontroller. It is capable of driving a PWM frequency of up to 200KHz. To control all high and low side driver control inputs of the DRV8317H, Brushless 26 Click features the PCA9538A, a low-voltage 8-bit I2C I/O port with interrupt and reset from NXP. Besides driver control

inputs, this I/O port also controls the Sleep mode of the motor driver. The BLDC motor can be connected over the screw terminal, labeled U, V, and W. Additional screw terminal is just aside for connecting an external power supply in a range of 4.5V up to 20V. The DRV8317H is a hardware variant of this motor driver, so the Brushless 26 Click is equipped with jumper selections of the gain, slew, and mode; by default, all three are set to 0. This way, you can set the current sense amplifier gain (GA) and output slew rate (SW) through pin voltage levels. The mode jumper (MD) allows you to use a 6x or 3x PWM mode. The 6x PWM is set by default. Additionally, three current sense amplifiers are available over the 4-pin header labeled A1, A2, and A3. Brushless 26 Click uses a standard 2-wire I2C interface of the PCA9538A to

communicate with the host MCU, supporting clock frequencies up to 400kHz. The I2C address of the PCA9538A can be set over the ADDR SEL jumpers, where 0 is selected by default. If a fault condition occurs, the DRV8317H will pull the FLT pin to a low logic state. The RST pin resets the PCA9538A I/O port. 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. Also, this 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.

Brushless 26 Click hardware overview image

Features overview

Development board

Clicker 2 for dsPIC33 is a compact starter development board that brings the flexibility of add-on Click boards™ to your favorite microcontroller, making it a perfect starter kit for implementing your ideas. It comes with an onboard 16-bit dsPIC33E family microcontroller, the dsPIC33EP512MU810 from Microchip, two mikroBUS™ sockets for Click board™ connectivity, a USB connector, LED indicators, buttons, a mikroProg programmer connector, and two 26-pin headers for interfacing with external electronics. Its compact design with clear and easily recognizable silkscreen markings allows you to build gadgets with unique

functionalities and features quickly. Each part of the Clicker 2 for dsPIC33 development kit contains the components necessary for the most efficient operation of the same board. In addition to the possibility of choosing the Clicker 2 for dsPIC33 programming method, using a USB HID mikroBootloader or an external mikroProg connector for dsPIC33 programmer, the Clicker 2 board also includes a clean and regulated power supply module for the development kit. It provides two ways of board-powering; through the USB Micro-B cable, where onboard voltage regulators provide the appropriate voltage levels to each

component on the board, or using a Li-Polymer battery via an onboard battery connector. All communication methods that mikroBUS™ itself supports are on this board, including the well-established mikroBUS™ socket, reset button, and several user-configurable buttons and LED indicators. Clicker 2 for dsPIC33 is an integral part of the Mikroe ecosystem, allowing you to create a new application in minutes. Natively supported by Mikroe software tools, it covers many aspects of prototyping thanks to a considerable number of different Click boards™ (over a thousand boards), the number of which is growing every day.

Clicker 2 for dsPIC33 dimensions image

Microcontroller Overview

MCU Card / MCU

default

Architecture

dsPIC

MCU Memory (KB)

512

Silicon Vendor

Microchip

Pin count

100

RAM (Bytes)

53248

You complete me!

Accessories

Brushless DC (BLDC) Motor with a Hall sensor represents a high-performance motor from the 42BLF motor series. This motor, wired in a star configuration, boasts a Hall Effect angle of 120°, ensuring precise and reliable performance. With a compact motor length of 47mm and a lightweight design tipping the scales at just 0.29kg, this BLDC motor is engineered to meet your needs. Operating flawlessly at a voltage rating of 24VDC and a speed range of 4000 ± 10% RPM, this motor offers consistent and dependable power. It excels in a normal operational temperature range from -20 to +50°C, maintaining efficiency with a rated current of 1.9A. Also, this product seamlessly integrates with all Brushless Click boards™ and those that require BLDC motors with Hall sensors.

Brushless 26 Click accessories image

Used MCU Pins

mikroBUS™ mapper

NC
NC
AN
Reset
RB4
RST
NC
NC
CS
NC
NC
SCK
NC
NC
MISO
NC
NC
MOSI
Power Supply
3.3V
3.3V
Ground
GND
GND
NC
NC
PWM
Fault Interrupt
RC1
INT
NC
NC
TX
NC
NC
RX
I2C Clock
RD10
SCL
I2C Data
RD9
SDA
Power Supply
5V
5V
Ground
GND
GND
1

Take a closer look

Click board™ Schematic

Brushless 26 Click Schematic schematic

Step by step

Project assembly

Clicker 2 for PIC32MZ front image hardware assembly

Start by selecting your development board and Click board™. Begin with the Clicker 2 for dsPIC33 as your development board.

Clicker 2 for PIC32MZ front image hardware assembly
GNSS2 Click front image hardware assembly
Prog-cut hardware assembly
GNSS2 Click complete accessories setup image hardware assembly
Board mapper by product7 hardware assembly
Necto image step 2 hardware assembly
Necto image step 3 hardware assembly
Necto image step 4 hardware assembly
Necto image step 5 hardware assembly
Necto image step 6 hardware assembly
Flip&Click PIC32MZ MCU step hardware assembly
Necto No Display image step 8 hardware assembly
Necto image step 9 hardware assembly
Necto image step 10 hardware assembly
Debug Image Necto Step hardware assembly

Track your results in real time

Application Output

1. Application Output - In Debug mode, the 'Application Output' window enables real-time data monitoring, offering direct insight into execution results. Ensure proper data display by configuring the environment correctly using the provided tutorial.

2. UART Terminal - Use the UART Terminal to monitor data transmission via a USB to UART converter, allowing direct communication between the Click board™ and your development system. Configure the baud rate and other serial settings according to your project's requirements to ensure proper functionality. For step-by-step setup instructions, refer to the provided tutorial.

3. Plot Output - The Plot feature offers a powerful way to visualize real-time sensor data, enabling trend analysis, debugging, and comparison of multiple data points. To set it up correctly, follow the provided tutorial, which includes a step-by-step example of using the Plot feature to display Click board™ readings. To use the Plot feature in your code, use the function: plot(*insert_graph_name*, variable_name);. This is a general format, and it is up to the user to replace 'insert_graph_name' with the actual graph name and 'variable_name' with the parameter to be displayed.

Software Support

Library Description

This library contains API for Brushless 26 Click driver.

Key functions:

  • brushless26_reset_port_exp - Brushless 26 reset port expander function.

  • brushless26_set_pins - Brushless 26 set pins function.

  • brushless26_drive_motor - Brushless 26 drive motor function.

Open Source

Code example

The complete application code and a ready-to-use project are available through the NECTO Studio Package Manager for direct installation in the NECTO Studio. The application code can also be found on the MIKROE GitHub account.

/*!
 * @file main.c
 * @brief Brushless 26 Click example
 *
 * # Description
 * This example demonstrates the use of the Brushless 26 Click board by driving the 
 * motor in both directions at different speeds.
 *
 * The demo application is composed of two sections :
 *
 * ## Application Init
 * Initializes the driver and performs the Click default configuration.
 *
 * ## Application Task
 * Drives the motor in both directions and changes the motor speed approximately every 2 seconds.
 * The driving direction and speed will be displayed on the USB UART.
 *
 * @author Stefan Ilic
 *
 */

#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "brushless26.h"

static brushless26_t brushless26;
static log_t logger;

void application_init ( void ) 
{
    log_cfg_t log_cfg;  /**< Logger config object. */
    brushless26_cfg_t brushless26_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.
    brushless26_cfg_setup( &brushless26_cfg );
    BRUSHLESS26_MAP_MIKROBUS( brushless26_cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
    if ( I2C_MASTER_ERROR == brushless26_init( &brushless26, &brushless26_cfg ) ) 
    {
        log_error( &logger, " Communication init." );
        for ( ; ; );
    }
    
    if ( BRUSHLESS26_ERROR == brushless26_default_cfg ( &brushless26 ) )
    {
        log_error( &logger, " Default configuration." );
        for ( ; ; );
    }
    
    log_info( &logger, " Application Task");
}

void application_task ( void ) 
{
    log_printf ( &logger, "\r\n Driving motor clockwise \r\n" );
    for ( uint8_t speed = BRUSHLESS26_SPEED_MIN; speed <= BRUSHLESS26_SPEED_MAX; speed += 20 )
    {
        log_printf ( &logger, " Speed gain: %u\r\n", ( uint16_t ) speed );
        if ( BRUSHLESS26_OK != brushless26_drive_motor ( &brushless26, BRUSHLESS26_DIR_CW, speed, 2000 ) )
        {
            log_error ( &logger, " Drive motor " );
        }
    }
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
    
    log_printf ( &logger, "\r\n Driving motor counter-clockwise \r\n" );
    for ( uint8_t speed = BRUSHLESS26_SPEED_MIN; speed <= BRUSHLESS26_SPEED_MAX; speed += 20 )
    {
        log_printf ( &logger, " Speed gain: %u\r\n", ( uint16_t ) speed );
        if ( BRUSHLESS26_OK != brushless26_drive_motor ( &brushless26, BRUSHLESS26_DIR_CCW, speed, 2000 ) )
        {
            log_error ( &logger, " Drive motor " );
        }
    }
    Delay_ms ( 1000 );
}

int main ( void ) 
{
    /* Do not remove this line or clock might not be set correctly. */
    #ifdef PREINIT_SUPPORTED
    preinit();
    #endif
    
    application_init( );
    
    for ( ; ; ) 
    {
        application_task( );
    }

    return 0;
}

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

Additional Support

Resources

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