Drive circuit of a three phase BLDC motor

• US 6,433,497 B1
• Filed: 05/04/2000
• Issued: 08/13/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Semiconductor Components Industries LLC (ON Semiconductor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fairchild Korea Semiconductor Limited (ON Semiconductor Corporation)
• Inventors: Lee, Han-Seung
• Primary Examiner(s): Nappi, Robert E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SMITH, TYRONE W
• Application Number:
  US09/565,298
• Time in Patent Office: 831 Days
• Field of Search: 318/138, 318/139, 318/254, 318/245, 318/434, 318/439, 318/799, 318/808, 318/812, 318/817, 318/815
• US Class Current: 318/400.04
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/182 using back-emf in windings
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/34 Modelling or simulation for control purposes

Abstract

Disclosed is a three phase BLDC motor driving circuit which makes a BEMF voltage generated in a motor lower than a voltage source and makes a difference between the BEMF voltage and the voltage source greater than a saturation voltage of a transistor. An emitter is coupled to the voltage source and a collector is coupled to a three phase coil so that the voltage between the emitter and collector of the transistor supplying a current to the three phase coil attenuates to a first level so as not to saturate the transistor. The present invention comprises a voltage reducing unit, coupled to the three phase coils, rectifying a back electromotive force (BEMF) voltage generated in the three phase coils and generating a first voltage, the first voltage being reduced to a first level; a reference voltage unit, positioned between the voltage source and the ground, reducing the voltage source to a second level that is greater than the first level; and a differential amplifier having a first input terminal coupled to an output terminal of the voltage reducing unit, having a second input terminal coupled to an output terminal of the reference voltage unit, and having a third input terminal coupled to the voltage source, and amplifying an output of a corresponding output terminal as a comparison difference between a voltage of the first input terminal and a voltage of the second input terminal, and controlling to make the voltages of the first and second input terminals identical.

Claims

1. A three phase brushless direct current (BLDC) motor driving circuit for a motor that includes a rotor having three phase coils and a plurality of magnetic poles;

an inverter that controls directions of a current supplied to the three phase coils according to supplied switching signals and includes a first switch unit including a plurality of transistors each positioned between a voltage source and the three phase coil, and a second switch unit including a plurality of transistors each positioned between a voltage source and the three phase coil, and an inverter controller that controls operations of the inverter, the three phase BLDC motor driving circuit comprising;

a voltage reducing unit, coupled to the three phase coils, rectifying a back electromotive force (BEMF) voltage generated in the three phase coils and generating a first voltage, the first voltage being reduced to a first level;

a reference voltage unit, coupled between the voltage source and the ground, reducing the voltage source to a second level; and

a differential amplifier having a first input terminal coupled to an output terminal of the voltage reducing unit, having a second input terminal coupled to an output terminal of the reference voltage unit, and having a third input terminal coupled to the voltage source, and amplifying an output of a corresponding output terminal as an amount of difference between a voltage of the first input terminal and a voltage of the second input terminal, and controlling to make the voltages of the first and second input terminals substantially equal.

2. The circuit of claim 1, wherein the circuit further comprises an error amplifier that compares the voltage supplied through the second switch unit with a set voltage, determines a comparison difference, and controls the current supplied to the differential amplifier by using a voltage corresponding to the comparison difference so that the voltage supplied through the second switch unit becomes identical with the set voltage.

3. The circuit of claim 1, wherein the voltage reducing unit performs a half wave rectification and a smoothing operation on the BEMF voltage that is generated in the three phase coils, that have a phase difference of 120°

, and reduces the maximum value of the BEMF voltage to the first level.

4. The circuit of claim 3, wherein the voltage reducing unit comprises a first diode having an anode coupled to a U phase coil;

a second diode having an anode coupled to a V phase coil;

a third diode having an anode coupled to a W phase coil;

a resistor having one end coupled to cathodes of the first, second and third diodes and having another end grounded; and

a capacitor, coupled to the resistor in parallel, having one end coupled to an input terminal of the differential amplifier.

5. The circuit of claim 1, wherein the reference voltage unit comprises a plurality of diodes.

6. The circuit of claim 1, wherein the reference voltage unit comprises three static voltage diodes, each coupled to the voltage source in series.

7. The circuit of claim 1, wherein the first level is lesser than the second level, and a difference between the first and second levels is more than a saturation voltage of the transistor.

8. The circuit of claim 1, wherein the differential amplifier comprises:

first and second pnp transistors each having an emitter coupled to the voltage source and having a common base;

a third pnp transistor having an emitter coupled to a collector of the first pnp transistor, having a collector coupled to an input terminal of a first transistor controller, and having a base coupled to an output terminal of a half wave rectifier; and

a fourth pnp transistor having an emitter coupled to the collector of the first pnp transistor, having a collector coupled to an input terminal of a second transistor controller, and having a base coupled to the output terminal of the reference voltage unit.

9. A circuit for driving a motor that includes a rotor having three phase coils, an inverter that controls directions of a current supplied to the three phase coils, and an inverter controller that controls operations of the inverter, said circuit comprising:

a rectifier, coupled to the three phase coils, to rectify back electromotive force voltage generated in the three phase coils and output a rectified voltage;

a reference voltage unit, coupled to a voltage source, to receive a power supplied by the voltage source and output a reference voltage; and

a differential amplifier, coupled to said rectifier and said reference voltage unit, to receive the rectified voltage and the reference voltage, wherein said differential amplifier generates an output signal which corresponds to an amount of difference between the rectifier voltage and the reference voltage, said output signal generated by said differential amplifier is used by said inverter controller to adjust the level of rectified voltage output by the rectifier.

10. The circuit of claim 9, wherein the voltage level of the rectified voltage output by said rectifier is adjusted to substantially match the reference voltage.

11. The circuit of claim 9, wherein the inverter comprises:

a first switch unit including a plurality of transistors each positioned between the voltage source and the three phase coil; and

a second switch unit including a plurality of transistors each positioned between the first switch unit and a ground.

12. The circuit of claim 9, wherein the rectifier performs a half wave rectification and a smoothing operation on the BEMF voltage that is generated in the three phase coils, that have a phase difference of 120°

, and reduces the maximum value of the BEMF voltage to a first level.

13. The circuit of claim 12, wherein the first level is lesser than the voltage level of the reference voltage, and a difference between the first level and the reference voltage is more than a saturation voltage of the transistor.