Quanser Engineering Trainer

DC Motor Control

User Guide
Quanser Consulting Inc.
1

Quanser Engineering Trainer

DC Motor Control
1

Introduction

The DC MOTOR CONTROL TRAINER (DCMCT) is a versatile unit designed to teach

the fundamentals of motor servo control in a variety of ways. The system can readily be
configured to control motor position, speed and current using the following
implementations:
1.1

PID Tuning Fundamentals course can be given using the DCMCT in

conjunction with a QIC Processor Core and the DCMCT qKInterfaces. The
qKInterfaces offer easy setup experiments in System Identification, Position
Control and Speed Control. A course is available allowing to teach these with
minimal setup time.

1.2

Analog feedback control using the Quanser Analog Plant Simulator or any
other analog computer including OP-AMP circuits implemented on breadboards.
A breadboard is available on the system for students to implement their own
analog controllers.

1.3

Computer control using a PC with realtime control capabilities and a HIL board.
The user can either program the PC to perform the realtime control or use
Simulink to generate code and run it in realtime on a PC. The system is fully
compatible with any of the Quanser Hardware in the Loop (HIL) boards as well
as National Instruments E-series boards and the dSpace DS1104 board. The
system is fully controllable using Quansers WinCon or SLX RT as well as
RTWT, XPC target, LabVIEW and Control Desk.

1.4

PIC Microcontroller control. The Quanser QIC Processor Core can readily be
plugged into the DCMCT unit. The user can then program the PIC to control the
motor without a PC.

1.5

Haptic knob experiments can be performed such as detents, damping, mass,

spring and friction emulation. A sample active knob software is included when
the system is purchased with a QIC.

1.6

Haptic Virtual Ball and Beam. This is java component that simulates a ball and
beam experiment dynamics on a PC. It also provides the user with a realtime
graphic simulation such that the user can command the beam angle via the
DCMCT and program feel in the knob to sense the ball rolling. This system can
easily demonstrate the positive effect haptics has on operation in virtual or
remote environments.
2

Control options

The photograph in Figure 1 shows the general layout of the system and the various

Figure 1
methods one could control the motor with. These are briefly described below.
2.1

PC or DSP control. You may control the system using a data acquisition board
or a DSP. You wire the signals to the RCA and DIN connectors on the board.

2.2

Analog computer control. An analog computer such as the Analg Plant

Simulator can be used to implement analog controllers. In this case the encoder
cannot be used.

2.3

Breadboard implementation. You may implement a controller of your own

design on the supplied breadboard

2.4

Embedded controller. A socket is supplied which allows you to insert a QIC

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embedded controller. The signal connections are automatically made when the
QIC is installed. Quanser supplies qKInterfaces to communicate with the QIC in
realtime for tuning and data collection.
3

System components

A block diagram of the system is shown in Figure 2. The individual components are
described below.

Figure 2 Block diagram of DCMCT

3.1

High quality DC (Maxon brand) motor - This is a Graphite Brush DC motor with a
low inertia rotor. It has zero cogging and very low unloaded running friction.

3.2

Linear power amplifier - A linear power amplifier is used to drive the motor. The
input to the amplifier can be configured to be either the voltage at the RCA jack
labeled Command or the output of the built in D/A. The built-in D/A can only be
used if a QIC board is connected to the system and the appropriate jumper
installed (J6).
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3.3

QIC compatible socket - A QIC processor core board can be plugged into this
socket to enable one to perform closed loop control using the QIC
microcontroller.

3.4

Analog current measurement - a series load resistor is connected to the output

of the amplifier. The signal is amplified internally to result in a sensitivity of 1.8
Volt/Amp. This signal is available at the RCA jack labeled Current. It is also level
shifted and scaled and made available at the QIC header so it can be used by a
QIC based controller. This measurement can be used to either monitor the
current or use it in a feedback loop to control the current in the motor.

3.5

Digital position measurement using a quadrature optical encoder - An optical

encoder is mounted to the rear of the motor. The optical encoder signal an be
used at the DIN plug by a HIL board. The encoder signals are also fed to an
encoder counter IC that interfaces with the QIC in order to perform encoder
feedback control using the QIC.

3.6

Analog speed measurement - An analog signal proportional to speed is available

at the RCA jack labeled Tach. It has the range of 5 Volts. The signal is also
scaled and level shifted to the range of 0-5 volts and made available to the QIC
header so that it can be used by a QIC based controller.

3.7

Analog position measurement using a potentiometer - a potentiometer can be

coupled via toothed belt to the motor shaft in order to implement analog position
feedback control. The potentiometer signal is available at the RCA jack labeled
Pot and can be used by an analog computer or a data acquisition board on a
PC. This analog signal is in the range of 5 V. The signal is also level shifted
and scaled to 0-5 volts and made available to the QIC header so that it can be
used by a QIC based controller. The potentiometer belt should be removed in
order to eliminate the effects of extra friction when running speed control and
encoder position feedback experiments as well as to extend the life of the
potentiometer. It is especially recommended that the potentiometer belt be
removed while running speed control experiments. Although the potentiometer is
rated for 10 million revolutions its life will quickly diminish when running at 2000
RPM for long durations. Running the potentiometer at 2000 RPM for example
would reduce its life expectancy to 83 days! Potentiometers are typically used in
position control systems and as such are not expected to continuously turn at
high speeds.

3.8

Built in power supply- A Built in power supply converts 15 VAC to 20 V DC.

The 20 VDC is regulated as well to supply 5 VDC and 12 VDC. These power
supplies can be used for external circuitry.

3.9

Wall transformer- A wall transformer is supplied to deliver the required AC

voltage to the board.
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3.10

12 bit D/A is available and can be used only if the QIC board is installed. This will
allow feedback controllers implemented on the QIC to drive the D/A instead of
the external Command input. The jumper JP6 must be set to use the D/A output
to drive the amplifier and the output must be enabled using RB4. The output of
the D/A is also made available at the RCA jack labeled D/A.

3.11

24 bit encoder counter is connected to the encoder such that if a QIC board is
installed, the encoder measurements can be read by the QIC.

3.12

Secondary encoder input. An additional external encoder can be attached to the

system such that it can be read by the QIC. This can be used for the
development of other experiments by the user.

3.13

External analog input to QIC. The analog input applied to the RCA jack labeled
Command is level shifted and scaled such that a signal in the range of 5 V
applied to it is made available as a signal in the range of 0-5 volts at the QIC
input AN4. This is useful if you want to apply external command signals to a QIC
based controller.

Connections

Wiring to the system is via RCA and DIN jacks. They perform the following connections:
Outputs

Device

Range

RCA4

Potentiometer voltage

5 VDC

RCA3

Tachometer voltage

5 VDC

RCA2

Current measurement

5 VDC

RCA5

QIC D/A output

5 VDC

5 pin DIN

Encoder output

TTL, A, B

Command signal to
power amplifier

5 VDC

Serial to QIC

RS232

AC power to board

15 VAC

Input
RCA1
Serial
DB9
Power
6mm jack

Figure 3 External connections to the DCMCT

System Parameters
Value

Units

Symbol

Torque constant

0.052

Nm/Amp

Km

Terminal resistance

10.6

Rm

Terminal Inductance

0.82

mHenry

Lm

Rotor Inertia

11.6

gm-cm2

Jm

Max Torque

0.07

Nm

Tmax

Gain

3.0

V/V

Ga

Max output voltage

15

Vmax

Max current

1.5

Ampere

Imax

Max output power

22

Watt

Pmax

Max dissipated power (with heat sink) Rload = 4 Ohm

Watt

Pdis

0.556

Amp/Volt

Gcurr

Lines per revolution

1024

Lines

Resolution- Quadrature

0.0879

Deg / count

Motor

Linear Amplifier

Current sense
Current sensitivity (+/- 10%)
Encoder

Type

TTL

Signals

A, B, Index

GEnc

Potentiometer
Resistance

10

kS

Bias voltage

4.7

Electrical range

350

Degrees

Sensitivity

39

Deg / V

Gpot

V / 1000 RPM

Gtach

Tachometer (Analog output - digitally derived from Encoder)

Sensitivity

1.5

Interfacing to a Quanser HIL board

The system is fully compatible with all

Quanser HIL terminal boards and as such can
be used to perform control experiments on a
PC. The realtime controller is typically
designed in Simulink and running realtime
using WinCon. Typically connect as follows:

Location of J6

HIL Terminal board

DCMCT

Inputs

Outputs

Figure 4 Location of J6 for control from

voltage at Command RCA jack
Signal range

Signal

Analog input

Pot

5V

Potentiometer

Analog input

Tach

5V

Tachometer

Analog input

Current

5V

Current

Encoder

Encoder

TTL

Encoder

5V

Amplifier command

Output
Analog output

Input
0

Command

Interfacing to the QIC Processor Core

When a QIC core is inserted into the QIC

Socket on the DCMCT, you can use the QIC
to measure all the sensors and to control the
amplifier. In this case the jumper J6 should be
configured such that the D/A output on the
board drives the linear amplifier.
Figure 5 Location of J6 for control from
onboard D/A controlled by QIC

Location of J6

With the QIC Core inserted, the following connections are attained:
QIC Core
Function

DCMCT
Pin

Name

Signal range

Inputs

Signal

Outputs

Calibration

Analog input

RA0

AN0

0-5 V

Potentiometer

78 deg / volt

Analog input

RA1

AN1

0-5 V

Tachometer

.75 V/1000 RPM

Analog input

RA2

AN3

0-5 V

Current

1.11 Amp / V

Analog input

RA5

AN4

0-5 V

External analog
input

Encoder

ENC

ENC

A, B, Index

Encoder

Pushbutton

RB0

INT

TTL, Pulled
high

PB

Outputs

Inputs

D/A output enable

RB4

RB4

TTL, Pulled
High

Enable DA OUT

Analog out

D/A

Vout

5 V

Amplifier
Command

LED 3

RC0

RC0

0-5 V

LED 1

LED 2

RC1

RC1

0-5 V

LED 2

The highlighted cells show that over and above the signals that are derived from the
sensors, the QIC can be made to drive two LEDs and read the state of a momentary
action pushbutton switch. These are useful when performing certain types of
experiments supplied with the DCMCT qKInterfaces.
Note that RB4 is used to enable the output of the D/A to drive the amplifier. RB4 must
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be pulled low by the QIC to enable the D/A output. You still need to physically move
jumper J6 to the left to connect the output of the D/A to the amplifier input.
The calibration column indicates that the analog sensors sensitivities are reduced by a
factor of 2 when measured by the QIC A/Ds as opposed to the RCA jacks. The reason
is that the RCA outputs are in the +/- 5 V range while the A/D inputs to the QIC are in
the 0-5 V range.
7.1

Accessing onboard devices using the QIC

7.1.1 Chip select lines

The DCMCT has two onboard devices which can be accessed via the QIC. These are
the D/A chip. These devices are addressed by the PIC via lines B1 and B2. Lines B1 &
B2 are applied to a 2 to 4 demultiplexer that will select which of the two onboard
devices you need to enable. The table below shows the way to select the device you
want.
Chip select line

B2

B1

N/A

Encoder

Digital to analog converter

Not used

7.1.2 Read / Write lines

The devices can be written to and read from using the PIC via the read write lines.
These are defined below:
READ

A4

WRITE

B3

Pulsing these lines low will perform the desired operation.

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7.1.3 Using the D/A Chip

The QCM is equipped with a 12 bit Digital to analog converter that interfaces to the QIC
core via an 8 bit bus. The bus is attached to PORT D on the QIC. Reading and writing
to this port enables you to use the D/A chip.
In order to write to the device, you need to enable it via the Chip Select line and then
write to it the desired values.
The device has two registers which must be written to in order to obtain the desired
output. These are controlled via pins C4 & C5 on the QIC. In order to write a 12 bit
value to the D/A, you need to write two 8 bit values in the correct sequence.
Consider the 12 bit value that want to write to the D/A. It would consist of twelve bits
which can be divided as follows:
d11

d10

d9

d8

High 4 bit nibble

d7

d6

d5

d4

d3

d2

d1

d0

Low 8 bit value

Once you have split the data to two 8 bit words:

Low_byte

d7

d6

d5

d4

d3

d2

d1

d0

High_byte

d11

d10

d9

d8

You then need to select to which register you need to write these values. This is done
via lines C4 and C5 on the PIC. The table below shows how to select the register:
C4

C5

Data Register

Low byte

High byte

In order to program the D/A you need to do the following:

Enable the output - Pull RB4 low
Enable the chip using RB2 and RB1
Wite the low byte to port D
Assert A0 & A1 low
Pulse the write line
write the high byte to port D
Assert A0 & A1 high
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Pulse the write line

Once the above operation is performed, the output of the D/A will be updated to reflec
the value that you programmed.
The 12 bit integer value is related to the output voltage via:
int_value = 2048 + (Vdesired/5.0)*2047;
7.1.4 Using the encoder chip
An encoder is a sensor which is equipped with two optical senors and a rotating disc
attached to the shaft whose position you want to measure. The disc is etched with lines
radially such that when a line lines goes past the sensors pulses are generated at the
outputs of the two sensors. The signals from sensors are typically called the A & B
pulses. These pluses are out of phase resulting in 4 state transitions in the pulses per
line. When the film is mounted to a rotating shaft the device is called a rotary encoder.
The number of lines per revolution determines the resolution of the encoder. A 1000
line encoder has a resolution of 360/1000 = 0.36 degrees. Counting the number of
pulses results in the measurement of the rotation of the shaft. Counting the number of
state transitions can increase the resolution four-fold. When a counter is attached to the
A&B channels, it can be configured to count in quadrature , ie count every transition in
A or B from low to high. In this case, a 1000 line encoder can result in a resolution of
.36/4 = 0.09 degrees.
The motor on the DCMCT is equipped with an encoder. The A& B channels of the
encoder are fed to an encoder counter chip which is coupled to the QIC via the parallel
port. The encoder chip is the LS7266 and has a variety of registers that are used to
program it and read the encoder counts from. A variety of functions are supplied in the
accompanying software that will enable you to use the chip.
7.2

Interfacing to the Analog Plant Simulator

The system is fully compatible with the Quanser Analog Plant Simulator. You may
implement analog controllers by wiring the system appropriately.

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