High Power, Compact BLDC Motor Control

The smart gate driver IC is designed for 3-phase sensorless Brushless DC (BLDC) motor applications. It integrates three half-bridge smart gate drivers capable of powering N-channel MOSFET bridges with voltages ranging from 4.5V to a maximum of 60V, featuring 1A drive and 2A sinking current capability. This setup enables control of high-current GaN MOSFETs. The IC includes a buck-boost converter to supply power to the MCU and incorporates three differential amplifiers with adjustable gain for precise ground-side shunt current sensing, feeding data to the MCU's ADC input. The MCU enhances data communication through CAN FD and I3C protocols and features a specialized ADC for motor control, supporting calculation-intensive algorithms for smoother motor tuning. The use of GaN high voltage MOSFETs allows for high current switching without bulky heatsinks, optimizing the system for compact, high-efficiency applications.

System Benefits:

• Facilitates a minimalistic PCB design approach while keeping the specialized communications and motor control requirements.
• GaN MOSFETs enable compact heatsink designs and operation without forced cooling.
• Supports a wide range of motor specifications, from 5V to 60V, accommodating 20A motors without heatsinks (up to 1200W max) and peak startup currents reaching 46A.