AIMST UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND COMPUTER

TECHNOLOGY

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
Assigment 2

OCT SEMESTER 2020

ROBOTICS
B. Eng. (Hons) in Electrical and Electronics
Engineering

ARUNRAJ A/L SURES

E16101106
Assignment 2 (Robotics)

1) List out the important characteristics in selecting a DC motor.

There are several characteristics that you need pay attention to when selecting a motor
but voltage, current, torque, and velocity (RPM) are most important.

Current is what powers the motor and too much current will damage the motor. For
DC motors, operating and stall current are important. Operating current is the average
amount of current the motor is expected to draw under typical torque. Stall current
applies enough torque for the motor to run at stall speed, or 0RPM. This is the
maximum amount of current the motor should be able to draw, as well as the
maximum power when multiplied by the rated voltage. Heat sinks are important are
constantly running the motor or are running it at higher than the rated voltage in order
to keep the coils from melting.

Voltage is used to keep net current flowing in one direction and to overcome back
current. The higher the voltage, the higher the torque. The voltage rating of a DC
motor indicates the most efficient voltage while running. Be sure to apply the
recommended voltage. If you apply too few volts, the motor will not work, whereas
too many volts can short windings resulting in power loss or complete destruction.

Torque. Operating and stall values also need to be considered with torque.
Operating torque is the amount of torque the motor was designed to give and stall
torque is the amount of torque produced when power is applied from stall speed. You
should always look at the required operating torque, but some applications will
require you to know how far you can push the motor. For example, with a wheeled
robot, good torque equals good acceleration but you must make sure the stall torque is
strong enough to lift the weight of the robot. In this instance, torque is more important
than speed.
Velocity, or speed (RPM), can be complex regarding motors. The general rule is that
motors run most efficiently at the highest speeds but it is not always possible if
gearing is required. Adding gears will reduce the efficiency of the motor, so take into
account speed and torque reduction as well.
2) Discuss on servo motor.

Basic of Servo Motor

Let’s begin, with the servo motor basics. Servo motors are part of a closed-loop
system and are comprised of several parts namely a control circuit, servo motor, shaft,
potentiometer, drive gears, amplifier and either an encoder or resolver.A servo motor
is a self-contained electrical device, that rotate parts of a machine with high efficiency
and with great precision.The output shaft of this motor can be moved to a particular
angle, position and velocity that a regular motor does not have.The Servo Motor
utilizes a regular motor and couples it with a sensor for positional feedback.The
controller is the most important part of the Servo Motor designed and used
specifically for this purpose.The servo motor is a closed-loop mechanism that
incorporates positional feedback in order to control the rotational or linear speed and
position.The motor is controlled with an electric signal, either analog or digital, which
determines the amount of movement which represents the final command position for
the shaft.A type of encoder serves as a sensor providing speed and position feedback.
This circuitry is built right inside the motor housing which usually is fitted with gear
system.

Types of Servo Motor

Types of Servo Motors are classified into different types based on their application,
such as the AC servo motor, and DC servo motor.There are three main considerations
to evaluate servos motors. First based on their current type – AC or DC, and secondly
on the type of Commutation used, whether the motor uses brushes and the third type
of consideration is the motors rotating field, the rotor, whether the rotation is
synchronous or asynchronous.

Let’s discuss the first servo consideration. AC or DC consideration is the most basic
classification of a motor based on the type of current it will use.Looking at it from a
performance standpoint, the primary difference between AC and DC motors is in the
inherit ability to control speed.With a DC motor, the speed is directly proportional to
the supply voltage with a constant load.And in an AC motor, speed is determined by
the frequency of the applied voltage and the number of magnetic poles.

While both AC and DC motors are used in servo systems, AC motors will withstand
higher current and are more commonly used in servo applications such as with robots,
in-line manufacturing and other industrial applications where high repetitions and
high precision are required.Brushed or brushless is the next step. A DC Servo Motor
is commutated mechanically with brushes, using a commutator, or electronically
without brushes.Brushed motors are generally less expensive and simpler to operate,
while brushless designs are more reliable, have higher efficiency, and are less noisy.
A commutator is a rotary electrical switch that periodically reverses the current
direction between the rotor and the drive circuit.It consists of a cylinder composed of
multiple metal contact segments on the rotor. Two or more electrical contacts called
“brushes” made of a soft conductive material such as carbon press against the
commutator, making a sliding contact with segments of the commutator as it rotates.

While the majority of motors used in servo systems are AC brushless designs,
brushed permanent magnet motors are sometimes employed as servo motors for their
simplicity and low cost.The most common type of brushed DC motor used in servo
applications is the permanent magnet DC motor.Brushless DC motors replace the
physical brushes and commutator with an electronic means of achieving
commutation, typically through the use of Hall effect sensors or an encoder.AC
motors are generally brushless, although there are some designs—such as the
universal motor, which can run on either AC or DC power, that do have brushes and
are mechanically commutated.And the final classification to consider is whether the
servo motor application will use a synchronous or asynchronous rotating field.While
DC motors are generally categorized as brushed or brushless, AC motors are more
often differentiated by the speed of their rotating synchronous or asynchronous field.If
we recall from the AC-DC consideration, that in an AC motor, speed is determined by
the frequency of the supply voltage and the number of magnetic poles.This speed is
referred to as the synchronous speed. Therefore, in a synchronous motor, the rotor
rotates at the same speed as the stator’s rotating magnetic field. However, in an
asynchronous motor, normally referred to as an induction motor, the rotor rotates at a
speed slower than the stator’s rotating magnetic field.However, the speed of an
asynchronous motor can be varied utilizing several control methods such as changing
the number of poles, and changing the frequency just to name a couple.

The working principles of a DC servo motor are the construction of four major
components, a DC motor, a position sensing device, a gear assembly, and control
circuit.The desired speed of the DC motor is based on the voltage applied.In order to
control the motor speed, a potentiometer produces a voltage which is applied as one
of the inputs to error amplifier.In some circuits, a control pulse is used to produce DC
reference voltage corresponding to desired position or speed of the motor and it is
applied to a pulse width voltage converter.The length of the pulse decides the voltage
applied at the error amplifier as a desired voltage to produce the desired speed or
position.The feedback signal sensor is normally a potentiometer that produces a
voltage corresponding to the absolute angle of the motor shaft through the gear
mechanism. Then the feedback voltage value is applied at the input of error
comparator amplifier.The amplifier compares the voltage generated from the current
position of the motor resulting from the potentiometer feedback and to the desired
position of the motor producing an error either of a positive or negative voltage.

This error voltage is applied to the armature of the motor. As the error increases so
does the output voltage applied to the motor armature. As long as error exists, the
comparator amplifier amplifies the error voltage and correspondingly powers the
armature.The motor rotates until the error becomes zero. If the error is negative, the
armature voltage reverses and hence the armature rotates in the opposite direction.The
working principles of an AC servo motors are based on the construction with two
distinct types of AC servo motors, they are synchronous and asynchronous
(induction).The synchronous AC servo motor consist of stator and rotor. The stator
consists of a cylindrical frame and stator core.The armature coil wound around the
stator core and the coil is connected to a lead wire through which current is provided
to the motor.The rotor consists of a permanent magnet and this differs with the
asynchronous induction type rotor in that the current in the rotor is induced by
electromagnetism and therefore these types are called as brushless servo motors.

When the stator field is excited with voltage, the rotor follows the rotating magnetic
field of the stator at the same speed or synchronized with the excited field of the
stator, and this is where the synchronous type is derived.With this permanent magnet
rotor, no rotor current is required so when the stator field deenergizes and stops, the
rotor also stops. These motors have higher efficiency due to the absence of rotor
current.

When the position of rotor with respect to stator is required an encoder is placed on
the rotor and provides feedback to the servo motor controller.The asynchronous or
induction AC servo motor stator consists of stator core, armature winding and lead
wire and the rotor consists of shaft and the rotor core winding.Most induction motors
contain a rotational element, the rotor or squirrel cage.Only the stator winding is fed
with an AC supply.Alternating flux field is produced around the stator winding with
the AC supply. This alternating flux field revolves with synchronous speed.The
revolving flux is called a rotating magnetic field (RMF). The relative speed between
stator rotating magnetic field and rotor conductors causes an induced electromagnetic
force in the rotor conductors according to Faraday’s law of electromagnetic induction.
This is the same action that occurs in transformers.

Now, the induced current in rotor will also produce an alternating flux field around
itself. This rotor flux lags behind the stator flux.The rotor velocity is related between
the rotating stator flux field and the rotor rotates in the same direction as that of the
stator flux.The rotor does not succeed in catching up the stator flux speed or not
synchronized, hence where the type asynchronous is derived.

Application of Servo motor

Servo Motor Applications are applied in many industrial and commercial systems and
products such as with robotics where a servo motor is used at every “joint” of a robot
to perform its precise angle of movement. The camera auto focus uses a servo motor
built into the camera that corrects precisely the position of lens to sharpen the out-of-
focus images. And with antenna positioning systems where servo motors are used for
both the positioning of azimuth and elevation axis of antennas and telescopes such as
those used by the National Radio Astronomy Observator
3) Discuss on stepper motor.

A stepper motor is an electromechanical device it converts electrical power into

mechanical power. Also, it is a brushless, synchronous electric motor that can divide a
full rotation into an expansive number of steps. The motor’s position can be
controlled accurately without any feedback mechanism, as long as the motor is
carefully sized to the application. Stepper motors are similar to switched reluctance
motors. The stepper motor uses the theory of operation for magnets to make the motor
shaft turn a precise distance when a pulse of electricity is provided. The stator has
eight poles, and the rotor has six poles. The rotor will require 24 pulses of electricity
to move the 24 steps to make one complete revolution. Another way to say this is that
the rotor will move precisely 15° for each pulse of electricity that the motor receives.

Construction & Working Principle

The construction of a stepper motor is fairly related to a DC motor. It includes a
permanent magnet like Rotor which is in the middle & it will turn once force acts on
it. This rotor is enclosed through a no. of the stator which is wound through a
magnetic coil all over it. The stator is arranged near to rotor so that magnetic fields
within the stators can control the movement of the rotor.

The stepper motor can be controlled by energizing every stator one by one. So the
stator will magnetize & works like an electromagnetic pole which uses repulsive
energy on the rotor to move forward. The stator’s alternative magnetizing as well as
demagnetizing will shift the rotor gradually &allows it to turn through great control.

The stepper motor working principle is Electro-Magnetism. It includes a rotor

which is made with a permanent magnet whereas a stator is with electromagnets.
Once the supply is provided to the winding of the stator then the magnetic field will
be developed within the stator. Now rotor in the motor will start to move with the
rotating magnetic field of the stator. So this is the fundamental working principle of
this motor.

In this motor, there is a soft iron that is enclosed through the electromagnetic stators.
The poles of the stator as well as the rotor don’t depend on the kind of stepper. Once
the stators of this motor are energized then the rotor will rotate to line up itself with
the stator otherwise turns to have the least gap through the stator. In this way, the
stators are activated in a series to revolve the stepper motor.

Driving Techniques
Stepper motor driving techniques can be possible with some special circuits due to
their complex design. There are several methods to drive this motor, some of them are
discussed below by taking an example of a four-phase stepper motor.
Single Excitation Mode
The basic method of driving a stepper motor is a single excitation mode. It is an old
method and not used much at present but one has to know about this technique. In this
technique every phase otherwise stator next to each other will be triggered one by one
alternatively with a special circuit. This will magnetize & demagnetize the stator to
move the rotor forward.

Full Step Drive

In this technique, two stators are activated at a time instead of one in a very less time
period. This technique results in high torque & allows the motor to drive the high
load.

Half Step Drive

This technique is fairly related to the Full step drive because the two stators will be
arranged next to each other so that it will be activated first whereas the third one will
be activated after that. This kind of cycle for switching two stators first &after that
third stator will drive the motor. This technique will result in improved resolution of
the stepper motor while decreasing the torque.

Micro Stepping
This technique is most frequently used due to its accuracy. The variable step current
will supply by the stepper motor driver circuit toward stator coils within the form of a
sinusoidal waveform. The accuracy of every step can be enhanced by this small step
current. This technique is extensively used because it provides high accuracy as well
as decreases operating noise to a large extent.

Stepper Motor Circuit & Its Operation

Stepper motors operate differently from DC brush motors, which rotate when voltage
is applied to their terminals. Stepper motors, on the other hand, effectively have
multiple toothed electromagnets arranged around a central gear-shaped piece of iron.
The electromagnets are energized by an external control circuit, for example, a
microcontroller.To make the motor shaft turn, first one electromagnet is given power,
which makes the gear’s teeth magnetically attracted to the electromagnet’s teeth. At
the point when the gear’s teeth are thus aligned to the first electromagnet, they are
slightly offset from the next electromagnet. So when the next electromagnet is turned
ON and the first is turned OFF, the gear rotates slightly to align with the next one and
from there the process is repeated. Each of those slight rotations is called a step, with
an integer number of steps making a full rotation.

n that way, the motor can be turned by a precise. Stepper motor doesn’t rotate
continuously, they rotate in steps. There are 4 coils with a 90o angle between each
other fixed on the stator. The stepper motor connections are determined by the way
the coils are interconnected. In a stepper motor, the coils are not connected. The
motor has a 90o rotation step with the coils being energized in a cyclic order,
determining the shaft rotation direction.
 The working of this motor is shown by operating the switch. The coils are activated in
series in 1-sec intervals. The shaft rotates 90o each time the next coil is activated. Its
low-speed torque will vary directly with current.

Types of Stepper Motor

There are three main types of stepper motors, they are:

 Permanent magnet stepper

 Hybrid synchronous stepper
 Variable reluctance stepper
4) Define (in control)
 Proportional
 Integral
 Derivative

Proportional Term

The Proportional term drives the position error to zero.

u(t)=Kpe(t)

where Kp is the proportional gain and e(t) is the error at the current time t.

The below figure shows a block diagram for a system controlled by a P controller.

Proportional gains act like a “software-defined springs” that pull the system toward

the desired position. Recall from physics that we model springs as F=−kx where F is
the force applied, k is a proportional constant, and x is the displacement from the
equilibrium point. This can be written another way as F=k(0−x) where 0 is the
equilibrium point. If we let the equilibrium point be our feedback
controller’s setpoint, the equations have a one to one correspondence.

F=k(r−x)u(t)=Kpe(t)=Kp(r(t)−y(t))

so the “force” with which the proportional controller pulls the system’s output toward

the setpoint is proportional to the error, just like a spring.
Integral Term

The Integral term accumulates the area between the setpoint and output plots over

time (i.e., the integral of position error) and adds the current total to the control input.
Accumulating the area between two curves is called integration.

u(t)=Kpe(t)+Ki∫0te(τ)dτ

where Kp is the proportional gain, Ki is the integral gain, e(t) is the error at the
current time t, and τ is the integration variable.

The Integral integrates from time 0 to the current time t. we use τ for the integration
because we need a variable to take on multiple values throughout the integral, but we
can’t use t because we already defined that as the current time.

The below figure shows a block diagram for a system controlled by a PI controller.

When the system is close the setpoint in steady-state, the proportional term may be

too small to pull the output all the way to the setpoint, and the derivative term is zero.
Derivative Term

The Derivative term drives the velocity error to zero.

u(t)=Kpe(t)+Kddedt

where Kp is the proportional gain, Kd is the derivative gain, and e(t) is the error at the
current time t.

The below figure shows a block diagram for a system controlled by a PD controller.

A PD controller has a proportional controller for position (Kp) and a proportional

controller for velocity (Kd). The velocity setpoint is implicitly provided by how the
position setpoint changes over time. To prove this, we will rearrange the equation for
a PD controller.

uk=Kpek+Kdek−ek−1dt

where uk is the control input at timestep k and ek is the error at timestep k. ek is

defined as ek=rk−xk where rk is the setpoint and xk is the current state at timestep k.

uk=Kp(rk−xk)+Kd(rk−xk)−(rk−1−xk−1)dt
uk=Kp(rk−xk)+Kdrk−xk−rk−1+xk−1dt
uk=Kp(rk−xk)+Kdrk−rk−1−xk+xk−1dt
uk=Kp(rk−xk)+Kd(rk−rk−1)−(xk−xk−1)dt
uk=Kp(rk−xk)+Kd(rk−rk−1dt−xk−xk−1dt)

Notice how rk−rk−1dt is the velocity of the setpoint. By the same

reason, xk−xk−1dt is the system’s velocity at a given timestep. That means
the Kd term of the PD controller is driving the estimated velocity to
the setpoint velocity.

If the setpoint is constant, the implicit velocity setpoint is zero, so the Kd term slows

the system down if it’s moving. This acts like a “software-defined damper”. These are
commonly seen on door closers, and their damping force increases linearly with
velocity.

5) Sketch the PID controller block diagram for controlling a drone to reach
height 50 m and maintain there.