Interface Design

Omid Fatemi

University of Tehran 1
 Typical Interface Design

Connect Compute Convey Cooperate

Sense Reality Embedded Systems PC interfaces Busses

Touch Reality Micros HCI Protocols
Connect Assembler, C Standards
Transform Real-Time PCI
Memory IEEE488
Peripherals SCSI
Timers USB & FireWire
DMA CAN
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 Sensors : Review

• voltage source
– directly measured

• variable resistance
– can be converted to a voltage and measured
– voltage divider for coarser measurements
– wheatstone bridge for finer measurements

• variable capacitance
• variable inductance
• variable signal

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 Touch Reality

“adding to the real world”

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 Motors

• coils of conductive wire

• magnetic fields

• rotational motion
– except for linear induction motor

• everywhere from the very large (LRT) to the very

small (toys)
• electrical energy converted to mechanical

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 Stepper Motors

• more accurately controlled than a normal

motor allowing fractional turns or n
revolutions to be easily done
• low speed, and lower torque than a
comparable D.C. motor
• useful for precise positioning for robotics
• Servomotors require a position feedback
signal for control

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Stepper Motor Diagram

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 Stepper Motor Types

– Variable Reluctance

– Unipolar/Bipolar Permanent Magnet

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Variable Reluctance Motors

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 Variable Reluctance Motors

• This is usually a four wire motor – the

common wire goes to the +ve supply and the
windings are stepped through
• Our example is a 30o motor
• The rotor has 4 poles and the stator has 6
poles
• Example

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 Variable Reluctance Motors

• To rotate we excite the 3 windings in

sequence
– W1 - 1001001001001001001001001
– W2 - 0100100100100100100100100
– W3 - 0010010010010010010010010
• This gives two full revolutions

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Unipolar Motors

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Four Phase Stepper Motor

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 Unipolar Motors

• This is usually a 5 or 6 wire motor – with a

centre tap on each of the two windings – the
two taps are typically wired to the +ve
• Our example is a 30o motor
• The rotor has 6 poles and the stator has 4
poles
• Example

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 Unipolar Motors

• To rotate we excite the 2 windings in

sequence
– W1a - 1000100010001000100010001
– W1b - 0010001000100010001000100
– W2a - 0100010001000100010001000
– W2b - 0001000100010001000100010
• This gives two full revolutions

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Basic Actuation Wave Forms

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 Unipolar Motors

• To rotate we excite the 2 windings in

sequence
– W1a - 1100110011001100110011001
– W1b - 0011001100110011001100110
– W2a - 0110011001100110011001100
– W2b - 1001100110011001100110011
• This gives two full revolutions at 1.4 times
greater torque but twice the power

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 Enhanced Waveforms

• better torque
• more precise control
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 Unipolar Motors

• The two sequences are not the same, so by

combining the two you can produce half
stepping
– W1a - 11000001110000011100000111
– W1b - 00011100000111000001110000
– W2a - 01110000011100000111000001
– W2b - 00000111000001110000011100

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Torque vs. Speed

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 Motor Control Circuits

• Fundamentally a circuit as below is required

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 Motor Control Circuits

• We must deal with the inductive kick when

the switches are turned off. We can shunt
this using diodes.

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 Motor Control Circuits

• In order to interface the stepper motor with a μP (or

similar) we need a TTL compatible circuit. The 5v
control should be well regulated. The motor power
will not require regulation.

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 Motor Control Circuits

• For low current options the ULN200x family

of Darlington Arrays will drive the windings
direct.

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Interfacing to Stepper Motors

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8255 PPI

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Stepper Motor Step Angles

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 Terminology

• Steps per second, RPM

– SPS = (RPM * SPR) /60

• Number of teeth

• 4-step, wave drive 4-step, 8-step

• Motor speed (SPS)

• Holding torque

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 Vector Generation

• Hardware solutions
– Logic design
– State machine

• Software solutions
– Microprocessor and output ports
– timing

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Example

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 Solenoids and Coils
• coils of conductive wire
• magnetic field pushes or pulls
• used in speaker coils, door bell strikers, pin ball
machines
• electrical to mechanical motion interface
• small linear motion

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 Piezoelectric
• crystalline structure; locked, repetitive
distribution of molecules and charge
• a small amount of uneven force on the material
will produce a charge imbalance in the matrix and
create a voltage potential which can be measured
and used as a sensor
• conversly, a voltage potential can be applied
across it and it will cause the crystal to deform
– small speakers, beepers

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 Heaters, Coolers

• electricity through wire generates heat

because the conductance is not infinite
• power = V*V/R
– hair dryers, pipe heaters, seat warmers
• electricity through a thermocouple can
generate heat
– if applied in reverse, it can absorb heat or cool
» electric coolers for cars

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Thermal Shape Memory Effect

A shape memory alloy is capable of remembering

a previously memorized shape. It has to be
deformed in its low temperature phase Martensite
and subsequently heated to the high temperature
phase Austenite, e.g. in hot water or with an
electrical current. The alloy generates a high force

 
during the phase transformation. Thus, it can be
used as an actuator in a multitude of different
                                          applications. The shape change is not restricted to
just pure bending. The most suitable actuation
mode has proved to be the linear contraction of a
straight wire actuator.
In contradiction to the mechanical shape memory
effect, the thermal shape memory effect is related
to a heat stimulus, with which the Memory-Metal is
capable of delivering a high amount of work output
per material volume.

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 Mechanical Shape Memory
Effect: Superelasticity
Shape memory alloys are able to show an
obviously elastic deformation behaviour
which is called Mechanical Shape Memory
Effect or Superelasticity. This deformation
can be as high as 20x of the elastic strain of

 
steel.

Reason for the superelasticity is the stress

                                         
induced phase transformation from the high
temperature phase Austenite into the low
temperature phase Martensite. The strain
related to this phase transformation is fully
reversible after removing the stress.
The commercial NiTinol alloys show as much
as 8% of superelastic strain. Temperature
changes are not necessary for the
superelasticity.

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 Martensite Deformability
The martensitic low temperature phase can
be deformed similar to pure Tin: it can be
bent back and forth without strain
hardening. Thus, the risk of breakage of a
component made from martensitic NiTinol is
significantly lower as for instance in
stainless steel. And finally when heated into

  the austenitic phase, the alloy recovers its

initial shape.
                                         

The metallurgical reason for the martensite

deformability is the twinned structure of the
low temperature phase: the twin boundaries
can be moved without much force and
without formation of dislocations, which can
be considered as being the initiator of
fracture

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 Shape Memory Alloy

• also known as: muscle wire, nitinol, flexinol

• nickle/titanium alloy
• metal crystalline structure undergoes shape
change with a change in temperature
• two stable states: martensite (cooled state),
austenite (heated state)
• can generate enough force to move thousands of
times its own weight

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 SMA continued

• silent linear movement has life like quality

– no motors required for robotic limbs
• low voltage, easily interfaced to a microcontroller
• wire length shrinks by up to 8% but typically 5% is
used
• wire can snap from overheating caused by
excessive current or by over stressing it

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 Photons

• electricity can be turned into light directly (LEDs)

or indirectly through heat
– LEDs can be combined to create a multisegment display for
alphanumerics
– all colors available now
– coherent light beams can be made from laser diodes
• vacuum tubes still most common form of display
for TV and computers

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