Expanding its extensive portfolio of inductive position sensors for electric vehicle (EV) motor control applications, Microchip Technology Inc. announces the LX34070, an integrated circuit specifically designed for EV motor control applications. It features differential outputs, high sampling rates, and functional safety characteristics in accordance with ISO 26262 ASIL-C (Automotive Safety Integrity Level–C).
“The LX34070 inductive position sensor enables lighter, smaller, and more reliable motor control solutions that meet stringent safety requirements, lower total system costs, and can operate efficiently and accurately in the noisy environment of DC motors, high currents, and solenoids in an automotive vehicle,” said Fanie Duvenhage, vice president of Microchip’s Linear and Mixed-Signal Circuits business unit. “Designers can use the LX34070 to further optimize EV motor control designs by connecting it to other functionally safe Microchip devices, such as our 8-bit AVR® and PIC® microcontrollers, our 32-bit microcontrollers, and our dsPIC® digital signal controllers.”
The LX34070 inductive position sensor solution offers numerous advantages over magnetic resolvers and LVDTs (Linear Voltage Differential Transducers) at a significantly lower cost. Utilizing printed circuit board traces instead of transformer-based magnetic windings and wound structures, the LX34070 is negligible in size and weight compared to alternatives that can weigh up to nearly half a kilogram. Accuracy is enhanced because the LX34070 is independent of magnetic force, and the device is more robust by actively rejecting stray magnetic fields. These and other features provide designers with far greater flexibility in choosing where to place the thin and lightweight, printed circuit board-based LX34070 solution within their EV motor control designs.
Printed circuit board-based inductive position sensors use a primary coil to generate an AC magnetic field that couples to two secondary coils. A small metal object disturbs the magnetic field so that each secondary coil receives a different voltage in a ratio that is used to calculate the absolute position. Microchip used these techniques when it introduced its first mass-produced inductive sensor for industrial and automotive applications more than a decade ago and has many plans in the mass production phase. The LX34070 now provides the same proven printed circuit board materials, the same techniques, and a simplified, low-cost package for EV motor control and other applications requiring its high speed and low latency.
Availability:
The Microchip LX34070 inductive position sensor integrated circuit is now available. To purchase, please contact an authorized Microchip representative or distributor, or visit their Purchasing and Customer Service website.
Supporting Designers in Achieving ISO 26262 Certification:
Microchip works closely with OEMs and suppliers in the automotive industry to meet their ISO 26262 compliance needs. The company’s functional safety packages provide them with what they need at various stages of the evaluation and design cycle, including certified safety manuals, FMEDA (Failure Mode, Effects, and Diagnostics Analysis) reports, and, in some cases, diagnostic software such as certified self-test libraries for the corresponding ASILs. The company also implements customer-driven obsolescence, as Microchip continues to supply devices as long as there is demand and all components are available, thus eliminating the risk of forced redesign due to an unexpected device recall.
