ST EVSPIN958 User manual

Introduction
The EVSPIN958 single brushed DC motor driver expansion board is based on the STSPIN958.
It provides an affordable and easy-to-use solution for the implementation of brushed DC motor driving applications. Thanks
to the parallel operation, it can be easily converted to a single half-bridge with double current capability. In addition to the
internal current limiter, the integrated amplifiers allow it to be used in systems with external current control. The EVSPIN958 is
compatible with the Arduino UNO R3 connector and most STM32 Nucleo boards.
Figure 1. EVSPIN958 expansion board
Getting started with the EVSPIN958 brushed DC motor driver expansion board
based on the STSPIN958
UM3056
User manual
UM3056 - Rev 1 - September 2022
For further information contact your local STMicroelectronics sales office.
www.st.com

1Safety precautions
Warning: Some of the components mounted on the board could reach hazardous temperatures
during operation.
While using the board, please follow the following precautions:
• Do not touch the components or the heatsink.
• Do not cover the board.
• Do not put the board in contact with flammable materials or with materials releasing smoke when heated.
• After operation, allow the board to cool down before touching it.
UM3056
Safety precautions
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 2/18

2Getting started
The main features of the EVSPIN958 expansion board are:
• Voltage range from 5 V to 58 V
• Phase current up to 5 A r.m.s
• Adjustable output slew rate
• Seven different driving modes
• One current limiter with adjustable OFF time
• Two integrated amplifiers with fixed gain
• Full protection set including: overcurrent, undervoltage lock out and thermal shutdown
• Compatibility with Arduino UNO R3 connector and STM32 Nucleo boards
The EVSPIN958 evaluation board is ready to be used in few steps. Follow this procedure to start your evaluation:
1. Check the setting of the jumpers based on your configuration as described in Section 3
2. Connect the board with the STM32 Nucleo board through the Arduino UNO R3
3. Supply the board through the input 2 (VS) and 1 (ground) of the connector CN1
Further support material is available on the STSPIN958 product page www.st.com
UM3056
Getting started
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 3/18

3Hardware description and configuration
Figure 2. EVSPIN958 overview
The following tables provide the detailed pinout of the Arduino UNO R3 and ST Morpho connectors.
Table 1. Arduino UNO R3 connector table
Connector Pin(1) Signal Remarks
CN5
2 Operational amplifiers offset enable
3 Standby (active low)
6 Operational amplifier 1 output
7 Ground
CN9
3 Voltage reference current limiter
5 PWM1 input
7 Enable bridge
CN6
2 VDD
6 Ground
7 Ground
CN8
2 PWM2 input
3 TOFF signal Digital output in
PWM trimming mode
6 Operational amplifier 2 output
1. All non-listed pins are not connected.
3.1 Driving mode selection
The EVSPIN958 can drive up to 2 DC motors at the same time.
UM3056
Hardware description and configuration
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 4/18

The driving mode selection is done setting J1 and J2 jumpers (connected to MODE1 and MODE2 pins of the
device) on the top of the board.
J6 solder jumper on the bottom of the board must be closed/opened according to the selected driving mode.
The table below briefly summarizes the possible configurations:
Table 2. Driving mode settings
J1 J2 Driving
mode
Typical
application J6(1)
Max.
output
current
(each
motor)
Output
RDS(ON
)
Minimu
m OCD
threshol
d
1-2 1-2 Dual half-
bridge
2 x unidirectional
brushed DC
(Figure 3)
open
5 Arms
0.2Ω
7 A
1 x bidirectional
brushed DC
(Figure 4)
closed 0.4Ω
1-2 2-3 Single full-
bridge
1 x bidirectional
Figure 4 closed 5 Arms 0.4Ω 7 A
2-3 1-2 Single half-
bridge
1 x high current
unidirectional
brushed DC(2)
(Figure 5)
closed 10 Arms 0.2Ω 14 A
2-3(3) 2-3(3)
Single full-
bridge with
mixed decay
1 x bidirectional
brushed DC
or
Half bipolar
stepper
(Figure 4)
closed 5 Arms 0.4Ω 7 A
1. When J6 is closed, the removal of the shunt resistor 2 (R9) is recommended for higher precision of the triggering of the
current limiter
2. The motor can be connected between OUT and either LSS (like in the figure) or VS, paying attention to properly connect
PWM2 to GND or to VDD respectively.
3. This configuration is only available with current limiter in Fixed OFF time mode (see Section 3.2 ).
UM3056
Driving mode selection
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 5/18

Figure 3. Two unidirectional DC motors
OUT2
OUT1
M
M
VVS
GND
+
UM3056
Driving mode selection
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 6/18

Figure 4. One bidirectional DC motor
OUT2
OUT1
M
VVS
GND
+
UM3056
Driving mode selection
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 7/18

Figure 5. One unidirectional DC motors – higher current
OUT2
OUT1
M
VVS
GND
+
3.2 Current limiter mode
The behavior of the current limiter can be changed by setting the J3 jumper (connected to MODE3 of the device)
as follows:
Table 3. Current limiter mode settings
J3 Current limiter mode J5 and J3 Decay time
1-2 Fixed OFF time Closed Depending on R6 resistor
(Figure 6)
2-3 PWM trimming Open Depending on PWM input signals
In Fixed OFF time mode, the current limiter can be disabled by setting R6 to its minimum value.
The current threshold can be set in two different ways:
• Trimming R13 resistor, leaving CN9.3 floating
• Applying a square wave with variable duty cycle to CN9.3, setting R13 to its minimum value
UM3056
Current limiter mode
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 8/18

Figure 6. tOFF versus ROFF
3.3 Output slew rate
The output slew rate can be increased moving the rotative switch SW1 clockwise. With the STSPIN958 device,
the slew rate value can be chosen from four different values, as shown in Table 4.
Table 4. Slew rate settings
SW1 RSR Slew rate (typ. at VS = 58 V)
C-1 closed 10 kΩ 0.3 V/ns
C-2 closed 5.6 kΩ 0.6 V/ns
C-3 closed 2.2 kΩ 1.2 V/ns
C-4 closed 1 kΩ 2 V/ns
UM3056
Output slew rate
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 9/18

4Thermal performance
An example of the thermal performances of the EVSPIN958 is provided in Figure 7 . The board is used in
full-bridge and parallel half-bridge configuration in a typical application to drive an inductive load with different
output currents ranging from 0.5 A to 4 A.
Set-up conditions:
•Planar orientation of the board and natural convection only
•Tambient = 25 °C
•PWM frequency = 20 KHz
•VS = 30 V
•Output slew rate setting = 2 V/ns
Figure 7. EVSPIN958 - thermal performances
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
0 1 2 3 4
Maximum
temperature [°C]
Output current [ARMS]
Parallel half bridge
Full bridge
Figure 8. Thermal images (IOUT = 2ARMS)
Full-bridge configuration Parallel half-bridge configuration
UM3056
Thermal performance
UM3056 - Rev 1 page 10/18