As the expanding field of navigation technologies allows more accurate guidance of Unmanned Vehicles (UV), higher performance, smaller size Control Actuation Systems (CAS) are required. Because oftheir low cost and minimum maintenance, Electro-Mechanical (EM) actuators have been used extensively in air, ground, and underwater UV. Electronic controllers currently utilized with EM actuators use discrete components integrated on a Printed Circuit Board (PCB).EM actuators typically use brush or brushless, permanent magnet, direct current motors to position a control device. In these applications, EM actuators are controlled with either digital or analog controllers. Typically, digital controllers contain a microcontroller, Analog-to-Digital (AID) converters, and Power Amplifiers, whereas analog controllers contain Operation and Power Amplifiers. In either case, actuator control is achieved by summing the position command, from the navigation computer, with the measured actuator position to produce an error signal. This error signal is scaled by the loop gain, compensated, and used to generate either; a proportional Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) signal or Linear Drive (LD) signal. The PWM or LD signal drives a power amplifier, that in turn, produces a clockwise or counter-clockwise rotation of the motor. In the case of a brushless motor, the electronic controller must utilize input from the motor's Hall effect sensor to energize the proper motor winding. Electronic controllers, whether analog or digital, consist of discrete components attached to a PCB.MCM technology allows the entire actuator controller, or a portion of the controller, to be integrated into a single package. This means actuator controller schemes can be more complex, resulting in improved actuator performance. A special advantage is realized with brushless motor EM actuators because they require additional power switches and commutation electronics, that are not required for brush motor EM actuators. In addition, controller size reductions increase the possibilities for localized smart-actuator control for numerous UV functions. Typical problems associated with MCM technology, in this application, include heat dissipation and tolerance to external environments. This paper discusses typical brush and brushless motor controllers that were developed by the Navigation and Control Branch. The paper also discusses a miniature brush/brushless motor driver that was built be Advanced Motion ControlAMC) under a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contract. The miniature brushlbrushless motor driver designed by AMC was built using PCB and MCM technology. Performance of the PCB version of AMC's driver was demonstrated, however, problems with the MCM version are still being investigated. Keywords: Electro-Mechanical Actuator, Multi-Chip-Module, BrushlBrushless Motor 0-8194-21 197/961$6.00 SPIE Vol. 2738 / 221 Downloaded From: http://proceedings.spiedigitallibrary.org/ on 06/21/2016 Terms of Use: http://spiedigitallibrary.org/ss/TermsOfUse.aspx
