AN1103

APPLICATION NOTE
IMPROVED B-EMF DETECTION FOR LOW-SPEED
AND LOW-VOLTAGE APPLICATIONS WITH ST72141
by Microcontroller Division Applications

The ST72141 Microcontroller has been designed by STMicroelectronics for BLDC motor
drives. Optimized for sensorless motor control, based on back-EMF zero-crossing detection
with four different voltage detection levels. The ST72141 provides a fully digital solution
meaning that the motor phases can be directly connected to the microcontroller inputs through
a simple resistor.
When the back-EMF signal is very low (low speed) or for low voltage applications, the back-
EMF zero-crossing detection can become difficult due to the very weak signal. The purpose of
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this document is to develop a solution for improving the back-EMF zero-crossing detection at
very low speeds or for low voltage applications.
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 1 THEORY OF OPERATION
Figure 1. Back-EMF Detection on Phase C

VDC

Va L e
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L e
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Vb Vn

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VMOS
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If phase A and B are conducting current, phase C is floating. The terminal voltage Vc is de-
tected.
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When the up transistor is turned off, the current is freewheeling through the diode D. During
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is no current in phase C. P
this freewheeling period, the terminal voltage Vc is detected as Phase C BEMF because there

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In fact, V c = e c + V n .Only when Vn equals zero, Vc is the back-EMF. As matter of fact, Vn is

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always non zero.

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From phase A, we have

di
V n = 0 – v D – ri – L ----- – e a (1)
dt

From phase B, we have

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2
 di
V n = V M OS + ri + L ----- – e b
dt (2)
Where Vd is the forward voltage drop of the diode, VMOS is the voltage drop on MOSFET.
Adding (1) and (2), we get
2V n = V M OS – V D – ( e a + e b ) (3) and

V M OS – V D e a + e b
V n = --------------------------
- – ----------------- (4)
2 2

Also from the balance three-phase system, we have

ea + eb + ec = 0 (5)

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From (3) and (4),
V M OS – V D e c
V n = --------------------------
- + ----- d u
2 2
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So, the terminal voltage Vc,
3 V MOS – V D
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V c = e c + V n = --- e c + --------------------------
2 2
- (7)
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If we ignore the second term of (6), terminal voltage is the back-EMF. However, at low speed
and low voltage, the back-EMF itself is very small, the second term will play a significant role

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here. For low voltage MOSFETs, Rd is very low, Vmos can be ignored, so (6) can be rewritten

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as,
3 VD
V c = e c + V n = --- e c – -------
2 2
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2 PROBLEMS
(a). As mentioned before, the voltage drop on the diode will affect the back-EMF significantly
when the back-EMF signal is weak. Theoretically, zero-crossing is distributed evenly each 60
electric degrees. But because of the diode voltage drop, this will cause the zero-crossing to be
unsymmetrically distributed.
Figure 2 shows the simulation result.
Figure 2. Simulation result showing that the zero-crossing is unsymmetrical

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B1 ( x)
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0 110 220 330 440 550 660
Zero-crossing
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Figure 3 shows the test result.

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Figure 3. Test result showing that the zero-crossing is unsymmetrical

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Zero-crossing signal
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The wrong zero detection will cause wrong commutation which probably will stall the motor.
Also bad zero-crossing will cause bad speed regulation.
(b). At low voltage or low speed, the zero-crossing slope is very flat. The offset and the hyster-
esis loop of the comparator will cause the bad zero crossing detection. Meanwhile, because of
the weak back-EMF, it is very susceptible to noise.

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 3 SOLUTION
To solve the first problem, we need to eliminate the effect of diode voltage drop. Adding an-
other constant voltage before the voltage signal is sent to comparator can eliminate the effect
of the diode.
To solve the second problem, we need to sharpen the slope of the back-EMF during the zero
crossing period. We can use an amplifier to amplify the back-EMF signal only around zero
crossing time because we are not interested in other time periods.
Figure 4 shows the solution.
Figure 4. Solution for improving back-EMF detection

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TS274 is a high speed Op-amp. Choose R1 and R2 such that VconR1/(R1+R2)=Vd/2.

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The positive input of the Op-amp is clamped at 0.7v by a diode because we are only interested
in the zero-crossing. So we only sharpen the slope of the back-EMF near the zero crossing.
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 4 RESULT
Figure 5. Back-EMF signal detection with and without amplification

0.5v/div

5v/div

Zero-crossing
B

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In Figure 5, the green channel is the signal directly from the winding, the terminal voltage,0.5v/

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div. The back-EMF signal is very weak. Point A will be the zero crossing point.

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The pink channel is the output from the Op-amp, 5v/div. Point B is the zero crossing point.
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Because of the diode forward drop, at the real zero crossing point, the terminal voltage is neg-
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The amplification makes the slope very sharp. Ob
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Now, the zero crossing signal is in very good shape.
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Figure 6. Back-EMF signal detection with amplification
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Zero-crossing signal

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 5 CONCLUSION
The theory clearly explains the mechanism of the back-EMF detection and shows the draw-
back of the original detection method.
The preconditioning circuit not only eliminates the effect of the diode forward voltage drop, but
also sharpens the slope of the back-EMF during the zero crossing period.
This circuit can greatly improve the performance of sensorless BLDC drives in low voltage ap-
plications, especially for automotive applications. With this technique, the sensorless drive
can be used in much wider speed range. As an example, using the original detection method,
the speed range could only be 30-150 rpm in one application. By the improved method, the
speed range can be 3-150 rpm.
Figure 7. Example Schematics
15V

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IN2+ IN3+

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2 Vin2 R9 OUT2 OUT3
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