Why sometimes I can't reach 100% motor torque when is already turning

Why sometimes I can't reach 100% motor torque when is already turning

Before starting: torque actual value IS NOT, the real motor torque. 

What you read as torque actual value is indeed the current read on the motor multiplied by a factor (force sensitivity or torque constant) that we consider linear and constant.

Reasons why the torque actual is NOT the real torque:

  1. If commutation, phasing, is not correct, an important part of the current is not useful torque, it just creates electrical and magnetic loses. 
  2. If current loop is not well configured or unstable, the current will be higher and with ripple, the real "useful mechanical torque" will be indeed lower.
  3. Torque constant can vary due to several factors, like motor construction, the temperature of the magnets (that affects its magnetic properties).

However, this solution is a good and practical approximation. And saves expensive torquemeters or strain gauges.

Why can't I reach 100% torque?

Sometimes after accelerating you can't reach the maximum torque. The reason is that no matter how much the current loop wants to increase current (proportional to torque) by increasing the PWM duty cycle of the power stage, the Vmotor is too close to Vbemf and therefore current can't increase more.

Whenever Friction torque + Additional loads = Motor Torque, the load remains in equilibrium (does not move, or moves under constant speed). Whenever Friction torque + Additional loads < Motor Torque, the load accelerates (Motor torque - Friction torque - Additional loads = Acceleration torque > 0). Al high speeds, the BEMF is so close to Vbus that the applicable Motor torque gets limited. Then, the bigger the Friction torque + Additional load is, the smaller the Acceleration torque becomes. This can also occur if acceleration or speed is limited by some reason. 

This situation does not occur at the beginning of an acceleration because most of the torque is used to increase the kinetical energy of the load (and motor). But when the speed is already high and no extra load is applied it is not possible to increase the torque. 


Maximum achievable torque depending on motor speed

Recalculate this based on your motor parameters.



How to prevent this

  • Increase DC bus voltage. 
  • Unlimit system acceleration.
  • Use a motor with less resistance and lower back EMF proportion. 

Compensation for electric mobility throttles 

This situation creates a bad feeling that at high speeds the throttle does not work correctly.

The user feels that it releasing the throttle does not reduce motor force!

The proposed solution is to add a torque demand limitation based on speed.

  • Will improve user feeling when releasing the brake when the vehicle is already accelerated.
  • Will limit vehicle top speed (safety)


    • Related Articles

    • Why does my brushless motor not reach rated speed?

      Problem I have already configured my motor completely with the Configuration Wizard (or manually) but when I try to move the motor, I can see that it clearly does not reach its rated speed. Why does that happen and what can I do about it? Before ...
    • How to tune a stepper motor

      In this How-to guide, basic steps for the tuning of a stepper motor are explained. The main objective is to point out the main differences between tuning of a 'normal' actuator and a stepper actuator. Knowledge about tuning and how to use MotionLab ...
    • How to manually execute a profile torque movement by using the registers

      In this How-to guide, we will explain how to execute a movement (profile torque) by directly changing the register values, instead of using MotionLab or the dedicated macros for motion.  We will consider a movement towards a specific torque in this ...
    • How to configure a rotatory brushless motor with SSI encoder feedback

      Problem I have a rotatory brushless motor with an SSI encoder as the only feedback but I don't know how to properly configure it and tune it. What is the right process that I need to follow? Clarifications and checkings This article describes (step ...
    • How DC bus voltage is related to speed and torque in DC, BLDC and BLAC motors?

      Three important variables of any driver design are the bus voltage to be used, the maximum torque and speed requested. These variables are not independent and are mutually connected. This means that depending on the provided bus voltage, the maximum ...