Designed specifically for the open loop control of stepper motors sized NEMA 17 to NEMA 34, Nanotec Electronic GmbH & Co. KG, located in Feldkirchen, has developed a controller that is fast and easy to parameterize and program via USB. The C5 controller is ideal for simple applications that do not require a rotary encoder but demand highly dynamic performance and quiet running, such as CNC dental milling machines. It can be operated via clock-direction mode or through specification of the speed or position via the analog input. In addition, it supports application programs that are directly executed in the motor controller. Programs created in the C++ based programming language NanoJ are executed in the motor controller as machine code. They are synchronized with the digital inputs and outputs via the real-time operating system in 1-ms cycles and with the instructions received via the fieldbus. Thus, the drive can be operated autonomously without a fieldbus connection to the PLC, such as for format adjustments or simple additional functions on machines. An innovative motor resonance suppression feature via software-based current control ("dspDrive") means the C5 is particularly suitable for applications that require especially smooth-running, low-resonance stepper motors, such as those found in medical equipment, laboratory automation and optical devices. For more demanding closed loop applications, Nanotec offers the C5-E variant. It is equipped with a CANopen fieldbus interface and an encoder input, and is designed for stepper motors and BLDC motors with a continuous output of up to 250 W.
