BERGAÑO, JAMES M.

I. DISCUSSION OF THEORY
A direct current (DC) motor is a type of electric machine that converts electrical energy into
mechanical energy. DC motors take electrical power through direct current, and convert this energy
into mechanical rotation. DC motors use magnetic fields that occur from the electrical currents
generated, which powers the movement of a rotor fixed within the output shaft. The output torque
and speed depend upon both the electrical input and the design of the motor.

DC motors include two key components: a stator and an armature. The stator is the
stationary part of a motor, while the armature rotates. In a DC motor, the stator provides a rotating
magnetic field that drives the armature to rotate. A simple DC motor uses a stationary set of
magnets in the stator, and a coil of wire with a current running through it to generate an
electromagnetic field aligned with the center of the coil. One or more windings of insulated wire are
wrapped around the core of the motor to concentrate the magnetic field.

The windings of insulated wire are connected to a commutator (a rotary electrical switch),
that applies an electrical current to the windings. The commutator allows each armature coil to be
energized in turn, creating a steady rotating force (known as torque). When the coils are turned on
and off in sequence, a rotating magnetic field is created that interacts with the differing fields of the
stationary magnets in the stator to create torque, which causes it to rotate. These key operating
principles of DC motors allow them to convert the electrical energy from direct current into
mechanical energy through the rotating movement, which can then be used for the propulsion of
objects.

DC Motor Diagram

TYPES OF DC MOTORS

1. Brushed DC Motor
The magnetic field in a brush DC motor is produced by current sent through a commutator and
brush that are connected to the rotor. Brushes are made of carbon and can be separately excited or
self excited. The stator encloses the motor components and houses the magnetic field. The winding
on the rotor can be in series or parallel to form a series-wound or shunt-wound DC motor. The
commutator serves as an electrical switch, reversing the current direction to create a steady
rotating torque. There are three main types of DC motors: separately excited, self excited, and
permanent magnet. Self excited motors are further divided into shunt, series, and compound types.
Separately Excited DC Motor

In a separately excited DC motor, the motor has separate electrical supplies to the armature
winding and field winding, which are electrically separate from each other. The
operations of the armature current and field current do not interfere with each other’s actions,
but the input power is their total sum.

Permanent Magnet DC Motor

A permanent magnet DC motor has an armature winding but does not have a field winding. The
permanent magnet is mounted on the inner surface of the stator core to produce the magnetic
field. It has a regular armature consisting of a commutator and brushes. Permanent magnet DC
motors are smaller and less expensive. They use rare earth magnets such as samarium cobalt or
neodymium iron boron.

Self Excited DC Motor

In self excited DC motors, the field and armature windings are connected and have a single supply
source. The connections are parallel or series with parallel made as shunt wound while the series
version is series wound.
Shunt
In a shunt wound DC motor, the field and armature windings are connected parallel to each other;
this exposes the field winding to terminal voltage. Though the supply is the same, the current for
the field and armature windings is different. The speed of a shunt DC motor is constant and does
not deviate with varying mechanical loads.

Series
The field and armature winding on a series DC motor are connected to the power supply in a series.
The same current flows in the field and armature windings. A series wound motor can work with
AC and DC voltage supply, which makes it a universal motor. Series motors always rotate in the
same direction regardless of the voltage source. Their speed varies with the mechanical load.

Compound
A compound DC motor combines series and shunt field windings. The armature winding is in series,
while the field winding is in a shunt or parallel connection. Compound DC motors are categorized
as cumulative or differential. In cumulative motors, the shunt field flux aids the series field flux,
both moving in the same direction. Differential compound motors have the series and shunt field
fluxes moving in opposite directions. These motors can have long or short shunts, depending on
the shunting of the shunt field winding.

Brushless DC Motor (BLDC)

Brushless DC motors, also known as BLDC motors, are electric motors driven by direct
current and controlled by an electronic commutation system. Unlike brushed DC motors, BLDC
motors use electrical commutation instead of mechanical contact. They consist of a magnet rotor
and a stator with fixed conductors. The rotor rotates while the armature coils are electronically
switched based on rotor position sensed by Hall sensors. This design eliminates the need for
brushes, resulting in quieter operation, increased reliability, and higher efficiency (85-90%). The
absence of brushes reduces wear and tear and minimizes heat production.

Brushless DC Motor Construction

There are several different configurations of BLDC motors, which vary according to their
stator windings that can be single, two, or three phase. The majority of BLDC motors have the
three phase design with a permanent magnet rotor. The stator for each type of BLDC motor has
the same number of windings.
BLDC motors can be inrunner or outrunner where an inrunner brushless motor has the
permanent magnets inside the electromagnets while an outrunner has the permanent magnets
outside the electromagnets. The working principle for both designs is the same with different
configurations.

Stator
The stator produces the magnetic force that causes the rotor of a brushless DC motor to
spin. It is either inside and surrounded by the rotor or outside enclosing the rotor. The stator is
made up of laminated steel stampings stacked together to form a magnetic core. Coils of wire are
wound around the core and are connected to the controller.
The pieces of steel of the stator can be slotted or slotless with slotless cores being capable
of producing high speed motors because of low inductance, a design that is more expensive since
it requires more coil turns.

Rotor
The rotor contains a permanent magnet with two to eight pairs of poles with alternate
south and north poles. The magnetic material for the rotor is carefully chosen in order to produce
the required magnetic field density. The types of magnets for the rotor can be ferrite or
neodymium.
The different core configurations are circular with permanent magnets on the periphery
or circular with rectangular magnets.

Hall Sensor
Hall sensors synchronize the stator armature excitation by sensing the position of the
rotor. The commutation of BLDC motors is controlled electronically causing the stator windings to
be energized in sequence to rotate the rotor. Before a winding can be energized, the Hall sensor
identifies the position of the rotor. Most BLDC motors have three Hall sensors that are placed in
the stator. Each of the sensors generates a low and high signal when the rotor poles pass near
them.

Benefits of BLDC Motor

• Absence of mechanical commutator to avoid wear
• High efficiency
• High speed of operation in loaded and unloaded conditions
• Smaller motor geometry and lighter weight
• Long life
 • Higher dynamic response because of low inertia and carrying windings in the stator
• Less electromagnetic interference
• Low noise and quiet operation

Servo DC Motor
A servo DC motor has four parts: a DC motor, gearbox, control circuit, and position sensing unit.
The gearbox changes high speed input into slower practical speed. The control circuit is an error
detector amplifier. The position of the shaft gives feedback to the control circuit and is in a closed
loop. With a servo DC motor, if there is any mismatch between the current position of the shaft
and its reference position, an error signal is sent to the error detecting amplifier.

References:
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/content/discovery/ideas-and-advice/dc-motors-guide
https://www.iqsdirectory.com/articles/electric-motor/dc-motors.html
https://byjus.com/physics/dc-motor/