Whitepapers
Engineering notes from ECM’s R&D team. Each paper covers a specific application area, with real hardware data, control system analysis, and worked examples using ECM’s PCB stator axial flux motors. Free to download.
ECM103
Figures of Merit and Optimal Design: An ECM Quadcopter Drone Lift Motor
Motor datasheets provide figures of merit that are useful for comparing similar motors from similar manufacturers. This note argues that those figures often don’t capture what actually determines performance in a given application. Using a quadcopter drone lift motor as a worked example, it develops a flight-time optimization criterion and shows the performance advantage of designing to that criterion over selecting from a catalog.
ECM102
ECM and a Typical Robot Actuator Motor
The selection of a motor for actuator and robotics applications is often reduced to a comparison of key parameters such as specific peak torque. This reductionist approach is appealing, but comparison of motors with fundamentally different physics is more involved. This note compares peak torque limits and ratings for typical iron-core servomotors versus ECM’s air-core axial flux motors.
ECM101
Axial Flux Motors for Reaction Wheel Applications
Reaction wheel systems provide precise attitude control for satellites and stabilization platforms by exchanging angular momentum through a motor-driven flywheel. This note covers how ECM’s axial flux PCB stator technology offers an integrated solution for reaction wheel applications, with low torque ripple, high-bandwidth torque control, and essentially no audible vibration.
ECM100
Air-core Motors for Haptic Applications
ECM’s PCB stator air-core motor technology features industry-leading ultra-low-cogging torque. The lack of cogging and torque ripple, among other features unique to ECM technology, is particularly beneficial for haptic feedback applications such as exercise equipment, simulators, and human-machine interaction.