STMicroelectronics has released a gallium nitride (GaN)-based reference design targeting motor control designs for consumer electronics and industrial drives. The new board takes the form of a compact three-phase inverter and is characterized by providing design data and an evaluation environment, allowing for the entire process from motor control circuit review to firmware development to be carried out in one go.

ST unveiled the EVSTDRVG611MC on March 30 and stated that the board is a platform for evaluating consumer electronics and industrial motor control applications. Amid the trend of expanding GaN applications in the motor control field, this amounts to presenting a reference design that combines component configuration and development tools.

The product is a structure that combines an STDRIVEG611 GaN gate driver, a 650V 75mΩ class GaN power transistor, and an STM32G431 microcontroller. It focused on BLDC motor control, which is mainly used in home appliances and industrial equipment, and was configured to allow simultaneous evaluation and initial design review based on a small board.

The output is designed to handle over 600W without a heatsink. Adding a heatsink allows for expansion into higher performance ranges, broadening its applicability not only to home appliances like washing machines but also to industrial servo drives. The board measures 108mm × 110mm on a 2-layer substrate, and the design also incorporates considerations for manufacturing costs.

In terms of control performance, the STM32G431 plays a key role. This microcontroller incorporates an analog amplifier that supports 3-shunt current sensing and is based on an Arm Cortex-M4 core, enabling real-time control algorithms to run even under high-speed rotation conditions. In addition to sensorless control, it supports sensor-based control utilizing Hall sensors and incremental and absolute encoders.

A development environment is also provided. Engineers can utilize motor profiling, performance monitoring, and automatic firmware generation features through the ST Motor Control Workbench. The configuration expands the scope of support to enable progress beyond hardware evaluation to the actual application development stage. The EVSTDRVG611MC is currently available for purchase through official ST distributors and the eStore.