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• SimpleFOC Boards
  • Boards in the Shield form factor
    • SimpleFOCShield v3.2 - Find out more
    • SimpleFOC PowerShield v0.2 ⚠️( development abandoned )
  • Boards in the Mini form factor
    • SimpleFOCMini v1.1 - Find out more
    • SimpleFOC StepMini v1.0 - See on Github

SimpleFOC Boards

One of the goals of the SimpleFOCproject is to develop low-cost easy to use BLDC driver boards compatible with the SimpleFOClibraryand completely open source! Therefore, SimpleFOC team members have developed a set of boards, designed specifically for ease of use, to help you kickstart your FOC journey. In addition to being easy to use, the goal of these boards is serve as a reference design for the community to build upon. And finally, even though some of these boards are available in our shop, our docs provide a lot of documentation and step-by-step guides on how to fabricate the boards yourself.

There two main formats of the official drivers boards developed by the SimpleFOC team:

• Shield form factor: These boards are designed to be compatible with the Arduino ecosystem and are intended to be used with the SimpleFOClibrary and the Arduino IDE. They are designed to be easy to use and are intended for low to mid power applications.
  • SimpleFOCShield - Find out more
  • SimpleFOC PowerShield - ⚠️( development abandoned ) - Find out more
• Mini form factor: These boards are designed to be small, low-cost, and easy to use. They are intended for low power applications and are designed to be compatible with the SimpleFOClibrary.
  • SimpleFOCMini - Find out more
  • SimpleFOC StepMini (📢NEW) - Find out more

In addition to the official boards, there are many other boards compatible with SimpleFOClibrary that you can explore, see the docs. Additionally, some other cool hardware designs have been proposed by the community. Check out our community forum for more info.

Boards in the Shield form factor

These boards are designed to be compatible with the Arduino UNO R3 headers, enabling an easy to start experience with the SimpleFOClibrary and the Arduino IDE. The boards can be used with any board with the standard Arduino headers, such as the Arduino MEGA, STM32 Nucleo boards, Adafruit Metro, ESP32 D1 R3, Arudino UNO R4 and many others. This format enables usesr to easily exchange the microcontrollers and find the best solution for their application. The boards are fully open-source and the fabrication files are available in the respective repositories, as well as detailed guides on how to fabricate the boards yourself. The boards are additionally available in the shop for those who prefer to buy them, as well as on other mainstream platforms like Aliexpress and Ebay (no relation to the SimpleFOCproject).

SimpleFOCShield v3.2 - Find out more

This is an open-source low-cost Brushless DC (BLDC) motor driver board intended primarily for low-power FOC applications up to 5Amps. The board is fully compatible with the Arduino UNO and all the boards with the standard Arduino headers. The SimpleFOCShield, in combination with the SimpleFOClibrary provides user-friendly way to control BLDC motors both in hardware and software.

Features

• Plug & play: In combination with Arduino SimpleFOClibrary - github
• Low-cost: Price of 15-30€ - Check the pricing
• In-line current sensing: Up to 5Amps bidirectional
  • ACS712 hall current sensor
• Integrated 8V regulator:
  • Enable/disable by soldering pads
• Absolute max ratings - Designed for Gimbal motors with the internal resistance >10 Ωs.
  • Max current: 3A,
  • Max input voltage: 35V
• Stackable: running 2 motors in the same time
• Encoder/Hall sensors interface: Integrated 3.3kΩ pullups (configurable)
• I2C interface: Integrated 4.7kΩ pullups (configurable)
• Configurable pinout: Hardware configuration - soldering connections
• Arduino headers: Arduino UNO, Arduino MEGA, STM32 Nucleo boards…
• Open Source:
  • Fully designed in EasyEDA: EasyEDA project 🎉
  • Fully available fabrication files - how to make it yourself

📢NEWS: SimpleFOCShield v3.2 is now out!

SimpleFOC PowerShield v0.2 ⚠️( development abandoned )

A powerful arduino shield for running BLDC motors using the FOC algorithm. This board is based on the BTN8982 half bridges and can support currents up to 30 Amps continuos and 50Amps peak. Making it a board that can run virtually any BLDC motor.

⚠️ BEWARE: BTN8982/IFX007T performance issues

BTN8982 and IFX007T drivers have been designed for DC motors and are based on old H-bridge technology. They have very long mosfet rise time (multiple microseconds) which in many cases presents a considerable part of the PWM duty cycle. When runnig the BLDC motors, precise PWM duty cycle setting is crutial for smooth and efficient operation. Therefore these drivers will not be able to provide very smooth operation on high frequency PWM (above 15kHz). Read more about it in the community thread: link.
This performance constraint is the main reason why the SimpleFOC PowerShield project has for now been put on hold, and although these boards are available through Aliexpress and some other platforms, they will not be available through simplefoc.com.

This does not mean that the board itself is not functional or that it will not work in your project though. It is still one of the cheepest (simplest) solutions out there for mid to high power BLDC control and with proper tuning of control loops you will still be able to get some good results with it.

Features

• Plug & play: In combination with Arduino SimpleFOClibrary
• Low-cost: Fabrication price under €25/pcs - ⚠️ will not be sold by silplefoc.com
• High-side current sensing: - not yet supported by SimpleFOClibrary
• In-line current sensing: - supported by SimpleFOClibrary
• Max power <500W: max current 30A, power-supply 24V
• Arduino headers: Arduino UNO, Arduino MEGA, STM32 Nucleo boards, Aruidno DUE…
• Small size: 53mm x 60mm
• Encoder/Hall sensors interface: Integrated 3.3kΩ pullups (configurable)
• Open Source:
  • Fully available fabrication files
    • If never done it before, see a similar guide for SimpleFOCShueld: how to make it yourself
  • Altium project
  • 3d model
  • schematics

Read more about this board at link

Boards in the Mini form factor

This is a set of miniature boards designed to be small, low-cost, and easy to use. They are intended for low power applications and are designed to be compatible with the SimpleFOClibrary. The boards are created as minimal working examples and are intended to be used as a reference design for the community to build upon. The boards are fully open-source and the fabrication files are available in the respective repositories, as well as detailed guides on how to fabricate the boards yourself. The boards are additionally available in the shop for those who prefer to buy them, as well as on other mainstream platforms like Aliexpress and Ebay (no relation to the SimpleFOCproject).

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