DRV8245H-Q1EVM: Getting started

Hey Johnny,

Check out the user guide here: DRV824x_DRV814x-Q1EVM User’s Guide (Rev. D) 

And make sure you're using the latest GUI (1.02 right now), I recommend using the online version:  https://dev.ti.com/gallery/view/MotorDriversBSM/DRV824x_DRV814x-Q1EVM-GUI 

Try 1. Turn on VM power supply.  2. Plug in USB to EVM/PC.  3. Select the "DRV824xH" tile 

And here's a FAQ I wrote that covers some other issues we often see with EVMs like driver issues: (+) [FAQ] Why won't my Motor Driver EVM connect to the GUI? - Motor drivers forum - Motor drivers - TI E2E support forums

Best,

Jacob

Hi,

Thank you for you reply.

I have checked the user guide prior to use the evaluation board but it doesn't seem to work.

On the user guide page 17, it's indicated to connect the EVM USB cable prior to apply +BAT (VM) to the EVM.

I'm using the online version of the GUI and have selected the DRV824x_DRV814x-Q1EVM-GUI .
Its version is 1.0.2.

The EVM board connects well

The connections on my side are : 

J14 :
   +BAT : +12V
   GND : GND

J16 :
   Jumper between 3V3 and 3V3_MCU

J4 :
  Jumpers between 
      nSleep and nSleep_MCU
      nFault and nFault_MCU
      PH and PH_MCU
      EN and EN_MCU

J8 (OUT1) :
   Vm+ (One terminal of my motor)

J3 (OUT-) :
   Vm- (The other terminal of my motor)

For the config jumpers,
I set :
- Mode to EN/PH
- ITRIP no jumper to set it to lvl 6
- IPROPI to 1 kOhm
- SR to lvl 3
- DIAG no jumper to set it to lvl 6

When I woke the driver up and start driving, as soon as I set a duty cycle different from 0, the bridge current becomes 12A but the motor doesn't budge.

Did I forget something or do something wrong ?

My circuit looks like this, I power the board from the terminal block at the top right corner and plugged my motor on the bottom right terminal block.

Hey Johnny,

Please populate the jumpers in J4 the middle header for nSLEEP, IPROPI, nFAULT, IN2, IN1, and DRVOFF.  I think all 6 of those need to be populated for proper functionality.  

Can you also try a smaller motor first? Just to make sure it isn't OCP on startup current causing it to not start. Then if that small motor works try the large motor. 

Best,

Jacob

I think I haven't connected the DRVOFF and the IPROPI jumpers.
I just did and when I start driving with a non-zero duty cycle, the current is not as high as before (12A before) but the motor is still not budging.

If this current is the one that circulates through the bridge, I'm not sure it's enough to drive the motor.

----

I did further tests.

When I switch from Asleep to Wake on the GUI, the state of the nSleep pin stays 0 but when I switch the state of Enable Driver, the DRVOFF pin's state changes and when I force nSleep to 1 with an external source, the nFault LED lights on. Does anybody know why ?

Since nSleep stays low, is it the cause why the motor doesn't move ?

Hi Johnny,

If the nSLEEP pin is remaining low then the device is not waking up. Can you check that the MCU is outputting the signals correctly by measuring the side of J4 that is closest to the MCU? If toggling nSLEEP in the GUI does not cause the nSLEEP pin on J4 to toggle, then please check of R29 is populated.

After the nSLEEP issue is resolved use the clear fault button in the GUI to try and clear the fault being reported by the DRV8245. If nFAULT goes high again, please capture the time the nFAULT pin went Low -> High -> Low so we can try and figure out which fault is being reported. In the nFAULT capture it would be good to also capture nSLEEP, VM, and OUTx.

Regards,

Joshua

Hi Joshua,

Thank you for your reply.

What do you call R29 ?
I looked on the EVM datasheet and schematics but there is no mention of it.

I've monitored the state of the J4 pin connected to the MCU. They all seem to be working correctly except for nSleep which does not change.

Hi Johnny,

I do apologize, I was looking at a different EVM, there is no R29 on this EVM. 

Can you try updating the firmware of the EVM? This can be done by selecting File -> Program Device with the EVM connected to the GUI.

Regards,

Joshua