Brushless
Motor Controller for DIY flight control loaders
(force feedback).
Details of one
customer's installation here....
The BLDRV-12/24 card is a single channel brushless motor
driver for DIY force feedback flight controls. These FFB
systems are also known as “flight control loading”
(CL) systems.
ONE controller is required for EACH control
axis.
The drivers are designed to be used with specific
brushless motors in properly designed and constructed DIY
flight controls. In well built flight controls the
BLDRV-12/24 drivers and BLDC motors develop very smooth
control forces in response to the changing dynamics of the
simulated
flight.
The BLDRV-12/24 cards are driven by the
BFF Control Loader
software which is available for both FS9/X and X-Plane.
NOTE these cards DO NOT operate with conventional FFB output
for FFB joysticks.
Please note that the BFF CL System generates force levels
much larger than those from conventional FFB joysticks and
this gives a more realistic flight experience when flying with a
yoke, stick or flight column. The system can also be used to
build DIY FFB rudder pedals.
The BFF CL system is intended for leisure use by flight
simulation enthusiasts – it is not a system certified for
flight training use.
I normally supply the BLDRV-12/24 cards only; to complete
a FFB
project you will need to source for yourself all other components
required for the system. A BFF CL Software
non-commercial use licence is included with card orders.
APRIL '12 - I also now have a small stock
of MB082 brushless motors and encoders suitable for use in
the CL system. Please email for prices and availability.
BLDRV-12/24 Drivers
The BLDRV-12/24 control loader brushless driver card
features are:
-
Up to 6 amp output with passive cooling -
higher current output available with forced-air cooling.
-
3 phase continuous sinusoidal motor commutation to
generate smooth torque output for more realistic flight
control force feel.
-
Onboard force calculation at 500Hz (for flight control
movement related load components) with 50Hz insertion of
simulator flight dynamics related force components -
combines fast and stable control loop operation with low
resource on-PC CL software.
-
+/-
9bit force output resolution, 10KHz PWM.
-
Addressable channels for elevator, aileron and rudder
axes with daisy chaining of cards on single USB/RS232
line.
-
12 or
24V operation (24V is recommended for DIY battery
powered systems).
-
Re-programmable for encoder cpr, hall sensor position
calibration, motor pole count, vibration scaling and force demand scaling.
-
PID
controlled position following mode for AP following (and
future control station electrical linking).
For
details PLEASE READ the
BLDRV-12/24 data sheet here.
|
MB082 BLDC Motor |
The
default BLDRV-12/24 card programming is for use with
Agenzia
Pini SpeederMotion MB082GA210 BLDC motors which should be fitted
with 360 cpr (5V DC, A + B) quadrature shaft encoders. When
building these
motors into flight controls the following mechanical
transmission speed reduction ratios should be used.
-
Aileron: 3:1 minimum for motor shaft to yoke tube
- bigger for heavier wheels.
-
Elevator on flight COLUMNS: 45:1
(updated) minimum for motor shaft to flight column
base pivot. For yoke designs which convert shaft
rotation to elevator linear movement use a belt pulley
with approx 42mm PCD (21mm torque radius arm).
-
Rudder: 12:1 minimum for motor shaft to pedal center
pivot.
If you
use transmission ratios less than these the force levels at
the controls will be lower and the torque demand on the
motor and motor current levels (and
hence driver card heating effects) will be higher and may
endanger both the drivers and the motors.
System
Build
The
BLDRV-12/24 drives MUST be used in a properly designed and constructed
electrical/mechanical system. The system wiring
is shown below:
The
above system diagram MUST be read in conjunction with these
notes -
BFF
System Wiring Notes. You should also ensure that you
download and READ carefully the
BLDRV-12/24 data sheet
BEFORE attempting the project.
Power
Supply
I have
recommended lead-acid rechargeable batteries as they can
provide a very smooth current supply and can also sink
current should it be returned from the cards. I have also
recently tested a Mean Well S-350-24 power supply and
found it to provide smooth current at higher loads and to
maintain its voltage fairly well under load and have had no
problems from the cards using this power supply.
See -
http://www.meanwell.com/search/s-350/s-350-spec.pdf
The supply
rated at 14.6 Amp which is sufficient for a 2 axis system
such as the flight yoke, but it may be too small for a 3
axis system (including rudder pedals). It is available on
eBay at a fairly low cost.
BFF CL
Software features
The BLDRV-12/24 drivers operate with the
BFF CL Software provided on
the site. The flight
control forces simulated by the BFF CL System include:
-
Airspeed dependent
aerodynamic loading (returning forces proportional to control
surface displacement and airspeed)
-
Adjustable aerodynamic force gains
(equivalent to adjustable control surface area)
-
Angle of attack (alpha and beta)
effects (eg for longitudinal stability response)
-
Realistic trim behaviour (independent
of simulator trim system, controls can be trimmed in any
position)
-
Control surface static & dynamic
weight effects (aircraft acceleration effects)
-
Prop-wash effects
-
Engine vibrations (vary with power &
rpm)
-
Runway vibration effects (vary with
runway speed)
-
Stall buffeting effects (frequency
and amplitude definable - eg stick vibration type
behaviour)
-
Damping and friction adjustments (-ve
gains definable)
For
more details of the Control Loader
software see here.
Some
details on one customer's system -
Aersim Boeing 747
Simulator....
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