pp er  

t e  
S      ors
 M o t
A report by Cristalyn Alim,
Osram Jade Amolat, and
Lars Ulrich Algarate
What
What are
are stepper
stepper motors?
motors?
What
What are
are stepper
stepper motors?
motors?

A stepper motor is an electromechanical device which converts

electrical pulses into discrete mechanical movements. The shaft
or spindle of a stepper motor rotates indiscreet step increments
when electrical command pulses are applied to it in the proper
sequence.
What
What are
are stepper
stepper motors?
motors?

These motors are also called stepping motors or step motors. The
name stepper is used because this motor rotates through a fixed
angular step in response to each input current pulse received by its
controller.
Stepper Motor
Stepper Motor Characteristics
Characteristics

Stepper motors are constant power devices.

As motor speed increases, torque decreases.
Steppers exhibit more vibration than other motor types, as the
discrete step tends to snap the rotor from one position to another.
This vibration can become very bad at some speeds and can
cause the motor to lose torque.
Step
Step Angle
Angle

It is the angle through which the motor shaft rotates for each
command pulse. The smaller the step angle, greater the number of
steps per revolution and higher the resolution or accuracy of
positioning obtained. The step angles can be as small as 0.72º or as
large as 90º. But the most common step sizes are 1.8º, 2.5º, 7.5º and
15º.
Step
Step Angle
Angle
Types
Types of
of stepper
stepper motors
motors
1. Variable-reluctance motor
2. Permanent magnet motor
3. Hybrid motor
Variable-reluctance
motor
It has wound stator poles but the rotor poles are made
of a ferromagnetic material. It can
be of the single stack type or multi-stack type
which gives smaller step angles. Direction of
motor rotation is independent of the polarity of the stator
current. It is called variable reluctance motor because the
reluctance of the magnetic circuit formed by the rotor and
stator teeth varies with the angular position of the rotor.
Permanent magnet
motor
It also has wound stator poles but its rotor poles are
permanently magnetized. It has a cylindrical rotor and its
direction of rotation depends on the
polarity of the stator current.
Hybrid motor
The hybrid motor combines the features of VR stepper
motor and PM stepper motor. Its stator construction is
similar to the single-stack VR motor but the rotor is
cylindrical and is composed of radially magnetized
permanent magnets. A recent type uses a disc rotor which
is magnetized axially to give a small stepping angle and
low inertia.
Hybrid motor
Advantages
Excellent response to starting/stopping/ reversing.
It is possible to achieve very low speed synchronous
rotation with a load that is directly coupled to the shaft.
The motors response to digital input pulses provides open-
loop control, making the motor simpler and less costly to
control.
The motor has full torque at standstill (if the windings are
energized)
Disadvantages
Resonances can occur if not properly
controlled.
Not easy to operate at extremely high speeds
Applications
Computer-controlled stepper motors are one of the most versatile forms of
positioning systems. They are typically digitally controlled as part of an
open loop system, and are simpler and more rugged than closed loop servo
systems.

Industrial applications are in high speed pick and place equipment and
multi-axis machine CNC machines often directly driving lead screws or
ballscrews. In the field of lasers and optics they are frequently used in
precision positioning equipment such as linear actuators, linear stages,
rotation stages, goniometers, and mirror mounts. Other uses are in
packaging machinery, and positioning of valve pilot stages for fluid control
systems.
Applications
Commercially, stepper motors are used in floppy disk drives, flatbed
scanners, computer printers, plotters, slot machines, and many more
devices.

Some people looking for generators for homemade Wind Turbines found
success in using stepper motors for generating power.
Thank you!