Open-Source Reference Board to Accelerate Medical Ventilator Design
July 23, 2020
News
Compact module to cut time to market for crucial medical equipment, combines TMC4671 integrated servo controller and TMC6100 universal high-voltage gate driver.
TRINAMIC Motion Control, now part of Maxim Integrated, announced the TMC4671+TMC6100-TOSV-REF design board, a BLDC servo driver capable of 12V to 36V with up to 6A RMS to accommodate medical ventilator and respiratory system design. To shorten design cycles, the open-source module features a session border controller (SBC) connector in Raspberry Pi style and space for a pressure sensor add-on board.
Trinamic's reference design board includes a Hall sensor interface and connectors for an optional pressure sensor add-on board. As a result, pressure data can be visualized on a Raspberry Pi with touch screen using the free firmware developed by Trinamic for the reference design board. Hardware and software are open-source, meeting the goals of the Trinamic Open-Source Ventilator (TOSV) project, which led to this reference design.
Thanks to the embedded TMC4671 servo controller IC, the module generates a pulse-width modulation (PWM) frequency and a current controller clock of 100 kHz independent of the microcontroller. According to the company, this approach reduces the system's current consumption by up to 15 percent, compared with a frequency of 25 kHz, without compromising performance.
An add-on board for I2C and analog sensors supports pressure sensors offered by various manufacturers. The TMC4671+TMC6100-TOSV-REF plugs into a single-board computer to access the user interface and high-level control functions. Following the example of the TOSV project, the module uses Raspberry Pi with touch screen display.
The complete TMC4671+TMC6100-TOSV-REF reference board is available now through Trinamic's distribution channels. All hardware, firmware, and software are open source under the MIT license.
Features include:
- Single-axis BLDC servo driver for up to 6A RMS/phase
- Supply Voltage 12V to 36V
- Integrated over-voltage protection
- HALL sensor interface
- Onboard temperature sensor
- Digital I/O and analog inputs
- Add-on board connector for standard or custom sensor interface board
- Raspberry Pi connector for external SBC
For more information, visit: https://www.trinamic.com/company/news/news-detail/accelerating-development-of-medical-ventilators/
Tiera Oliver is the assistant managing editor at Embedded Computing Design. She is responsible for web content editing, product news, and story development. She also manages, edits, and develops content for ECD podcasts, including Embedded Insiders.
She utilizes her expertise in journalism and content management to oversee editorial content, coordinate with editors, and ensure high-quality output across web, print, and multimedia platforms. She manages diverse projects, assists in the production of digital magazines, and hosts company podcasts by conducting in-depth interviews with industry leaders to deliver engaging and insightful discussions.
Tiera attended Northern Arizona University, where she received her bachelor's in journalism and political science. She was also a news reporter for the student-led newspaper, The Lumberjack.
