Sensorless FOC for stepper motor driver | Electronics Weekly

Jun 13, 2025

Nanotec has introduced a driver for stepper and brush-less dc (BLDC) motors with sensor-less closed-loop and field-oriented control (FOC).

Intended for steppers from NEMA 14 to NEMA 34 and BLDC motors up to NEMA 23 “its sensor-less closed-loop control provides precise management of torque and speed”, according to the company.

A additional ‘safe torque off’ (STO) function is in the pipeline.

N6, as it will be known, also supports sensing via Hall sensors, quadrature incremental encoders and SSI (synchronous serial interface) encoders.

Six digital and two analog inputs are included, as well as three feedback channels and a brake output for an external braking resistor.

Intended for applications up to 300W, the controller-driver needs a supply between 12 and 57.6Vdc and can deliver up to 6A continuously. Peak current is wither 6A or 18A depending on version.

Communication is also version-dependent, with a choice of EtherCAT, CANopen, Ethernet/IP, Modbus TCP or Modbus RTU. A micro-USB socked is included, and the unit can be programmed and parameterised using the company’s ‘Plug&Drive Studio’ software.

Use is foreseen in laboratory automation, medical technology, packaging equipment, surface-mont component SMD assembly and winding systems.

Founded in 1991, Nanotec has been based in near Munich in Germany since 2011. It has around 300 employees in Germany, Bulgaria, USA and China.

Find the N6 on this Nanotec web page

Late last year, Moon’s Industries introduced a family of stepper motors with large-bore hollow shafts.