To keep pace with the rapid development of Industry 4.0, IIoT system developers need to rely on smart, secure, and connected devices to automate factories and buildings. In particular, motors are the cornerstone of today's factories and automation processes, and motor control equipment has become an important segment of the automation market.
Multi-axis industrial drives, Ethernet-based Time Sensitive Networking (TSN) communications and Industrial Automation Control System (IACS) security are key technologies for automation applications. These industrial applications have complex motor drive, communication and safety requirements, and application development can be difficult without an optimized processing platform. Intelligent Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) systems must communicate, share data and interact with users and other devices, and handle all of these tasks securely.
To address the needs of these Industry 4.0 applications, NXP has announced the i.MX RT industrial driver development platform, which enables system designers to develop and test industrial use cases on a single, comprehensive platform, accelerating time to market while using secure designs method. NXP's i.MX RT industrial drive development platform provides a comprehensive modular solution that brings together key technologies that will redefine the next generation of secure IIoT devices and drive the transition to a truly smart factory.
Electric motors – the cornerstone of smart factory and building automation applications. Use the flexible and modular platform on your next project.
Designed to simplify IIoT development, the platform supports multi-axis motor control, deterministic TSN communication, human-machine interface (HMI), machine-to-machine (M2M) interfaces, and the cyber-resilient industrial security required by Industry 4.0. Target applications include robotic arms, mobile industrial robots, 3D printers, motor drives, multi-axis machinery, and AC and servo drives. While the platform is optimized for industrial applications, it can also be used in building automation (such as HVAC and elevator/escalator motor control), as well as consumer applications (such as white goods, i.e. large appliances with motors, including refrigerators, washing machines, etc.) and dryer).
Introduction to i.MX RT Industrial Driver Development Platform
NXP integrates the latest Industry 4.0 technologies into a comprehensive hardware and software platform to help develop smart and secure Industrial IoT applications. The flexible and modular i.MX RT industrial drive development platform supports multi-motor control and deterministic TSN communication, while providing a solid foundation for standards-compliant industrial cybersecurity. The platform hardware is built on the i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU family and EdgeLock® SE05x secure elements.
Utilizing the 800 MHz performance of the industrial-grade i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU, the ability of the i.MX RT1170 MCU to control 4 permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSM) simultaneously is demonstrated. In addition to handling advanced motor control algorithms, the i.MX RT1170 device has spare bandwidth to support displays, deterministic Ethernet TSN, data logging, fault detection, and security methods certified to ISA/IEC 62443-4 SL3 standard. Together with the onboard EdgeLock SE05x secure element, the platform provides a ready-to-use multi-board solution that speeds evaluation and validation for today's industrial applications.
Flexible Multiple Board Approach
The industrial driver development platform consists of three main boards: a daughter card that integrates a single i.MX RT1170 crossover MCU device, a digital board that serves as a daughter card expansion peripheral board, and can handle 200W output power to control sensors and sensors. A power stage board for a sensorless motor. Depending on the application specification, developers can add 1 to 4 power stage boards to the system, which provides greater flexibility for unique design requirements.
