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R45 PCB Motor

The R45 PCB Motor is a new modular PCB motor concept that allows tuning of performance by simply selecting a different stack of motor PCBs.

This approach combines compactness, flexibility, and scalability in a way that is not possible with conventional BLDC motors.

Motor Design and PCB Technology

The motor is specially designed for current handling and thermal performance. Each PCB can operate as a standalone motor or be stacked in series or parallel configurations to increase power output. This modular design enables engineers to configure a motor according to their application requirements.

Halbach Magnet Configuration

The R45 PCB Motor uses a Halbach magnet array, which offers two main advantages:

  1. Concentration of the magnetic field on one side, similar to having a back iron but without the additional weight.
  2. More uniform magnetic field distribution, even when using standard rectangular magnets instead of expensive arc-shaped magnets.

This design reduces material costs while maintaining high efficiency and performance.

Validation of the Magnetic Design

Once all magnets were assembled, the field distribution was inspected with a magnetic viewing film. The results confirmed that the Halbach configuration behaved exactly as predicted by simulation, validating the design approach.

Electrical and Thermal Performance

When multiple boards are stacked, the torque increases almost linearly with the number of layers, while the thermal performance shows only moderate degradation. For example, with four stacked boards, the thermal performance is only degraded by 15%, additional measures such as thermal pads between layers could further enhance performance.

Integration with the R45 PCB Motor Driver

The R45 PCB Motor has been successfully tested with the R45 PCB Motor Driver, demonstrating smooth operation and efficient control. This combination provides a fully integrated motion solution designed around PCB-based motor technology.

The R45 PCB Motor represents a new approach to modular motor design, where performance can be tuned by simply adjusting the number of PCB layers. Its compact form factor, efficient Halbach configuration, and seamless integration with the R45 PCB Motor Driver make it a powerful solution for applications requiring flexibility, performance and low cost.