1 Introduction

The LDC5072-Q1 is an inductive sensor interface that has been designed to provide accurate estimates of a motor's position using simple, inexpensive conductive targets and sense coils. These are usually implemented on PC boards with two or more layers. The LDC5072-Q1 contains internal fault-management circuitry that can alert a system monitor to opens or shorts in PC board traces or wire harnesses, or out-of-range signal levels. For more information, please see the LDC5072-Q1 device data sheet or functional safety manual.

While the system comprised of the target, sensors, and the LDC5072 is simple, designing the sensors to give the desired system behavior can be potentially challenging. Quantifying the electromagnetic interplay of the target, exciter coil, sense coils and the relationship to motor speed, position, and the resulting accuracy of the angle estimates can be difficult and complex. This is where this design tool can help.

The remainder of the document is divided into nine sections. The next section describes how to gain access to the tool and download the installer. The section Installing the Tool discusses the steps of installing the tool (based on the MATLAB run-time engine) with particular attention to the folder paths and operating system permissions. The section Using the Tool to Create a Design discusses the design steps with an example set of design criteria. The tool also creates a SPICE model of a design. Using the Tool to Create a SPICE Model of Your Design with the LDC5072 provides background on creation of a SPICE model and gives an overview of the model files. Running Simulations in Pspice shows how use the SPICE model in the Cadence Pspice for TI simulation manager. The tool creates Gerber files of a design with a single button-click, and Create Gerber Design Files reviews the results of the sensor files, target and eval PC board. The next-to-last section provides the bill-of-materials, layout and schematic of the eval PC board. The final section is a brief troubleshooting guide.