Motor Drives & Inverters
Motor Drive & Inverter Design
Spark Product Innovation develops custom motor drives, inverter electronics and associated control systems for standard and specialised electric machines. Designs can be developed around the electrical, mechanical and control requirements of the motor and wider application.
Our work covers power electronics, embedded control, sensing, protection, regenerative operation and system-level integration, from early development hardware through to application-specific production designs.
Motor Drives, Inverters & Power Conversion
Spark can develop application-specific drive electronics for a range of motor technologies and power-conversion requirements, including systems requiring bidirectional power flow or regenerative braking.
3-Phase AC Motor Drives
Drive and inverter electronics for 3-phase AC induction motors and associated control, sensing and protection requirements.
Brushless DC Motor Control
Electronics for sensed and sensorless BLDC motors, including power stages, commutation control and application-specific interfaces.
DC-AC & AC-AC Conversion
Grid-tie inverter architectures and AC-AC frequency conversion for applications requiring controlled power conversion.
Linear Motors & Actuators
Drive electronics for induction and permanent-magnet linear motors, actuators and other specialised magnetic machines.
In-House Motor Drive Development & Test Facility
Spark maintains dedicated motor test equipment at our engineering facility to support the development, bring-up and validation of motor drives, inverter electronics and control systems.
Our 3kW, 25Nm motor development rig incorporates a configurable magnetic brake, allowing controlled mechanical load to be applied while drive hardware and embedded control are developed and tested.
This gives our engineers the ability to exercise motor-drive systems under repeatable loaded conditions in-house, measure system behaviour and evaluate hardware, firmware and control changes throughout the development process.
Having this capability available within Spark means development does not need to rely solely on unloaded bench testing or external test facilities, helping us move efficiently from initial prototype bring-up through to loaded system validation.
High-Power Inverter & Switching Electronics
Motor-drive performance is strongly influenced by the design of the power stage itself. Spark develops high-current switching electronics around the required voltage, current, duty cycle, protection and thermal constraints of the application.
The system shown here uses a high-current H-bridge architecture with redundant switching paths. Similar power-electronics principles are used throughout motor drives, inverters, regenerative systems and other bidirectional power-conversion applications.
- MOSFET and power-semiconductor switching stages.
- Half-bridge and H-bridge power architectures.
- Current and voltage measurement.
- Gate-drive and protection circuitry.
- Thermal and mechanical integration.
- Regenerative and bidirectional power control.
Custom Motor Dynamometer & Test Rig Design
Some projects require a dedicated mechanical test platform as part of the development or production process. Spark can design and build custom motor dynamometer and test rigs specifically for a customer’s application.
These systems can be developed around the required torque, speed, motor type, duty cycle and test objectives, combining the mechanical assembly, loading machine, sensors, controls and electrical interfaces into a purpose-built rig.
This is separate from our own in-house development facility: where required, we can design a dedicated test platform that becomes part of the customer’s engineering or production equipment.
Discuss a Motor Test RigMotor Drive Development Capabilities
Power Stage Design
MOSFET-based inverter stages, bridge topologies, gate drivers, current measurement and application-specific protection circuitry.
Embedded Motor Control
Microcontroller-based control, sensing, commutation, communications and integration with the wider machine or product.
Regenerative Operation
Two- and four-quadrant drive architectures for applications requiring controlled braking or bidirectional energy flow.
Prototype & Test
Prototype bring-up, loaded motor testing, in-house dynamometer facilities and system-level validation during development.
Motor Drive & Inverter FAQs
Common questions about custom motor drives, inverter electronics and development testing.
What types of motors can Spark develop drive electronics for?
Our experience includes 3-phase AC induction motors, sensed and sensorless brushless DC motors, linear motors, actuators and other specialised magnetic machines.
Can you develop regenerative motor drives?
Yes. Motor-drive architectures can be developed for two- and four-quadrant operation, including applications requiring regenerative braking and bidirectional energy flow.
Do you design the power electronics and control electronics together?
Yes. The inverter power stage, sensing, protection, embedded control electronics and system interfaces can be developed as an integrated electronics platform around the requirements of the motor and application.
Do you have facilities for loaded motor testing?
Yes. Spark has an in-house 3kW, 25Nm motor development test facility with configurable mechanical loading, allowing motor-drive and inverter systems to be evaluated under repeatable loaded conditions during development.
Can you build a custom motor test rig for our application?
Yes. In addition to our own development facility, Spark can design purpose-built motor dynamometer and loading rigs for customer development, validation or production-test applications.
Can you support an existing motor-drive design?
Yes. Existing hardware can be reviewed and supported where a project requires design changes, debugging, additional development work or a new revision of the drive electronics.
Discuss Your Motor Drive or Inverter Project
Whether you need a custom motor drive, high-current inverter stage, regenerative control system or purpose-built motor development rig, Spark Product Innovation can develop and test the system around your application.
Contact Spark Product Innovation