Page 33 - EE Times Europe Magazine | June2020

EE|Times EUROPE 33

The Rise of the 48-V Robots
NEWS

by the robot itself — even in the middle of an operation, depending SD Storage Workloads Get a
upon the task at hand.
Special Processor
DELIVERING POWER SOLUTIONS FOR 48-V ROBOTICS
Many modern robotics applications use a 48-V bus to transport power
around the system. Compared with a typical 12-V bus, 48 V offers 1/16 Even as demand for data storage
of the losses or allows thinner and lighter cables to be used. In fixed skyrockets thanks to big data, artificial
robot installations, the 48 V will be generated by a mains-fed power intelligence, the internet of things,
supply that will incorporate a power-factor–corrected (PFC) front and 5G, more data is moving to SSDs,
end. Mobile robots, such as drones and care assistants, will have an notes Pliops president Steve Finger-
on-board battery that is replenished periodically from a mains- hut. Indeed, data center SSD usage is
powered adapter. forecast to grow a hundredfold in the
Few semiconductors are able to work directly from 48 V, generally next decade. “SSDs have a lot of great qualities, but the primary one is
requiring voltages of 5 V down to the sub-volt level. The non-isolated performance over hard drives,” said Fingerhut.
PoL converter plays an important role here, converting a higher voltage Over the past 10 years, the cost of SSDs has dropped while their
to the level that the IC requires. In some cases, an intermediate bus performance has improved, and capabilities have expanded thanks in
voltage (typically 12 V) would be created by using an intermediate large part to the rise of NVMe, he said. What’s not keeping up, however,
bus converter (IBC) that is loosely regulated with the PoL converter is processor performance, and the result is a bottleneck, as companies
converting the 12 V to the IC supply voltage. Increasingly, single-stage such as Intel and AMD keep adding cores, which add cost and power
conversion is preferred, and many PoL converters are now available to with diminishing returns. “As you add more and more cores, you’re
convert directly from the 48-V rail to the IC supply voltage. sharing the same memory bus,” said Fingerhut. “That’s a big problem.”
As with every power solution, the power architecture for a robotics All this growing data is getting stored on fast SSDs, “but it’s all being
application is required to be efficient and reliable, as well as offer driven through a processor, which isn’t really evolving all that quickly.”
high levels of power density so that the robot can be small and nimble Pliops’s solution to these “storage stack inefficiencies” is data-
enough to perform its function(s) well. Key to achieving this is to acceleration technology geared for specific workloads within data-
select the right semiconductors to form the various power functions bases and software-defined storage, which the company estimates is
within the robot. about half the spend in an enterprise and data center infrastructure.
The Pliops storage processor is a key-value–based storage hardware
SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS FOR ROBOTIC POWER accelerator that enables cloud and enterprise customers to offload and
APPLICATIONS accelerate data-intensive workloads so that data centers can continue
ON Semiconductor has applied its expertise and resources to offer a to scale while reducing computational load and power.
wide range of devices and power products that let designers create
high-performance power solutions for robotics applications.
One of the most common devices used in almost all power solu- Complete solution on
tions is the MOSFET. ON Semiconductor’s extensive range includes
superjunction MOSFETs with multiple versions for different switching sheet metal
types and applications. The company’s FAST devices offer high
efficiency in hard-switching topologies, while its Easy Drive devices stamping & fabrication
are suitable for both hard- and soft-switching applications, where
they ensure low electromagnetic interference (EMI) and reduced largest size for sheet metal processing 4MX1M
voltage spikes.
Complementing the MOSFET offering is a wide range of high-
voltage gate drivers that allow a microcontroller or other logic circuit ❖ more than 3,000 part
numbers have been
to control MOSFETs directly. Depending on the circuit configuration, PPAP approved
a simple non-isolated driver (such as ON Semiconductor’s NCD570x
series) may be used, or a more sophisticated, isolated solution or ❖ more than 5 million
Euro invested in CNC
high- and low-side driver may be needed. and Robotic arms
Highly integrated solutions such as intelligent power modules and
automotive power modules bring a number of benefits. Typically,
these will integrate multiple MOSFETs for multi-phase motor driving
along with the necessary driver devices. These modules offer better
thermal performance than discrete solutions because all devices are
mounted on the same substrate. They are also able to handle higher
current levels while improving EMI and providing a solution that is
smaller and lighter than discrete equivalents.
Alongside these solutions, ON Semiconductor offers a complete
portfolio for robotic power applications including electronic fuses,
PFC ICs, rectifiers, current sensors, and switching devices for pro-
viding auxiliary power rails. This portfolio is complemented by the Sun Strong
industry’s lowest-power Bluetooth module for communications and a Precision Metal International Ltd
Rm. 7-9, 12/F., Peninsula Tower, 538 Castle Peak
wide range of image sensors for advanced machine vision. ■ Road, Cheung Sha Wan, kowloon, Hong Kong
Website: www.sunstrongmetal.com
Ali Husain is senior manager for corporate marketing and strategy at Email: stantam@sunflymetal.com
ON Semiconductor. Tel: (852) 2171 1968
Rm. 7-9, 12/F., Peninsula Tower, 538 Castle Peak Road,
Cheung Sha Wan, kowloon, Hong Kong
www.eetimes.eu | JUNE 2020
EET201902_Sun Strong.indd 1 2020/2/11 下午5:06