342966 2966 - MP6500 Stepper Motor Driver Carrier, Potentiometer Current Control

This breakout board for the MPS MP6500 microstepping bipolar stepper motor driver is Pololu’s latest stepper motor driver. The module has a pinout and interface that are very similar to that of our popular A4988 carriers, so it can be used as a drop-in replacement for those boards in many applications. The MP6500 offers up to 1/8-step microstepping, operates from 4.5 V to 35 V, and can deliver up to approximately 1.8 A per phase continuously without a heat sink or forced air flow (up to 2.5 A peak). This version of the board uses an on-board trimmer potentiometer for setting the current limit, and the board ships with 0.1″ male header pins included but not soldered in.

This product is a carrier board or breakout board for the MP6500 stepper motor driver from Monolithic Power Systems (MPS); we therefore recommend careful reading of the MP6500 datasheet(1MB pdf) before using this product. This stepper motor driver lets you control one bipolar stepper motor at up to approximately 1.8 A per phase continuously without a heat sink or forced air flow (see the Power dissipation considerationssection below for more information). Here are some of the driver’s key features:

• Simple step and direction control interface
• Four different step resolutions: full-step, half-step, 1/4-step, and 1/8-step
• Adjustable current control lets you set the maximum current output, which lets you use voltages above your stepper motor’s rated voltage to achieve higher step rates
• Two current limit control options available:
  • Potentiometer Current Control — this carrier version uses an on-board trimmer potentiometer to set the current limit up to 2.5 A
  • Digital Current Control — this carrier version allows a microcontroller to dynamically adjust the current limit up to around 2 A
• Internal current sensing allows the driver to automatically adjust the decay mode as necessary to provide the smoothest current waveform
• 4.5 V to 35 V supply voltage range
• Can deliver 1.8 A per phase continuously without additional cooling
• Built-in regulator (no external logic voltage supply needed)
• Can interface directly with 3.3 V and 5 V systems
• Over-temperature thermal shutdown, over-current shutdown, short circuit protection, and under-voltage lockout
• 4-layer, 2 oz copper PCB for improved heat dissipation
• Exposed solderable ground pad below the driver IC on the bottom of the PCB
• Module size, pinout, and interface match those of our A4988 stepper motor driver carriers in most respects

This product ships with all surface-mount components—including the MP6500 driver IC—installed as shown in the product picture.

Dimensions

General specifications

Identifying markings

Notes:

1 Without included optional headers.

2 Without a heat sink or forced air flow.

3 With sufficient additional cooling. This limitation comes from maximum achievable current limit setting on this version of the board.

4 This is the input logic high threshold.

5 Absolute maximum voltage on any input is 6.5 V.

File downloads

MPS MP6500 stepper motor driver datasheet (1MB pdf)

MPS Application Note AN120: Undestanding MP6500 Current Control (1MB pdf)

Schematic diagram of the MP6500 Stepper Motor Driver Carrier (93k pdf)

Dimension diagram of the MP6500 Stepper Motor Driver Carrier (216k pdf)

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