• Single Voltage Operation.
• Simple ASCII Commands.
• Indexer and Driver ALL on one board (except the Gecko series which can be either Bipolar/Unipolar or DC Servo).
• Bipolar/Unipolar stepper motion control for all boards except the Gecko series (Bipolar/Unipolar or DC Servo)
• Programmable current settings per axis.
• Serial communications from 9600 to 115.2K baud.
• "TRUE" RS232 Network capabilities or the standard RS422/485 communications on all boards.
• ESD Protection on RS-232 I/O Pins to ± 15kV (IEC1000) and  ± 2kV for the RS422/485.
• Unique new Motion Algorithm.
• Minimum stepping modes of Full and Half Step via software control.
• User I/O for each axis.
• Small Board Outline.
• Minimum 400 character user programmable Flash with optional 2K, 4K 8K and 16K versions available.
• 1 to 20,000 sps (steps per second) linear S curve motor movement with prescaler to allow sub-sps motor movement . (30,000 non-RTOS mode)
• Jog control for each axis.
• RTOS version now has an 8 level motion control stack from the previous 1 level stack.
• 32 bit, Flash (IEEPROM) and RTOS can be intermixed on all versions.
• EMI (radiated) filtering on all boards to pass FCC and CE approvals.
• The ability to switch between the old and new motor movement systems.
• The ability to switch off/on the RTOS.
• New IEEPROM command allows the user to call a subroutine and return.
• Communicate numeric information in either decimal or hexadecimal ASCII format.
• Emulation of all commands from previous versions of firmware and hardware.
• Home, Limit and 0.5 amp, diode clamped MOSFET output per axis.

News and Updates

• SSXYMicro-3A board RS232 and RS422/485 problem - Simple Step has recently found that users who use the SSXYMicro-3A board in RS232 are not removing the RS422/485 balance resistor shunts on J19 before powering up the board. User who use RS232 MUST remove the balance resistor shunts or else there will be a high probability that the RS422/485 IC will blow which will shut the board down. All current units that are using RS232 that have not had the shunts removed should do so immediately.
   
• New ActiveX control released - A new ActiveX control has been released that addresses the problem with USB to RS232 converters.. Click on this hyperlink to download the latest program.
   
• Development of the SSXYZMicro-3B, SSXYZMicroHC-3B and SSMicro-3A boards (RoHS compliant)  - Simple Step will be releasing the new SSXYZMicro-3B in the next 2 months or less, the SSXYZMicroHC-3B soon afterwards and the SSMicro-3A.  The highlights for both boards are as follows:
  • USB 2.0 virtual serial communications port (mini-B connection) from 9600 to 460.8K baud.
  • Hardware reset input for emergency stop.
  • Microstepping from FULL to 1/32 stepping.
  • RS232, RS422 and RS485 on board (jumper selectable).
  • On board 120 balance resistors for the RS422 and RS485 (jumper selectable)
  • 600W TVS diode on the supply voltage.
  • Single-ended Quadrature encoder per axis.
  • 3.3VDC board voltage and 5VDC Quadrature encoder supply voltage.
  • 10 pin, 2.0mm dual row header with 4 Inputs and 1 open collector, 50ma output. (Multi-axis controllers only)
  • Home, Limit, 3 USER Inputs, 2 MOSFET diode clamped Outputs and 4 Spare I/O per axis.
  • RTOS, 32 bit, TRIP and 8K IEEPROM memory standard.
  • Slope torque control. Allows the user to apply more current to the motor during the acceleration and deceleration process.
  • Software programmable motor, idle current limiting.
  • Motor decay control (limited).
  • Quadrature Encoder feedback includes auto-correction, detect only, count only and disabled modes standard.
  • IEEPROM memory can be programmed for control of all axis.
  • Motor driver has built in wire to wire short circuit protection, thermal shutdown, under voltage lockout and short circuit to ground protection.

  The features for the SSXYZMicro-3B board will be as follows:

  • Operating voltages from 15 to 50VDC.
  • Operates bipolar and unipolar stepper motors from 100ma to 1.5 amps per phase.
  • Board size is 7.58 inches L x 4.20 inches W by 0.9 inches H.
  • RoHS compliant, 2 layer board.
  • Replaces the SSXYZMicro board.

  

  The features for the SSMicro-3B board will be as follows:

  • Operating voltages from 15 to 50VDC.
  • Operates bipolar and unipolar stepper motors from 100ma to 1.5 amps per phase.
  • Board size is the same as the current SSMicro-3A.
  • RoHS compliant, 2 layer board.
  • Replaces the SSMicro board.

  

  The features for the SSXYZMicroHC-3B board will be as follows:

  • Operating voltages from 15 to 50VDC.
  • Operates bipolar and unipolar stepper motors from 250ma to 6.00 amps per phase.
  • Board size is 6.04 inches L x 4.18 inches W by 0.9 inches H (same foot print and mounting holes as the SSXYZ board).
  • RoHS compliant, 6 layer board.
  • 5.0mm screw terminal block for main supply connection up to 14 AWG wire size.
  • Power dissipation of  4.176 watts per phase maximum.
  • Replaces the SSXYZ and SSXYZMicro77 boards.
  • 5 Pin motor connectors with Shield ground connection.

Current In House Projects

New ARM controller system:
         We are currently designing a new level of motion control boards that will replace the current 16 bit processor with a 32 bit ARM7 processor rated at 59 MIPS. These new controllers will allow much faster system control and more enhanced features. The new design that Simple Step is looking at will be more CE, Class B compliant. Here are some of the attributes of the new boards:

• ALL Controllers -
      - ARM7 running at 59MIPS (internal, 14.7456MHz external), 3.3VDC, 32 bit RISC processor.
      - All I/O Lines are filtered (RC of 56 ohms at the processor and 10000pF @ 50VDC at the terminals).
      - Software programmable network addressing switch.
      - 8K IEEPROM, 32 bit, RTOS, TRIP and Binary Transfer are now standard.
      - All I/O lines that are converted to outputs will now be able to sink/source up to 3ma and have a voltage range of 0-3.3VDC.
      - All I/O lines that are used as inputs, will have a 22K pull up resistor.
      - ALL motor movement commands now have the input range of -2,147,483,647 to +2,147,483,647.
      - Both Home and Limit inputs now have diode clamps and are infrared capable (on selected models).
      - All Inputs are 5VDC tolerant.
      - All pins for external connection of the +5VDC on board power supply will now have a high impedance ferrite.
      - All units that had hardware adjust for the current limit settings will now be software controlled.
      -  High speed USART 16 byte TXD and RXD FIFO's.
            9600 to 115.2K for RS422/485 (up to 256 nodes on 1 serial line) and RS232 (up to 16 nodes on 1 serial line).
   
• Dual and Triple axis controllers -
      - 600W TVS on 5VDC power supply.
      -  Stepping speeds from 1 to 20,000 sps (full step and depending on board).
      - Single voltage supply from 7.5VDC to 50VDC (depending on board).
      - Schottky diodes on all MOSFET outputs.
      - Optional Quadrature Encoder Interface.
   
• Single axis controllers -
      - All boards will fit onto the back of the motor.
      - Motor sizes from NEMA 17 to NEMA 34 will be available.
      -  Stepping speeds from 1 to 20,000 sps (full step and depending on board).
      - Single voltage supply from 5.0VDC to 26VDC (depending on board).
      - Optional Quadrature Encoder module (internal and external versions)
  
  
          SSNEMA17
     (motor not included)

Custom Embedded and Motion Control Systems

    Let Simple Step design a custom motion controller or embedded control for your needs. We use the latest CAD/CAE software to give fast turn around. Our design team has over a combined 50 years of experience in embedded and motion control design. We also design with FDA, VDE, CE, and UL approvals in both electronics and software. We can design specialized software to operate your controller from DOS, Windows 3.11, 95, 98, NT, 2000, XP or  a custom operating system. Let us help you with deciding on hardware, software, motors, power supplies, encoders, sensors, etc.