SLVAES8A May   2020  – February 2026 DRV8424 , DRV8424E , DRV8426 , DRV8428 , DRV8428E , DRV8434 , DRV8434E , DRV8434S , DRV8436 , DRV8436E , DRV8889-Q1

 

  1.   1
  2.   Abstract
  3.   Trademarks
  4. 1Introduction
  5. 2Details of the Test Setup
  6. 3Sources of Noise in a Stepper Motor
    1. 3.1 Magnetic Noise
    2. 3.2 Mechanical Noise
    3. 3.3 Electrical Noise
      1. 3.3.1 Effects of Current Ripple and Decay Mode
      2. 3.3.2 Effects of PWM Chopper Frequency
      3. 3.3.3 Effects of Current Zero-Cross Error
      4. 3.3.4 Effects of Step Resolution and Step Frequency
      5. 3.3.5 Effects of Resonant Frequency
  7. 4Summary
  8. 5References
  9. 6Revision History

4 Summary

Noise from stepper motors can be a big concern and challenge for designers to overcome. But with the right motor driver, electrical audible noise can be significantly reduced by using a number of different features. In addition to pushing the step frequency, motor drivers from Texas Instruments provide automatic decay mode control with smart tune technology, up to 1/256 microstepping, and programmable ripple current magnitude target to verify smooth motion at frequencies outside of the audible range. The results can be astonishing with reduced level up to 10dB. For more information on TI’s stepper motor products, see TI.com.