Design of High-Precision Driving Control System for Charge Management

Sensors (Basel). 2024 Apr 30;24(9):2883. doi: 10.3390/s24092883.

Abstract

Due to the interaction of accumulated charges on the surface of a test mass with the surrounding electric and magnetic fields, the performance of inertial sensors is affected, necessitating charge management for the test mass. Discharge technology based on Ultraviolet LEDs is internationally recognized as the optimal solution for charge management. Precision driving of Ultraviolet LEDs is considered a key technology in charge management. This paper presents the driving control system used for Ultraviolet LEDs, achieving precision pulse-width-modulation-type current output with controllable pulse width and amplitude. The system generates the pulse-width-controllable pulse voltage signal via analog pulse-width modulation, and subsequently regulates the amplitude of the PWM signal through range switching. To convert the voltage into the pulse-width-modulation-type driving current, the improved Howland current source is employed. The test results demonstrate that the driving control system can output controllable current in the range of 0.01 mA to 10 mA, with a minimum step of 0.01 mA. The accuracy of the current reaches 1%, the stability within 1 h is better than 1%, and the load regulation is better than 2%. The driving control system provides an important reference for the integration of charge management system and the precision drive control method for LEDs.

Keywords: PWM; UV-LED constant current source; charge management.