PCB integrating an ESP-WROOM-32 microcontroller with two A4988/DRV8825 stepper motor drivers. This is a four layer PCB that I originally designed this for an ESP-32 controlled, NEMA17 powered robot.

Thanks to improved capabilities, stepper motors are becoming a popular option for industrial automation applications. Component integration, software macros, and other innovations ...

These can provide the directional signal for the stepper, but definitely not the power required to actually actuate the stepper motor. For that indeed you need a little driver board.

When designing a motion control system using stepper motors, do not assume that the holding torque of motor still applies when microstepping.

Using a 2-phase stepper motor as an example, the stepper motor is taken apart and its components explained.

To run a stepper motor smoothly, it's necessary to apply linear acceleration. However, conventional algorithms to generate linear acceleration require complicated mathematics, which makes it difficult ...

Stepper motors also have performance limitations. For example, the motor needs to break friction to begin turning and move the load, at which point the rotor is not fully controlled.