Brush DC Motors for Smart Home Door Locks

Stepper motors aren’t the only way of operating smart locks. Brush DC motors can provide the same function, if designed for the task. And depending on application details, they may be a better option. In this blog we’ll explain why Brush DC motors are also recommended to be used in Smart Home Door Lock.

Motor Requirements for Smart Home Door Locks

Critical aspects of the design specs are size, performance and reliability. Let’s take a look at each of these.

Size

Motors must be compact to keep the assembly as small as possible as most of these fit inside of a module. Additionally, depending on the details of the intended application, there may be a desire to fit the mechanism within the door itself.

Performance

Torque is the most important aspect of performance to consider: the motor must be able to operate the lock even under a harsh environment. This includes allowing for increased friction in the lock over time. It should also draw as little power as possible to extend battery life (if used in a battery-powered application).

Two other properties are speed and absence of noise. Waiting just a few seconds for an e-lock to respond can be inconvenient for users, and a noisy lock is particularly bothersome when used late at night or early in the morning. In addition, many people also associate quietness with quality.

Reliability

Delivering a reliable product means the motor needs to operate for many years at the expected performance level. This has been verified and confirmed through reliability testing.

How MinebeaMitsumi’s DC Brush Motors Meets these Needs

A brush motor doesn’t need complex controls like a stepper motor. A DC brush motor can operate by simply applying a voltage to the terminals. When you reverse the current, the motor rotation reverses and when current stops being applied, the motor stops. This functionality is all that’s required in an e-lock application.

The S-Series motor is designed to provide higher torque which gives designers more options for door lock applications. By integrating a patented magnet design and configuration, higher performance is realized and cogging can also be reduced which decreases noise.

As an alternative, the M-series lineup has a low-profile housing and patented terminal design ideal for space limited applications. MinebeaMitsumi’s compact round and square Brush DC motors can offer different packaging design options for applications requiring low to medium performance.

Together, these motor options will give you more flexibility to the module design while achieving all desired performance requirements.

Consider Using MinebeaMitsumi Brush DC Motors in Your Smart Home Door Locks

Smart locks are proliferating because they add security to user’s homes, can be controlled remotely, and more importantly, they eliminate the need to carry physical keys.

Traditionally, a lot of smart lock designs have used stepper motors. These are compact and reliable and tend to work well, but we’d argue they’re bigger and heavier than needed in some situations which could limit flexibility during the module design.

MinebeaMitsumi leveraged our motor design expertise to develop a unique square shaped S-series as well as the round M-series DC brush motor. These Brush DC motors provide high torque yet compact size which gives designers more design flexibility to efficiently package as an assembly.