Hardware

Brushless DC Motor (BLDC)

A brushless DC motor is an electric motor that replaces mechanical commutation with electronic switching of stator winding currents, coordinated with rotor position from encoders or Hall sensors, typically via field-oriented control. Eliminating brushes yields higher efficiency, power density, lifetime, and speed, and permits precise torque control through current regulation. Outrunner BLDC designs with high pole counts power the quasi-direct-drive joints of modern legged robots and low-cost arms.

Why it matters for physical AI

High-torque-density BLDC modules are the enabling hardware of the current robotics wave, providing the bandwidth and current-based torque sensing that dynamic learned controllers exploit for contact-rich behavior.