Pulse-width Modulation - History

History

In the past, when only partial power was needed (such as for a sewing machine motor), a rheostat (located in the sewing machine's foot pedal) connected in series with the motor adjusted the amount of current flowing through the motor, but also wasted power as heat in the resistor element. It was an inefficient scheme, but tolerable because the total power was low. This was one of several methods of controlling power. There were others—some still in use—such as variable autotransformers, including the trademarked 'Autrastat' for theatrical lighting; and the Variac, for general AC power adjustment. These were quite efficient, but also relatively costly.

For about a century, some variable-speed electric motors have had decent efficiency, but they were somewhat more complex than constant-speed motors, and sometimes required bulky external electrical apparatus, such as a bank of variable power resistors or rotating converter such as Ward Leonard drive.

However, in addition to motor drives for fans, pumps and robotic servos, there was a great need for compact and low cost means for applying adjustable power for many devices, such as electric stoves and lamp dimmers.

One early application of PWM was in the Sinclair X10, a 10 W audio amplifier available in kit form in the 1960s. At around the same time PWM started to be used in AC motor control