# 332: There Were Fires

- Show: [Embedded.fm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm)
- Published: 2020-05-29
- Length: 1h 11m
- Episode: 332
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires
- Listen: https://makingembeddedsystems.libsyn.com/332-there-were-fires

## Summary

Doug Harriman, CTO of Simplexity Product Development, discusses the cross-disciplinary nature of mechatronics, emphasizing that mechanical, electrical, and control systems must be designed together to avoid failure. He details the trade-offs between stepper, brushed DC, and brushless DC motors, explaining how improper impedance matching between electrical and mechanical domains leads to blown FETs and fires. Harriman also covers control strategies like PID and feed-forward, sensor selection including encoders, and the critical importance of homing and stall detection in safety-critical systems.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=6) Introduction: Doug Harriman and Simplexity Product Development
- [2:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=174) Defining Mechatronics and Common Design Pitfalls
- [7:35](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=455) Control Systems: PID, Feed-Forward, and Differential Equations
- [21:01](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=1261) Motor Selection: Stepper, Brushed DC, and Brushless DC
- [34:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=2049) Sensors and Encoders: Quadrature, Homing, and Absolute Position
- [40:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=2441) Failure Modes, Redundancy, and Manufacturing Testing
- [47:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=2835) System Design: Impedance Matching and Preventing Fires
- [53:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=3203) Improving Robot Performance: Mechanics vs. Sensors vs. Processors
- [1:01:48](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires#t=3708) Listener Questions: Cabling, Robotics Laws, and Specific Projects

## Topics

- [Mechanical engineering](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/mechanical-engineering)
- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [Microcontrollers & dev platforms](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/microcontrollers-and-platforms)
- [Debugging & failure analysis](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/debugging-and-failure-analysis)
- [Sensors & measurement in products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sensors)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Simplexity Product Development (company)
- Control Systems Engineering (other)
- Notes on Diffy Qs (other)
- 3 Brown 1 Blue (other)
- Valve (company)
- HTC Vive (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [At least my house isn't haunted](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-04-24-at-least-my-house-isnt-haunted) (The Amp Hour)
- [Wrong Hardware, Wrong Software - Fugacious Fan Funding](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2014-09-08-wrong-hardware-wrong-software-fugacious-fan-funding) (The Amp Hour)
- [Voltnuts for Flashlights](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2019-06-17-voltnuts-for-flashlights) (The Amp Hour)
- [Systems Architecture with Maik Pfingsten](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2022-10-19-systems-architecture-with-maik-pfingsten) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [S7E8 Matt Ketterer | Professional Growth through Interdisciplinary Exploration](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2026-02-20-s7e8-matt-ketterer-professional-growth-through-interdisciplinary-exploration) (Being an Engineer)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-05-29-332-there-were-fires. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Embedded.fm.