Brushless Drone ESCs with Closed-Loop RPM Control
4-in-1 Brushless ESCs for Autonomous and FPV Drones
ModalAI's 4-in-1 brushless drone ESCs put four electronic speed controllers on one board, one per motor, and talk to the flight controller over a bi-directional UART at up to 2 Mbit/s rather than analog PWM. The autopilot commands RPM directly and gets real-time RPM, temperature, voltage and current feedback from every motor. Both boards are designed, assembled and tested in the USA, NDAA-compliant, and on the Blue UAS Framework list.
What Every ModalAI ESC Does
-
Closed-loop RPM control, used by the PX4
voxl_escdriver, with open-loop control (commanded % power) also available - Regenerative braking and smooth sinusoidal spin-up
- Built-in power module: a regulated output powers VOXL 2 or VOXL 2 Mini directly, removing a separate board from the stack
- Real-time RPM, temperature, voltage and current telemetry over UART
- Neopixel RGB LED output, up to 32 LEDs
Which ESC to Choose
| ESC | Built for | Power input | Current | Size and weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VOXL Mini 4-in-1 ESC (M0129) | Small drones under 750 g, or under 500 g in FPV use | 2-4S Li-Po (M0129-3, M0129-5); 2-6S Li-Po (M0129-63, M0129-65) | See the datasheet | 36.5 x 36.5 x 4.25 mm, 5.87 g |
| VOXL FPV Racing 4-in-1 ESC (M0138) | 5-inch, 7-inch and 10-inch FPV drones | 2-6S Li-Po (6-26 V) | 100 A peak and 40 A continuous per motor, 300 A+ peak total | 45.5 x 59.0 mm, 17.9 g |
Each ESC comes in a 3.8 V version that powers VOXL 2 Mini and a version that powers VOXL 2 (5.0 V on the M0129, 5.1 V on the M0138). Select the one that matches your compute board. The M0138 adds a switchable 16.8 V output for a video transmitter.
Full specifications are in the VOXL Mini ESC datasheet and the VOXL FPV ESC datasheet, with setup and PX4 configuration in the VOXL ESC documentation. Shop both in drone ESCs. Building a complete FPV stack? See FPV drone components.
Brushless Drone ESCs (Electronic Speed Controllers)
Compare ESCs
Power Input: 2-4S Li-Po (6-18V); 2-6S Li-Po (6-26V) on M0129-63 and M0129-65
Power Output for VOXL: 3.8V or 5V at 5A
AUX power for external LEDs or other devices: Selectable 3.3V or 5V (500mA) power supply for accessories or Neopixel
Features: Open-loop control, closed-loop RPM control, regenerative braking
Power Input: 2-6S Lipo (6-26V)
Power Output for VOXL: 5.1V (VOXL 2) or 3.8V (VOXL 2 Mini) from a 6A-rated regulator
AUX power for external LEDs or other devices: 3.3V / 5.0V @ 500mA
Performance: 40V, 100A+ MOSFETs; 100A peak current per motor (<1s), 40A continuous current per motor (with sufficient airflow, application dependent), Peak total board current 300A+ (<1s)