⚡ Kururugi - Electronic Speed Controller (ESC) ⚡

4/6S-ready • 64–96 kHz PWM • FOC/Six-Steps • Full bare-metal control

⚙️ Project overview

Kururugi is a high-performance ESC designed for FPV drones, built as a platform for low-level motor control, power electronics optimization, and embedded system experimentation.

It is developed within the Bare Metal Foundry initiative for autonomous racing drones, alongside the Shirley Flight Controller - forming a complete, fully controlled hardware and software stack.

This README provides an overview of the project and repository structure. Detailed hardware and ESC design information is available in: 📊 Technical Specifications

❓ Why Kururugi?

Most ESCs are closed, optimized for mass production - not understanding.

Kururugi is designed to:

• Push switching frequency limits (64 kHz in v1.0, targeting 96 kHz+ in future revisions)
• Provide full transparency and control over the motor stack (no black boxes)
• Enable high-speed bare-metal control
• Serve as a platform for developing and validating Six-Step and Field-Oriented Control (FOC)
• Bring together makers and engineers to explore, experiment, and push boundaries

👉 This is an research platform, not just an ESC.

🚢 Navigate the repo

⚠️ Documentation is still a work in progress. Detailed design notes and analysis will be added progressively.

📂 Not to miss documents:

• 🧩 Hardware (KiCad): KiCad project
• 📊 Design & Sizing: Design notes
• 📊 Technicals specifications: Documentation
• 📤 Exports: Schematics, PCB renders, STEP files
• 📚 Resources: Datasheets & Engineering Notes

💻 Run it yourself

📟 H/W - PCB desgin

To get started, simply clone the repository and proceed to open the project on Kicad 9.0.4. All libraries are self containts so it is no more difficult than this.

git clone https://github.com/StepaneBinon/Kururugi-ESC-Dev-Board.git

📟 H/W — PCB Manufacturing

PCB fabrication and assembly are handled through JLCPCB. The minimum order quantity is 5 boards for PCB fabrication and 2 boards for assembly. With the selected options, the total cost is 255.13 € (295.01 USD).

Production files are available in Production files.
When placing the order, use the parameters shown in JLCPCB Options.

⚠️ Ensure BOM/CPL match and components are available before ordering. ⚠️ This design is provided as-is; no guarantee is made regarding functionality or performance.

🔢 S/W - Kururugi-6Step [WORK IN PROGRESS]

🔢 S/W - Kururugi-FOC [WORK IN PROGRESS]

🚀 Roadmap

⚡ Hardware

1. 🧪 V1.0 Production & Bring-up (Apr 2026): First batch with JLCPCB, full electrical validation
2. 📖 Design Documentation (May 2026): Complete breakdown of sizing, losses, and trade-offs
3. 🔌 Multi-ESC Test Bench (Jun–Jul 2026): Dedicated rig for synchronized testing and stress scenarios
4. 🏁 Drone Validation (V1) (Jul–Aug 2026): High-load FPV testing on 6-inch platform
5. 🤖 Robotics Validation (V1) (Jul–Aug 2026): Differential drive platform for control robustness
6. 📝 Technical Paper (V1 Results) (Sep 2026): Performance, efficiency, and design insights
7. ⚡ V2 Hardware (2027): Sensor simplification, FOC/6-step optimization, possible 4-in-1

🧠 Software

1. 🏗 Bare-Metal C++ Architecture (Apr–May 2026): Deterministic design, coding standards, HAL strategy (rewrite vs minimal use)
2. ⚙️ 6-Step Control (Baseline) (May–Jun 2026): Reliable startup and fallback mode
3. 🎯 FOC Implementation (Jun–Aug 2026): High-efficiency, high-performance control
4. 📝 Technical Paper (Control & Results) (Sep 2026): Control strategy, tuning, and comparison

🤝 How to Contribute

Alone we go faster, together we go further.

Contributions are more than welcome, at all levels:

• 🐛 Report issues: bugs, design flaws, or unclear documentation
• 💡 Suggest improvements: hardware, firmware, or architecture ideas
• 🧪 Test & validate: share results, measurements, or flight data
• 📖 Improve documentation: clarify concepts, add explanations

📬 Get involved

• Open an issue for discussion
• Submit a pull request
• Share your insights or experiments
• Join the Bare Metal Foundry discord here: https://discord.gg/e7CF2AZCN

👉 If you're working on ESCs, power electronics, or embedded control, your feedback is highly valuable.

🪪 Licensing

Hardware

Hardware design (schematics, PCB, KiCad) is licensed under CERN-OHL-S v2. This project is released as open hardware. Any modifications or derived designs must be shared under the same license.

For commercial use, collaboration, or licensing inquiries, please reach out.

👤 Author

This project was originally created and is actively maintained by Stepane Binon.

Parts of the documentation are generated with the assistance of AI tools to streamline development.