Inside Nations Technologies’ N32H785 Humanoid Joint Reference Design

Nations Technologies and the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT) announced a humanoid robot joint-motor drive-and-control reference design on September 23, 2026. Built around the N32H785 dual-core MCU, it combines the controller, a frameless torque motor, reducer, two absolute encoders and communications in a compact joint module intended as a reference for smaller, modular designs aimed at mass production. 1

What the reference design integrates

The partners describe a single joint module bringing together the motor, reducer, dual absolute encoders, drive control and communications. The announcement presents this combination as a chip-to-algorithm and drive-to-sensing reference—not as a claim that a finished joint is already in volume production. 1

The release identifies the main components but does not provide enough detail in the available material to specify the mechanical layout or explain the encoders’ individual roles. Those details should not be inferred from the component list alone.

How the N32H785 divides the work

The design assigns time-sensitive control tasks to the Cortex-M7, which runs at up to 600 MHz. According to the announcement, it handles field-oriented control (FOC), the torque, speed and position loops, data from both encoders, and safety protection. 1

The Cortex-M4F, running at up to 300 MHz, handles CAN FD, EtherCAT and serial communications. This describes the intended division of work between the two cores; the available announcement does not specify further details about how they exchange data or synchronize tasks. 1

Published bench-test results

Nations Technologies reports the following results from a loaded bench test of the joint module: 1

Reported measure	Result
Rated torque	20 N·m
Peak torque	60 N·m
Current loop	20 kHz
Speed step from 0 to 100 rpm	106 ms average response; 4.43% maximum overshoot; speed fluctuation within ±5%
Position tracking	Maximum error of 0.01 rad (about 0.573°); average error of 0.54°; ±360° movement completed within 1 second

These are figures reported in the release, rather than independently verified measurements. The available material does not provide a full test protocol, so the results should be read as the company’s reported performance for its reference setup, not as a guarantee for every production configuration. 1

Partner roles and temperature context

Nations Technologies says it supplied the MCU and engineering support, while SIAT’s electric-drive team handled core technology research as part of the partners’ collaboration. Their stated aim is to support the development and production adaptation of servo-drive technology for robot joints, dexterous hands and industrial servo controllers. 113

Separately, Nations Technologies has described the N32H78x MCU family as supporting an operating-temperature range of −40°C to 105°C. That is a family-level specification; the available information does not establish that every assembled reference module has been qualified across the same range. 7

The practical takeaway is that this announcement offers manufacturers a combined joint-drive reference and a set of company-reported bench metrics. It is a starting point for design work—not, by itself, evidence of a production-ready module or independent validation of its performance.