Absolute digital position encoder
US5880683A · kind A · utility
39Cited by
20References
29Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 23, 1997 |
| Grant date | Mar 9, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 23, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03M1/285
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A method and apparatus to convert absolute angular or linear position to digital information utilizes a ternary coding scheme. The code is arranged along a single track. Sensors placed at essentially equal intervals distinguish three states per position. The sensor outputs are converted from ternary to binary data by combinatorial logic. The sensors may be mechanical contacts, optical detectors, magnetic detectors, or capacitive detectors. Such an encoder may be used as a potentiometer, multiposition switch replacement, shaft encoder, or length measurement device.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.