Bourns Incorporated

Tektronix, Inc.

David B Johnson

Timothy Alan Tabor

James A Elzey

Dean B Childs

Jay Calkin

Brian G Russell

Joseph Haines

Wayne W Munroe

Scott L Harris

A potentiometer and logic circuitry attached to a common substrate. In one aspect the potentiometer and logic circuitry is an integrated potentiometer mounted on an upper surface of a circuit board with circuitry on a lower surface of the circuit board. The circuitry conducts the position and movement of the potentiometer into potentiometer output signals.

Potentiometer with embedded signal circuitry

A rear-mount integrated rotary encoder comprises a mechanical portion and a printed circuit board portion. The mechanical portion of a rear mount integrated rotary encoder comprises a housing including a bushing for receiving one end of a rotatable. The rotatable shaft passes through an open front portion of the housing and is mechanically connected to exposed rotatable circuit contacting members. The printed circuit board portion has an encoder contact pattern formed thereon. The printed circuit board has an area larger than the cross sectional area of the housing. The encoder contact pattern surrounds an aperture in the circuit board. The rotatable shaft of the rotary encoder is passed through the aperture such that the rotatable circuit contacting members contact the encoder contact pattern on the circuit board. The housing includes projections, substantially orthogonal to the circuit board, for engaging a feature of the circuit board for securing the integrated encoder in an assembled state. Alternatively, the housing may glued to the circuit board. A further feature of the subject rear-mount integrated rotary encoder is that it is substantially cylindrical in shape to reduce the required spacing between adjacent encoders.

Rear mounted integrated rotary encoder

An integrated digital electronic encoder that converts mechanical movement of a device input into a signal that can be applied to particular purposes is described. The encoder and associated signal conditioning and processing circuitry are embedded together as a single unit for simplicity of assembly into particular applications, and reliability. The integrated digital electronic encoder includes a substrate with first and second substantially opposed major surfaces, and a digital encoder formed on the first major surface of the substrate. The encoder comprises an actuation shaft, and the encoder is configured to generate electrical signals in response to movement of the actuation shaft. Electronic circuitry is attached to the second major surface of the substrate, preferably using surface mount technology. The electronic circuitry is electrically connected with the digital encoder to process the signals produced by the encoder. The electronic circuitry includes programmable logic to provide multiple function capability to the integrated digital encoder. The electronic circuitry also includes supervisory power circuitry for conditioning the power supplied to the programmable logic, and output circuitry such as a communication interface.

Encoder with embedded signal circuitry

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South Ogden, UT, United States of America

David B Johnson