Bourns Incorporated

Bourns, Iec.

Eugen Bogos

Perry Wehlmann

Thanh Vinh Nguyen

Christopher Couch

Perry Wehlman

Brandon Council

A control input device can include a housing defining an inner volume with a floor, and a shaft having an axis, a manipulating portion, and a sensing end. The control input device can further include a magnet mounted on the sensing end of the shaft such that the magnet is within the inner volume of the housing, and a movement mechanism configured to allow the manipulating portion of the shaft to be moved with respect to the housing such that the movement of the manipulating portion results in corresponding movement of the magnet. The control input device can further include a magnetic sensor at least partially embedded in the floor of the housing and configured to sense the movement of the magnet.

Devices and methods related to joysticks

A joystick can include a shaft having an axis, a manipulating portion, and a sensing end with a magnet mounted thereto. The joystick can further include a movement mechanism configured to allow the manipulating portion of the shaft to be moved in three dimensions with respect to the axis of the shaft. The movement of the manipulating portion results in corresponding movement of the magnet that can be sensed in a non-contacting manner by a magnetic sensor positioned relative to the magnet.

Non-contact hall-effect joystick

High-resolution multi-turn sensing apparatus and methods. A method can be implemented to sense a rotational position of a shaft having a longitudinal axis. Such a method can include determining a turn number of the shaft with a first magnet arranged in a non-contact manner with a first magnetic sensor to allow measurement of a linear position of the first magnet relative to the first magnetic sensor. The linear position can be representative of a turn number of the shaft. The method can further include determining an angular position of the shaft within a given turn with a second magnet positioned at an end of the shaft along the longitudinal axis and arranged relative to a second magnetic sensor. The method can further include combining the turn number with the angular position to generate one or more output signals representative of a measured rotational position of the shaft.

High-resolution multi-turn sensing apparatus and methods

Disclosed are systems and methods for measuring multi-turn position of a shaft with high resolution and in a non-contact manner. In some embodiments, a multi-turn sensing apparatus can include a rotation counter configured to determine a number of turns made by a shaft, and an angular position sensor configured to measure an angular position of the shaft within a given turn. The number of turns can be determined with an M-bit resolution, and the angular position per turn can be measured with an N-bit resolution. Selected appropriately, the rotation counter can be configured to operate as a relatively low resolution; and yet the multi-turn sensing apparatus can maintain the N-bit per-turn angular resolution throughout the full range. Accordingly, the multi-turn sensing apparatus can have an effective resolution of M+N bits.

High-resolution non-contacting multi-turn sensing systems and methods

Disclosed are systems and methods for effectively sensing rotational position of an object. In certain embodiments, a rotational position sensor can include a shaft configured to couple with the rotating object. The shaft can be configured to couple with a magnet carrier such that rotation of the shaft yields translational motion of the carrier. A magnet mounted to the carrier also moves longitudinally with respect to the axis of the shaft, and relative to a magnetic field sensor configured to detect the magnet's longitudinal position. The detected longitudinal position can be in a range corresponding to a rotational range of the shaft, where the rotational range can be greater than one turn. In certain embodiments, the rotational position sensor can include a programmable capability to facilitate ease and flexibility in calibration and use in a wide range of applications.

Growing community of inventors

Lake Elsinore, CA, United States of America

Eugen Bogos