Servo control apparatus

Abstract

A monolithic photosensor array comprises first, second and third identical photodiodes. A light emitting diode illuminates the third photodiode continuously. An occluder disc is rotatably driven from the shaft of a servo motor between the light emitting diode and the first and second photodiodes. The disc is formed with a plurality of circumferentially spaced apertures which alternately cover and uncover the photodiodes which produce quasisinosoidal position signals in response thereto, the position signals of the first and second photodiodes being relatively 90.degree. out of phase. A computing circuit produces a motor shaft velocity command signal corresponding to the number of steps the shaft must rotate from the initial position to the new desired position and progressively reduces the magnitude of the velocity signal in response to the position signals. A differentiating circuit differentiates the position signals and their inversions and a commutator produces an actual velocity signal by sampling the peak values of the differentiated position signals. A comparator compares the velocity signal with the velocity command signal and produces an error signal corresponding to the difference therebetween which is fed to the motor as a drive signal. A sensor senses the output voltage of the third photodiode and an intensity control circuit adjusts the current flow through the light emitting diode until said output voltage has a predetermined value, thereby compensating for ambient temperature and other variations of all three photodiodes. A stable reference voltage for the apparatus is derived from the sensor.