Inductive proximity sensor and method of assembling the same

Abstract

An inductive proximity sensor comprises: a housing including an opening on one side; an inductive core including two legs, each core leg including a foot portion; an inductive coil wound bobbin disposed about each leg of the core, each bobbin including an integral ledge cantilevered from an inside surface of the bobbin for forming a pocket under the integral ledge at a bottom of the bobbin for containing the foot portion of the corresponding core leg; a thruster element including a top surface and two legs, each thruster leg disposed into a respective bobbin resting on the integral ledge thereof, the core, wound bobbins and thruster element disposed in the housing; a spring element disposed on the top surface of the thruster element at the housing opening; and a housing cover disposed over the housing opening for compressing the spring element against the thruster element which renders the core and wound bobbins in a fixed relationship to each other in the housing. Also disclosed is a method of assembling the proximity sensor.