How to Calculate Pulses Per Degree for an Incremental Encoder

March 2, 2016

When using an incremental rotary encoder, you often have to know how many pulses there are per degree of rotation. This is a very straightforward math problem. Pulses per Degree = Number of encoder pulses per rotation/Number of degrees in a circle For a 5,000 line count incremental encoder we...

Help Picking the Resolution of an Incremental Encoder

February 9, 2016

I recently received an e-mail asking for some help picking the right resolution for an optical incremental encoder.  I have removed the personal information and the drive/controller information, otherwise the e-mail is verbatim: Hi, I am using a  motor controller in dual loop velocity mode. What resolution incremental encoder would...

The Lost Optical Encoder Demo Box

January 20, 2016

We recently teamed up with one of our Optical Encoder Distributors to create a Demo box that showcased our QD145 encoder with a Delta Tau PLC and touchscreen panel. It was sent off to a trade show where potential customers would get to spin the encoder and watch on the...

Finding the RPM of an Optical Encoder using an Oscilloscope

January 9, 2016

  We only need to measure one of the incremental channels in order to calculate the RPM of an optical encoder. Using an oscilloscope to measure the period of one incremental channel A cycle. We will need to find the frequency of the incremental signal. Keep in mind that converting...

Rotary Optical Encoder Calculator

March 18, 2015

Encoder Resolution, RPM & Frequency Calculator We just added an online calculator that provides a way to calculate RPM, Frequency, or line count (optical encoder resolution) by entering in the other two variables. Leave the third field empty (do not enter zero). Use to solve for Frequency, Line Count or...

Gray Code for Rotary Incremental Encoders

June 17, 2014

Gray code was named for Frank Gray, a Bell labs researcher, who patented the procession in 1953, even though a form of it was used by Emile Baudot for telegraphy as early as 1878. The most important thing to understand about Gray code is that only one bit changes from...

Using an Optical Encoder to Measure Angles

April 23, 2014

I have interfaced a 200 LC QR145 to a DL06 PLC to show how to convert from a line count to mechanical degrees. This type of conversion may be useful for any application of optical encoder to measure angles. To calculate a degree measurement we divide 360 by the line...

Optical Encoder Incremental Signal Measurement

March 26, 2014

While most of us are familiar with how to measure something in mechanical degrees, incremental encoder signals are measured in electrical degrees. 360 electrical degrees is the period in which a signal completes one high to low transition. This can be in any sort of waveform, but for encoders electrical...

E-mail on Creating a Post Quad Encoder Signal

August 13, 2013

We see that this sampling rate essentially correctly "maps" the waveform, introducing some phase shift error. Depending on where sampling occurs this error may be as high as just under 90 electrical degrees, but does not directly give you 4X the frequency.

Log In

Forgot Password?

Create an account

Create an account to gain access to all of our 3D models!

Create Account

Create an account to gain access to all of our 3D models!

Forgot Password