May 7, 2020
An INDEX PULSE is a digital signal generated from an incremental encoder on an individual output channel, once per revolution. This unique pulse may be used for several purposes: In conjunction with a counter, it can be used to track the total number of shaft rotations. It may be used...
January 26, 2016
Potentiometer vs Encoder Recently, I decided to catalog the competitive incremental encoders that have populated the shelves surrounding my desk. In doing so, I was surprised to find that many of our competitors use potentiometers in their designs. I can understand why they need to use potentiometers. In most...
October 1, 2014
The index pulse, often also called “Z” or “Marker pulse”, of an optical incremental encoder is a once per revolution digital pulse that is used for homing or count verification of incremental signals. In the QD145 and QD200 series of encoders, the index pulse fires when the mark on the...
August 27, 2014
What’s the difference between a brushless motor with a commutating encoder and a brush motor? Well, the brushes of course. And, without brushes – the need for a commutating encoder for current carrying. Yeah, but what does that mean? The principle behind the internal working of both a brushless DC...
August 10, 2014
Sometimes you don’t have the right tools to do the job. Let’s say you needed to identify where the index pulse was firing on your incremental encoder, but you left your oscilloscope in your other jacket pocket, and now all you have on hand is a Digital Multimeter (DMM). Well...
June 29, 2014
Which Encoder Wires Should I Use to Begin Understanding Incremental Encoder Signals? Channels A & B (Incremental Channels) Use only A (or only B) for an RPM or counting applications where the rotation is either unidirectional, or where you don’t need to know direction. Use A and B together to...
May 6, 2014
How to Build a Portable Incremental Encoder Tester Every once in while, it’s nice to have a handheld device that can be used to see quickly if encoder signals are present. I designed and built a quick-tester that allows for fast interface to an encoder without having to drag out...
November 20, 2013
The QDH20 Industrial Rotary Encoder is an IP66 sealed encoder made for the rugged duty of an industrial application. Due to the huge array of configuration options, this optical encoder has over 200,000 possible ways that it can be configured. While this is certainly an advantage to an end user...
June 10, 2013
Since most electronics are set up to have high input impedance, in some situations the addition of a loading or “termination” resistor can help to reduce interference from electrical noise. This can be of particular help when implementing an incremental encoder where there is a long cable run. If the...
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