Project INOSENS – Research on an innovative optical rotation angle sensor

The trend towards integrating as many different sensors as possible in a small space and processing their measured values as close to the sensor as possible also opens up new possibilities and areas of application for optical rotary angle sensors. In addition to determining the angle of rotation of a connected axis, which is part of the basic function of the optical rotary encoder, other proximity parameters can also be recorded. These include the operating and ambient temperature as well as possible vibrations of the encoder. The idea behind this is to generate a status monitoring of the encoder, which warns early of exceeding maximum values or an imminent failure.

IMS CHIPS is cooperating with Hahn- Schickard-Gesellschaft in Stuttgart in developing an intelligent optical angle of rotation sensor, which detects and processes several environmental parameters. This complex sensor system is created by combining a novel optical approach to determine the angle of rotation and a miniaturized sensor platform. The package as well as all optical components have been specifically designed for the miniaturized setup. The central component of the optical encoder is a circuit developed by IMS CHIPS with integrated photodiodes (Opto-ASIC, see front page) to determine the angle of rotation and temperature measurement. The miniaturized sensor board serves as carrier for all sensor elements and interconnects the optical circuit, the gyroscope and a powerful micro controller. The gyroscope can be used to detect increased shaft vibrations and generate a warning in case of damage, for example. All sensor information from the encoder is analyzed by a micro controller and connected to intelligent functions to provide status monitoring.