US 12,222,228 B2
Optical encoder
Daniel Burger, Leingarten (DE); Sascha Kuhn, Oedheim (DE); Peter Mühleck, Offenau (DE); and Christina Schaff, Schwaigern (DE)
Assigned to VISHAY SEMICONDUCTOR GMBH, Heilbronn (DE)
Appl. No. 17/602,077
Filed by VISHAY SEMICONDUCTOR GMBH, Heilbronn (DE)
PCT Filed Apr. 6, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/059742
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 7, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/207959, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 15, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 102019109469.0 (DE), filed on Apr. 10, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0178722 A1, Jun. 9, 2022
Int. Cl. G01D 5/347 (2006.01)
CPC G01D 5/34707 (2013.01) [G01D 5/34715 (2013.01); G01D 5/3473 (2013.01); G01D 5/34792 (2013.01)] 12 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An optical encoder comprising:
an emitter;
a receiver;
a reflector; and
a code carrier,
wherein the emitter emits electromagnetic radiation along an emission axis in a direction of the reflector;
wherein the reflector has at least one reflection section that deflects the electromagnetic radiation along a reception axis in a direction of the receiver;
wherein the code carrier is movably supported and has a sequence of code sections to interrupt the emitted electromagnetic radiation or to give way for the emitted electromagnetic radiation to impinge on the receiver in dependence on a position of the code carrier;
wherein the emission axis and the reception axis extend at an alignment angle with respect to one another that has a value in a range from 30 degrees to 150 degrees;
wherein the reflector is configured as a rotatable disk that is rotatably supported about an axis of rotation, with the at least one reflection section of the reflector being arranged at a periphery of the rotatable disk that is include obliquely with respect to the axis of rotation; and
wherein the code carrier is configured as a flat code disk formed separate from the reflector and that is fixedly connected to the reflector and that extends along a normal plane to the axis of rotation, with the code carrier having at least one circular ring-shaped code track, which has the sequence of code sections, at a radial spacing from the axis of rotation, and with the sequence of code sections being alternately configured as absorbing radiation or as transmitting radiation.