Magnetic Linear Encoder – and it works :)
For awhile now I have been meaning to try to find a way to close the stepper motor “loop” on CNC devices. What started as an need / idea turned into reality last night. A few weeks back cruising thingiverse.com I found a post where Zach had created a magnetic linear encoder. However his design was off and needed fixing. Instead of re-inventing the wheel with a different linear magnetic chip I decided to use the same setup as Zach. I contacted him about fixing the problem with the board (the footprint was off) and in about 3 hours after emailing him he had it fixed.
I have blogged about laser etching PCB’s in the past (you can read about it here). The inherit problem with laser etching PCB’s is that is it very hard to get aligned if its a double sided board. So I modified Zach’s design to be a single sided board. Its tight in some spots but if you use the solder mask I created and have a somewhat steady hand its doable. Here are some pictures of the process and a video of it working!
The AS5306 can be found here:
http://www.austriamicrosystems.com/eng/Products/Magnetic-Encoders/Linear-Encoders/AS5306
Thingiverse entry and files here:
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1409
