A tiny linear encoder from RSF Elektronik is an MS 15 optical kit-style with the smallest mechanical profile in the industry. Available in North America through HEIDENHAIN, the encoder works in machinery for metrology, semiconductor, medical and automation.

The MS 15 optical kit-style encoder is 36 x 13.5 x 14.8mm in size, and provides a 40 μm grating pitch on an 8-mm wide steel tape carrier that has a double-stick backing for mounting directly to the machine axis. More after the jump.

The measuring tape comes with accuracies of ±5 or ±15 μm per meter and comes in lengths up to 20 m.

The tape lets the designer pick the reference mark, as the marks are printed every 50-mm and a sticker placed on the scale is used to highlight which reference mark is needed.

The tape also features the use of optical limits where separate stickers are placed on the scale that are detected by the reader head which sends the limit signals to the control or readout. A mounting tool is also offered to help install the measuring tape onto the machine axis with precision.

The MS 15 reader head has compensation built-in to continuously adjust signal deviations of amplitude, offset, and phase. This online compensation reduces interpolation error significantly.

The reader head also has a status LED which indicates to the user the mounting condition of the reader head with respect to the scale.

The reader head is available with 1-V peak to peak analog output, or a digital TTL output with a resolution down to 100 nanometers. Velocity of the reader head can be up to 10 meters per second.