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A capacitive angular sensor with flexible digitated electrodes

Damir Krklješ (Department for Power, Electronics and Telecommunication, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Technical Sciences, Novi Sad, Serbia)
Dragana Vasiljević (Department for Power, Electronics and Telecommunication, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Technical Sciences, Novi Sad, Serbia)
Goran Stojanović (Department for Power, Electronics and Telecommunication, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Technical Sciences, Novi Sad, Serbia)

Sensor Review

ISSN: 0260-2288

Article publication date: 26 August 2014

333

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present a prototype of a capacitive angular-position sensor which exploits advantages of flexible/printed electronics. The novelty of the sensor is that the capacitor structure is placed at the circumference of the rotor and stator, that it posses two channels (capacitor structures) electrically shifted for p/4 and that the rotor is common for both channels. The electrodes of the sensing capacitor are digitated, providing a triangular transfer function.

Design/methodology/approach

This sensor prototype consists of two flexible inkjet-printed silver electrodes forming a cylindrical capacitor structure. One of them is wrapped around the stator and another is wrapped around the rotor part of a simple mechanical platform used to precisely adjust the angular displacement.

Findings

The capacitance as a function of angular position was measured using an inductance capacitance impedance (LCZ) Meter, and results are presented for a full-turn measurement range. The experimental results are compared with analytical ones and very good agreement has been achieved.

Originality/value

The proposed capacitive sensor structure can be used as an absolute or an incremental encoder with different resolutions, and it can be applied in automotive industry or robotics.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Research presented in this paper was partly supported within the national project TR32016 and equipment provided within EU founded FP7 project APOSTILLE, no. 256615. The authors express their gratitude for the received support.

Citation

Krklješ, D., Vasiljević, D. and Stojanović, G. (2014), "A capacitive angular sensor with flexible digitated electrodes", Sensor Review, Vol. 34 No. 4, pp. 382-388. https://doi.org/10.1108/SR-11-2012-683

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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