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#3723506 - 01/23/13 07:52 PM Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders  
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iam73 Offline
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Hi guys,

Never dealt with an encoder before but now that I have a teensy++2.0 to play with, I'm tempted to use those as they look extremly flexible and requires only 2 pins on my controller board.

My question is, would a 12-detents @30 degrees rotary encoder "feels" the same as a rotary switch? Meaning, when you rotate the encoder and it moves from 1 detent to the other, does it require approximately the same operating force as a regular rotary switch and will I hear some kind of "click"?

If anyone played with this kind of encoder,please let me know!

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#3723607 - 01/23/13 10:22 PM Re: Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders [Re: iam73]  
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Brandano Offline
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Caput Mundi (well, it used to ...
I guess it depends. There's probably different types for different applications. I think most will come with some form of detent, some might have "configurable" setups where multiple encoders and/or detents can be stacked on a single shaft, and some will be free of detents to be used as a jog wheel. The fact you are mentioning just two pins (plus ground, I figure) for a 12 positions encoder makes me think that this will be a relative position encoder, like that used in a mousewheel (incidentally my Logitech G700 has a button to toggle detents). This means that there won't be an absolute zero position. To get 12 steps of resolution with a standard binary or gray encoder you need 4 pins, one per bit (0000 to 1100), but an encoder would probably give you the full 16 steps. You could wire a binary encoder through an R-2R ladder to be read through an analog channel, though, if it's based on electrical contacts, and you could do the same with a resistor network on a rotary switch. that would use just one pin, and a bit more logic anc cycles.

Last edited by Brandano; 01/23/13 10:25 PM.
#3723610 - 01/23/13 10:24 PM Re: Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders [Re: iam73]  
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SAPPER Offline
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Don't know if you could make up for this with programing, but normaly you would use an encoder do send one signal while rotating in one direction and a diferent signal in the oposite direction. A rotary switch would be used to send a diferent signal to each position that is was set to.

#3723615 - 01/23/13 10:35 PM Re: Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders [Re: iam73]  
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Brandano Offline
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Brandano  Offline
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Caput Mundi (well, it used to ...
The common "mousewheel" encoder just sends two square wave signals
something like
__--__--__
-__--__--_
when rotating in one direction
and
__--__--__
_--__--__-
when rotating in the other direction. You can condition these through a series of logic gates so that one pin is high or low according to the direction and the other pulsates with each step, but in this day and age of microcontrollers you normally handle it via microcode.

#3723906 - 01/24/13 12:26 PM Re: Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders [Re: iam73]  
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Bluedeath Offline
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as for the feels 12 position rotary switches need more force to rotate the shaft.


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#3724030 - 01/24/13 04:15 PM Re: Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders [Re: Bluedeath]  
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iam73 Offline
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iam73  Offline
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Thanks all for the feedback...

Originally Posted By: Bluedeath
as for the feels 12 position rotary switches need more force to rotate the shaft.

Yeah that's what I thought, I guess a 30degrees/12 detents encoder must feel somehow like an car AC knob... i.e. smooth feel between detents...

#3724297 - 01/24/13 10:10 PM Re: Rotary switch VS Rotary encoders [Re: iam73]  
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Brandano Offline
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Caput Mundi (well, it used to ...
Probably more like a modern car stereo volume wheel. Including having no end stops.


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