We had an enquiry recently from a customer building a small piece of lab equipment. They needed a compact rotary encoder to fit onto a small motor shaft, and the old part they were using (an RIS or RI 31 type) was no longer available. Sounds like a simple swap, but there is more to check before we can quote a replacement.
This looks simple, but the RI32 series comes in a few different shaft sizes (5 mm or 6 mm), voltage options (5V or 10-30V DC), and output types (Push-Pull or Push-Pull 5V). The connector and cable also come in axial or radial versions, with cable lengths from the standard 1.5 m up to 30 m. Get one of these wrong and the encoder either won’t fit the shaft, won’t talk to the controller, or the cable routing won’t work in the machine.
In actual application, the Hengstler ICURO RI32 is built as an economical encoder for small machines – things like laboratory equipment, fitness machines, crimping machines, pad printing machines and miniature grinding machines. It uses a ball-bearing mounted shaft, which gives it a good performance rating and low start-up torque, so it doesn’t load down small motors. It carries an IP40 protection rating and is cULus listed, and the output is Push-Pull type.
From our experience, before we quote this, we would normally check the exact shaft diameter, the number of pulses per revolution needed, supply voltage, output type, and whether the cable needs to be axial or radial and how long. Once we have these details we can confirm the correct part number and get you a proper quote. Hope this helps.
