A sensor element for storing rotation or position information includes a substrate and a domain wall conductor arranged on the substrate. A course of the domain wall conductor is of a closed circumferential, continuous configuration without crossings. The domain wall conductor comprises a first region having a positive curvature and a second region having a negative curvature.

Methods and systems for measuring an axial position of a rotating component of an engine are described herein. The method comprises obtaining a signal from a sensor coupled to the rotating component, the rotating component having a plurality of position markers distributed about a surface thereof, the position markers having an axially varying characteristic configured to cause a change in a varying parameter of the signal as a function of the axial position of the rotating component. Based on the signal, the method comprises determining a rotational speed of the rotating component from the signal, determining the varying parameter of the signal, and finding the axial position of the rotating component based on a known relationship between the axial position, the rotational speed, and the varying parameter of the signal.

An inductive position-measuring device includes a scanning element and a graduation element, rotatable about an axis relative to the scanning element. The scanning element has exciter lead(s), a first receiver track, including receiver line(s), extending according to a first periodic pattern having a first period along a first direction, and a second receiver track, including receiver line(s). The graduation element includes a graduation track, extending in the circumferential direction and including a graduation period. An electromagnetic field generated by the exciter lead(s) with the aid of the graduation track is able to be modulated, so that an angular position is detectable with the aid of the receiver line of the first receiver track, and a position of the graduation element in the first direction relative to the scanning element is detectable with the aid of the receiver line of the second receiver track.

An encoder includes a disc and a sensor. The disc has a circular surface with a central axis and is rotatable around the central axis. The disc has a slit row provided on the circular surface. The slit row includes slits arranged in a circumferential direction of the circular surface around the central axis and in a radial direction of the circular surface. The sensor is provided opposite to the slit row on circular surface. The sensor has a first light receiver and a second light receiver. The first light receiver is configured to output a first light receiving signal as the slit row rotates along the circumferential direction when the disc rotates around the central axis. The second light receiver is configured to output a second light receiving signal as the slit row moves along the radial direction when the disc rotates around the central axis.

In a measuring instrument that measures a length using a measure, the measure including a plurality of row patterns arranged in a length direction, each of the row patterns having a plurality of patterns arranged in a width direction, one of binary values being assigned to each of the plurality of patterns, the measuring instrument includes a first reader configured to read a first row pattern, a second reader configured to read a second row pattern away from the first row pattern by a predetermined row, and a generator configured to generate a code that is a multi-digit pattern obtained by adding the second row pattern read by the second reader to the first row pattern read by the first reader.

In an optical position-measuring device for acquiring the rotational angle between two objects that are rotationally moveable relative to each other, a grating measuring standard rotating about an axis of rotation is arranged as a reflection grating. Position information both about an azimuthal rotary movement about the axis of rotation and about a radial displacement of the grating measuring standard is able to be obtained. At least one detection unit is used for scanning the rotating grating measuring standard in order to determine the azimuthal rotational angle as well as a radial displacement of the grating measuring standard. The neutral pivot points of the scanning of the grating measuring standard for the determination of the rotational angle and the displacement are situated in the same plane, with this plane being situated in parallel with the grating measuring standard. The neutral pivot point denotes the particular location about which the grating measuring standard or the detection unit is able to be tilted without a position offset.

An angle measuring device includes first and second component groups and a bearing. The first component group includes a scale element having first and second graduations. The second component group has a first modular unit, having a position sensor, a second modular unit, having first to sixth position transducers, and a compensation coupling. To determine the relative angular position between the component groups, the first graduation is scannable with the aid of the position sensor. Using the first to third position transducers, the first graduation or a further graduation disposed on the scale element is scannable to determine a displacement of the scale element in a plane. Using the fourth to sixth position transducers, the second graduation is scannable to determine tilting of the scale element about a tilting axis, the position sensor being situated in a torsionally stiff but axially and radially flexible manner relative to the position transducers.

An angle measuring device includes first and second component groups and a bearing. The first component group includes a scale element having a first graduation. The second component group has a first modular unit, including a position sensor, and a second modular unit, including first, second, and third position transducers, and a compensation coupling. The first and second modular units are connected in a torsionally stiff but axially and radially flexible manner. The angle measuring device is operable in first and second modes. In the first mode, the first graduation is scannable by the position sensor to determine a first angular position. In the second mode, the first graduation or a further graduation situated on the scale element is scannable by the position transducers to determine further angular positions. A corrected relative angular position is determinable based on the first angular position and the further angular positions.

The present disclosure refers to a scale element for an optical measuring device having an incremental encoder and an interferometric sensor system, the scale element having a reflection layer on one of the surfaces of the scale element, which reflection layer is provided to cooperate with the interferometric sensor system, and the scale element further having a material measure, which is arranged in a direction pointing away from and spaced apart from the reflection layer and is provided to cooperate with the incremental sensor system, the reflection layer being configured and designed in such a way that the reflection layer is transmissive for light of certain wavelengths and reflective for other wavelengths.

Apparatus and method estimate a position of a movable stage. The apparatus comprises: a stator comprising 2D array of sensors arranged relative to one another to provide a plurality of stator-Y oriented sensor columns and a plurality of stator-X oriented sensor rows; a movable stage comprising a first Y-magnet array comprising a plurality of first magnetization segments generally linearly elongated in a stage-Y direction, each first magnetization segment having a stage-Y direction length, L.sub.yy, and a magnetization direction generally orthogonal to the stage-Y direction, the magnetization directions of the plurality of first magnetization segments exhibiting a first magnetic spatial period .sub.x over a stage-X direction width, W.sub.yx, of the first magnet array; and a controller connected to receive information based on an output from each of the sensors and configured to use the information to determine a stator-X direction position of the movable stage.