A joystick for an electrically-powered wheelchair includes a shaft pivotally mounted in a base and configured to control a movement of the electrically-powered wheelchair; a reset sleeve positioned over a lower portion of the shaft proximate the base; a compression spring positioned over the shaft with one end of the compression spring compressed against or fixed to an upper portion of the shaft and an opposing end of the compression spring compressed against the reset sleeve; and a flexible clip positioned over the shaft at the opposing end of the compression spring and between the compression spring and the reset sleeve, the flexible clip being removably positioned on the shaft so as to compress the compression spring between the flexible clip and a point at which the compression spring is compressed against or fixed to the upper portion of the shaft.

A gimbal support that senses rotational displacement and provides haptic feedback in one, two or three dimensions of a manually-operated control member used to generate control inputs using a single hand while also limiting cross-coupling.

A multi-way input device includes a first interlocking member, a second interlocking member, a hollow frame within which the interlocking members are mounted, and an operating shaft inserted through both a slit of the first interlocking member and a slot of the second interlocking member. The device also includes first and second sensing components capable of being operated respectively through the first and second interlocking members when rotating by operation of the operating shaft, along with third sensing component capable of being operated through the second interlocking member when pivoting by operation of the operating shaft. The device also includes an articulation member that is rotatably supported by the hollow frame around an axis. The second interlocking member is supported by the articulation member to form a mobile unit that is rotatable. The second interlocking member is also pivotally mounted on the articulation member.

A joystick assembly for use with a device including a joystick surface and a first magnet having north and south magnetic poles includes a second magnet having north and south magnetic poles and a movable elongated shaft having first and second opposing ends arranged along a major axis of the shaft. The first end of the shaft is coupled to the second magnet such that movement of the shaft results in movement of the second magnet relative to the first magnet such that a line between centers of the north and south magnetic poles of the second magnet is movable relative to a line between the north and south magnetic poles of the first magnet. An attraction of the second magnet to the first magnet results in a restoring force upon the shaft, and the shaft and the second magnet are removable from the joystick surface.

A modular control apparatus for actuating hydraulic valve systems includes an actuating section including a tilting control member and a plurality of control rods provided with a pusher, which interacts with the control member so as to translate the control rods in the longitudinal direction, a sensor section including a plurality of sensor members suitable to detect a movement in the longitudinal direction of said control rods and a blocking section comprising a blocking device that is capable of individually blocking in the longitudinal direction each of said control rods. The actuating section can be alternately connected to the blocking section or to the sensor section so that the sensor section can be directly connected to the actuating section, detecting the longitudinal movement of the control rods also if the blocking section is not present.

A joystick comprises an articulation comprising bearing faces that are shaped to permit, via shape-shape interaction when they rub against each other, a rotational movement of a handle. A first set of springs exerts, on the handle, a first vertical force that pushes the bearing faces against each other. A second set of springs exerts, on the handle, a second vertical force in the opposite direction to the first vertical force and the amplitude of which is between 0.9|F.sub.1| and 1.1|F.sub.1|, wherein |F.sub.1| is the amplitude of the first vertical force. The first and second sets of springs are able, in the absence of external stress on the handle, to maintain a non-zero clearance between all the bearing faces of the articulation.

A sensor system and a joystick including the sensor system. The sensor system comprises a magnetic field sensor, and first and second magnetic sources. The first magnetic source is rotatable relative to a sensitive surface of the sensor and generates a first magnetic field contribution of at least quadrupolar order. The second magnetic source is pivotable with respect to the sensitive surface and generates a second magnetic field contribution. The sensor is configured for detecting at least an in-plane component of a superimposition field of the first and second magnetic contributions at a plurality of lateral measurement locations on the sensitive surface, obtaining measurements, and determining a rotation angle for the first source from the field gradient measurements and two angular directions for the second source from the field mean measurements. Lateral measurement locations are arranged into two pairs of diametrically opposite measurement locations with respect to the sensitive surface.

An inductive joystick may include a control structure including an elongate member movable along at least one direction substantially perpendicular to its length; and a position sensing assembly including a printed circuit board having at least one surface arranged adjacent to the control structure and at least one metal dial arranged over the at least one surface. The at least one surface may be substantially parallel with the elongate member's length and with the at least one direction, and may be provided with at least one transmitter coil and at least one receiver coil. In use, the transmitter coil(s) may induce signal(s) in the receiver coil(s) and the metal dial(s) may interfere with the induction. Moving the elongate member may cause relative movement between the surface(s) and the metal dial(s) which may vary the induced signal(s) based on a position of the metal dial(s).

A joystick sensor includes a housing, a reset assembly, a rocker assembly, a circuit assembly, the reset assembly, the rocker assembly and the circuit assembly are mounted on the housing; the rocker assembly includes two magnets, an upper rocker arm, a lower rocker arm, and a rocker body, one end of the upper rocker connected with one of the two magnets; one end of the rocker arm is connected with the other one of the two magnets, the other end of the lower rocker arm is secured a pressing block; the circuit assembly includes a flexible circuit board, two Hall IC elements, and a switch spring, the two Hall IC elements and the switch spring are arranged on the flexible circuit board, positions of the Hall IC elements respective correspond to positions of the magnets; a position of the switch spring corresponds to a position of the pressing block.

In embodiments, a work vehicle magnetorheological fluid (MRF) joystick system includes a joystick device, an MRF joystick resistance mechanism, and a controller architecture. The joystick device includes, in turn, a base housing, a joystick movably mounted to the base housing, and a joystick bias mechanism coupled to the joystick and exerting a centering force urging the joystick to return to the centered position when moved therefrom. The controller architecture is operable in a modified centering mode in which the controller architecture: (i) determines when the joystick begins return toward the centered position due to the centering force applied by the joystick bias mechanism; and (ii) when so determining, commands the MRF joystick resistance mechanism to modify a rate at which the joystick returns to the centered position by varying the MRF resistance force applied to the joystick.