PCB mounted Potentiometers.

The full range of Iskra potentiometers are available from JPR Electronics. Key products stocked are the enclosed single turn trimming potentiometers which are adjustable from both sides to simplify board layout, finger adjustable models with a plastic spindle supplied separately, and a range of compact linear or logarithmic carbon track rotary controls for panel mounting which are fitted with a threaded bush and supplied with panel fixing hardware.

Iskra trimming and finger adjustable pots have a fully enclosed construction which eliminates ingress of dust and moisture, a rectangular housing suitable for automatic insertion and waterproof versions to IP67 are available The rotary control models have an insulated all plastic body housing which is semi-sealed against dust and moisture.

All Iskra pots are RoHS compliant, available over the resistance range 100R to 5M and have pinouts compatible with other major suppliers.

"Iskra manufacture a wide range of pots for manual adjustment of signals and for adjusting factory pre-set values. They may be designed into white goods and domestic appliances, medical equipment, industrial and communication systems." Says Paul Raynor, Director of JPR Electronics, “They are a long established global brand offering very reliable, industry standard footprint, competitively priced products.”

#PAuto @Jprelec @Iskra_Europe

Choosing the right pot!

Hoffmann + Krippner  has posted a new white paper on their whitepaper page on-line – How to Choose the Right Potentiometer for Reliable Position Sensing. 

Click image to download paper!

Created to help design engineers understand how membrane potentiometer sensors work and how to pick the right type of membrane potentiometer for their project, this new Hoffmann+Krippner white paper covers the various types of potentiometers, potentiometer development history, their various components and materials, and an overview looking at the technical issues of printed potentiometers and foil (membrane). The paper also covers the various tech specifications of accuracy and linearity when specifying potentiometers.

“Specifying or designing a potentiometer sensors is a complex challenge for many developers, especially those now looking to create Internet connected devices and solutions,” says Jens Kautzor, CEO of Hoffman + Krippner, Inc. “This new guide provides an easy to understand high level look at these technologies as well as a detailed explanation of the most important technical specifications and how to understand them.”

Non-contact position measurement in membrane-style packaging

The MagnetoPot is new non-contacting linear potentiometer based upon a fully sealed membrane strip and a simple magnet that together provide position feedback from 8 mm to 1200 mm in a low profile and robust design with exceptionally long life capability. Manufactured by USA based membrane sensor experts Spectra Symbol, and available exclusively in Britain from Variohm EuroSensor, the MagnetoPot is ideal for hydraulic and pneumatic position sensing and other medium precision position feedback applications such as liquid level monitoring. A rotary version is also available for compact, low profile angle sensing.

The MagnetoPot is similar in concept to a traditional membrane type potentiometer but rather than use a contacting wiper to connect the collector to the resistive element, relies upon the interaction of a non-contacting external magnet and an encapsulated magnetic or ferromagnetic strip to determine the electrical output and hence relative position. The thin IP 65 membrane has a typical membrane thickness of less than 3.5 mm - allowing the position sensor to be discretely installed with either the magnet or the membrane strip attached to the moving component.

The standard linear MagnetoPot is available in eleven travel range versions from 12.5 mm to 1000 mm with a choice of 3-pin connection options including Crimplex solder tabs, male pins and a variety of connectors. The electrical specification includes a 10 kΩ resistance output over each linear position range (5 kΩ to 500 kΩ on request) with a linearity of +/- 5%. The positioning resolution is dependent upon the exterior magnet strength and its proximity to the MagnetoPot's magnetic strip. The rotary version is currently available with a 66 mm diameter and an active centre track diameter of 46 mm.

The IP65 rating for the active area for both types of MagnetoPot allows for intense water spray and the non-contact technology effectively yields an extremely long and maintenance free working life.