POF-BASED ROTARY AND LINEAR POSITION SENSOR ENABLES NEW MEDICAL AND INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS.

A new Fiber Optic Absolute Encoder System incorporates Plastic Optical Fiber (POF) technology to provide an EMIimmune position measurement solution for mechanical motion. The new sensor technology provides 0.039° rotary or 6.33µm linear position resolution with an update rate of 1.17 kHz (850μs). The sensor's passive nature, small size, non-metallic and alldielectric construction, provides immunity to operating environments stressed by RFI, Microwaves Radiation, Magnetic Fields, High Voltage, or Explosive Atmospheres. In addition to the technical details, this paper also describes three application areas - medical, energy, and transportation - where the sensors are being applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]