Magnetic differential torque sensor

Abstract

A new torque sensor structure is presented. The basic idea is a simple torque sensor with a variable magnetic circuit excited by an axially magnetized permanent magnet ring. The circuit is constituted by iron toothed rings, whose teeth relative position changes whenever an applied torque twists the rotating shaft. A Hall probe measures the induction in an airgap where the induction is uniform. The new structure is an association of two previous ones, thus creating a differential system with the related advantages: diminution of thermal drifts, zero mean value for the signal. The new magnetic circuit is studied by calculating equivalent reluctances through energy calculations and by using electrical analogies.