Question about encoders with detents...
 

...Digi-Key is out of the detentless Grayhill mechanical encoders that we planned to use for autonomous. Would the detents wear the switch out far too quickly if used on the bot? Does it matter if the encoder also has a switch? Thanks for all your replies.

Re: Question about encoders with detents...
 

We also noticed that Digi-Key is out of stock of pretty much any workable encoders. Newark has lots of encoders in stock. Thats where we got ours. Btw i would't use encoders with detents. These are all meant for human interface applications (knobs), and arn't really rated for what you are using them for.

Re: Question about encoders with detents...
 

If you haven't bought anything yet, check these out. Digi-Key part number 102-1007-ND. The CUI encoders in the upper left-hand part of the catalog part linked below. Kevin Watson (kevin.org/frc has posted an excellent ISR example that makes it very easy to decode the ouput. We got it working and coded in less than 5 minutes.

http://dkc3.digikey.com/PDF/T041/0996.pdf

Re: Question about encoders with detents...
 

These are the exact encoders that we (team #538) are using. They seem to be working great so far.

Re: Question about encoders with detents...
 

Digi-Key has the Grayhill 63R256 in stock. It says it's PC mount, but you can solder wires to it or build a cable for it. Have a look at the attached data sheet for details.

-Kevin

Re: Question about encoders with detents...
 

Thanks for the responses guys but we'll stick to the 288 series, albeit with the Gray code output. We're on a tight budget and can't afford the optical gimmicks. Strange that Digi-Key wouldn't have this popular encoder in stock.