[PAR_WIG1350]

We use multi-turn potentiometers (10-15 turns if I remember correctly). these are good for some applications, such a lead screws and joints that move beyond the limits of a normal potentiometer (or even joints that approach the limit since the extra range provides a buffer that protects the pot from damage).

Some teams use fancy ones called continuous potentiometers which can turn infinitely. The trouble with these is that they typically have a dead zone of 5-10 degrees where they won't provide any feedback, but if you can account for this they are excellent for things that don't have a mechanical rotation limit.

All potentiometers have the disadvantage of not working to find the heading of the entire robot since you must physically attach the shaft or wiper actuator to the rotating part and the body to the stationary part (or vise versa). Also, only linear taper pots should be used since logarithmic tapers are harder to use due to the fact that the logarithmic or piece-wise linear function must be determined before you can know which resistance values correspond to which positions.