Digital Angle Stage

Description

The Digital Angle Stage is an electro-mechanical component for measuring the angular offset between a fixed base and a top that is free to rotate. The measured angle has 12 bits of precision - enough bits to accurately measure down to 0.1°. This measurement is then displayed on a 4 character 14-segment LED display. Optionally, a PC can connect to the D.A.S. over USB to read the current angle.

Story

I had recently taught myself how to use FreeCAD so I could design an enclosure for some electronic components. What I found was that I really enjoyed working in CAD! I began looking for projects to keep scratching the CAD itch.

What I came up with is a Digital Angle Stage. This is a (relatively) simple electro-mechanical device mounts to a table on the bottom and supports a small load on the top, allowing rotation between the top and bottom. A digital display tells the user what the angle is between the bottom and the top, relative to a set zero location.

The components to make this kind of device are readily available, so much so that I thought there must be an existing solution. If it did exist, I was unable to find it. This was frustrating back when I was originally looking for such a device, but now that I was looking for project to work on, it presented a nice opportunity...