DFSS-Based Design of a Hall-Effect Rotary Position Sensor

This work presents the application of the DFSS (Design for Six Sigma) methodology to optimizing both the linearity and the sensitivity of the output voltage of a Hall-effect rotary position sensor. To this end, the dimensions and relative positions of a permanent magnet with reference to a Hall sensor are selected as the design factors for a full factorial design. In order to evaluate the output voltage of the rotary position sensor at each run in the experimental design, analytical solutions to the magnetic flux density were obtained using the Biot-Savart law and the relations between the magnetic flux density and the output voltage intrinsic to a Hall sensor. Through measurements of the improved output voltage of the rotary position sensors manufactured using the optimized design factors, the proposed method is shown to be simple and practical.