Patent ID: 7221151

Claim:
A magnetic position sensor for measuring one of a linear position and an angular position of a device, the sensor comprising: a linear array of at least three galvanomagnetic sensing elements fixedly mountable adjacent the device; a target connectable to the device such that the target moves adjacent a surface of the linear array in response to movement of the device, the target shaped so that a magnetic flux density curve resulting from excitation of the sensing elements includes at least one of a peak and a valley, the magnetic flux density curve comprising a magnetic flux density value at each of the sensing elements; and, wherein a width of the target moving adjacent the surface of the linear array is equal to or narrower than a distance between adjacent sensing elements; a first circuit for exciting each of the sensing elements; and a second circuit for measuring the magnetic flux density value at each of the sensing elements, wherein at least one of a maximum of the peak and a minimum of the valley indicates one of the linear position and the angular position of the device.