Single-turn versus Multi-turn！

In a single turn encoder, the output codes are repeated for every revolution of the encoder shaft. There is no mechanism to indicate whether the encoder had made one revolution or several revolutions. All that is output is the relative position. In a multi turn absolute encoder, the output is unique for each shaft position through every rotation up to x number of revolutions. 

Single turn absolute encoders are used when full range of positioning in the application is not greater than one full revolution (360 degrees) of the encoder shaft – an example is rotary table positioning.

Multi turn absolute encoders are used when a full range of positioning in the application requires multiple turns of the encoder shaft – an example of this is lead and ball screw applications.

Resolution

The resolution of the encoder is dependent on the number of tracks on the code disk. Each track requires a wire (pin connection) for the output signal for that bit. Ten-bit resolution is 1024 counts per turn.

Example: 2 to the 10^th = 1024

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