Magnetic encoders are widely used in motors, robotics, industrial automation, CNC machinery, medical equipment, AGVs, and other motion-control systems that require reliable position, speed, or direction feedback. Compared with optical encoders, magnetic designs can offer better resistance to dust, oil, moisture, shock, and vibration, making them especially useful in demanding industrial environments.
If you are looking for magnetic encoder manufacturers worldwide, the companies below represent different strengths, from complete rotary and linear encoder systems to compact motor encoders, magnetic sensor ICs, and customized encoder magnets. This guide can help you compare suppliers based on product range, application focus, and customization capability.
|
Brand |
Established |
Headquarters |
Special Feature |
|
FAULHABER |
1947 |
Germany |
Compact magnetic encoders integrated with miniature and micro drive systems |
|
GME |
2015 |
China |
Custom encoder magnets, multipole magnetic rings, and magnetic encoding components |
|
MOSRAC |
2011 |
China |
Ultra-thin absolute magnetic encoders for robotics and direct-drive systems |
|
Anaheim Automation |
1966 |
USA |
Magnetic rotary and linear encoders for industrial motion control |
|
Dynapar |
1955 |
USA |
Heavy-duty NorthStar magnetic encoders for harsh industrial environments |
|
SmarAct |
2005 |
Germany |
Compact METIRIO encoders for high-resolution closed-loop positioning |
|
RLS |
1989 |
Slovenia |
Extensive rotary and linear magnetic encoder portfolio |
|
Oriental Motor |
1885 |
Japan |
Motors with integrated magnetic encoder feedback |
|
Allegro MicroSystems |
1990 |
USA |
Magnetic position-sensing ICs for encoder and motor-control designs |
|
Nidec Avtron Encoders |
1953 |
USA |
Bearingless magnetic encoders that clamp onto the motor shaft, built for outdoor and heavy plant duty |
#1.FAULHABER
Introduction:
FAULHABER is a German manufacturer specializing in miniature and micro drive systems. Founded in 1947, the company supplies motors, gearheads, motion controllers, and compact encoder solutions for applications where precision and limited installation space are important. Its encoder portfolio includes both optical and magnetic technologies. FAULHABER magnetic encoders detect changes in the magnetic field using Hall sensors or specialized ICs and are commonly integrated with compact motor systems. Their resistance to dust, humidity, and mechanical influences makes them suitable for demanding miniature motion-control applications.
Location: Germany
Established: 1947
Business Scope:
- Magnetic Motor Encoders
- Incremental Encoders
- Absolute Encoders
- DC Micromotors
- Brushless DC Motors
- Gearheads
- Motion Controllers
Recommended Reason:
FAULHABER is worth considering when your project requires a compact motor, gearbox, and feedback system rather than a standalone industrial encoder. Its strength lies in integrating encoder technology with miniature drive systems, making it particularly relevant for medical devices, robotics, laboratory automation, precision equipment, and other space-constrained applications.
#2.GME
Introduction:
GME is a magnet manufacturer based in Xiamen, China, and it sits on the magnetic side of the encoder market. Rather than building encoder electronics, the company makes the part the sensor actually reads, which is the multipole magnetic ring, the encoder magnet, and the magnetized target. Its wider catalog includes neodymium, samarium-cobalt, alnico, ferrite, flexible, and injection-bonded magnets, along with magnetic separators, chucks, and assemblies. The company runs its own testing laboratory, holds ISO, CE, RoHS, and SGS certifications, and works with partners in more than 30 countries, mostly on OEM and ODM projects rather than catalog orders.
Location: Xiamen, China
Established: 2015
Business Scope:
- Encoder Magnets
- Magnetic Encoder Rings
- Multipole Magnetic Rings
- Custom Magnetization
- Magnetic Rotary Encoder Components
- Magnetic Sensor Magnets
- Permanent Magnets
- Custom Magnetic Assemblies
Recommended Reason:
Talk to GME when the magnet is what decides your encoder accuracy. Pole pitch, magnetization pattern, ring size, and material grade are all made to your drawing, so the ring can be matched to the field window your sensor chip needs instead of forcing you to design around a standard part. Injection bonded neodymium also lets the ring be molded straight onto a hub or shaft, which saves you an assembly step and keeps runout down. Because most of the work is OEM, small first orders and sample rounds are normal, and the in house test lab means you get measured results with the parts rather than a promise.
#3.MOSRAC
Introduction:
Mosrac, or Shenzhen Mosrac Motor Co., Ltd., started in 2011 as a direct drive motor maker and grew into a motion component supplier that builds motors, encoders, and complete robot joints under one roof. The company works from the COFCO Robot Technology Park in Bao'an District, Shenzhen, with around 350 staff across two sites, and runs ISO 9001 along with military and explosion-proof qualifications. Its encoder line came out of its own joint module work, so the absolute magnetic encoders are shaped the way robot builders need them, which means thin, hollow, and light. Customers sit mainly in the United States, Europe, and South Korea.
Location: China
Established: 2011
Business Scope:
- Absolute magnetic encoders, rotary and hollow shaft
- T Series and S Series encoders
- Absolute inductive encoders
- Frameless torque motors, inrunner and outrunner
- Frameless motors for linear joints
- Harmonic and planetary robot joint modules
- Direct drive motors
- RV reducers
Recommended Reason:
Look at Mosrac if you are building robot joints or compact servo axes and you want the encoder to sit inside the assembly instead of hanging off the end. Its encoders are thin, hollow in the middle, and light, so your cables can run straight through the joint and the finished arm stays slim. Because the same company also builds the motors and the complete joint modules, the encoder is already matched to that hardware, and you spend less time working out whether the parts fit together. Sizes, connectors, and output options can be changed to suit your design, and that kind of customizing is routine here rather than a special project.
#4.Anaheim Automation
Introduction:
Founded in California, Anaheim Automation supplies motion control products for industrial automation, including a broad range of encoder solutions. Its magnetic encoder line covers both rotary and linear designs, with options for different shaft sizes, resolutions, outputs, and installation requirements. The company also offers magnetic encoders designed for environments where dust, oil, shock, or vibration may affect standard optical feedback systems.
Location: California, USA
Established: 1966
Business Scope:
- Magnetic Rotary Encoders
- Magnetic Linear Encoders
- Absolute Magnetic Encoders
- Incremental Encoders
- Optical Encoders
- Capacitive Encoders
- Stepper Motors
- Servo Motors
- Brushless DC Motors
Recommended Reason:
Anaheim Automation offers both rotary and linear magnetic encoders, so buyers can choose different feedback solutions for motors, shafts, guide rails, and other motion systems. Its product range includes compact magnetic encoders, absolute models, and higher-protection designs for industrial use. This makes it a practical supplier for machine builders and automation companies that want to source encoders together with motors, drives, and other motion control components.
#5.Dynapar
Introduction:
Dynapar has been making motion feedback in the United States since 1955 and works out of Gurnee, Illinois, as part of the Fortive group. The company grew by pulling several well-known feedback brands together, including NorthStar for heavy-duty encoders and Harowe for resolvers, so the catalog runs from small hollow shaft units all the way up to mill-duty tachometers that take two hands to lift. Magnetic encoders are a core part of that lineup rather than a sideline. Steel, pulp and paper, mining, and material handling are the industries it sells into most, and its harsh-duty reputation came out of that work.
Location: USA
Established: 1955
Business Scope:
- Bearingless magnetic encoders
- Heavy-duty magnetic tachometers
- Incremental rotary encoders
- Absolute rotary encoders
- Hollow shaft and shafted encoders
- Housed and frameless resolvers
- Condition monitoring systems
- Encoder couplings and accessories
Recommended Reason:
Steel mills and paper mills are where Dynapar earned its name. Its heavy duty magnetic encoders were built for motors that run hot, dirty, and wet, and the sensor reads the magnetic wheel from a comfortable distance, so a little misalignment or buildup does not kill the signal. That gap is the whole point. When something does go wrong, your crew swaps the sensor module instead of pulling the motor apart, and the cast iron housing takes the knocks that come with mill floors. If your real problem is uptime in a punishing plant rather than fine resolution on a lab bench, start here.
#6.SmarAct
Introduction:
Founded in 2005 in Oldenburg, Germany, SmarAct develops high-precision positioning, measurement, and automation technologies. Its encoder offering centers on the METIRIO series, a compact optical encoder developed for precise motion feedback and closed-loop positioning. The product can be supplied as an OEM component and is mainly used where small installation space and very high measurement resolution are required. SmarAct also supplies positioning stages, interferometers, and other precision measurement products for research and industrial applications.
Location: Oldenburg, Germany
Established: 2005
Business Scope:
- Optical Encoders
- METIRIO Encoders
- Encoder Readheads
- Encoder Scales
- Interferometers
- Vibrometers
- Positioning Stages
- Nanopositioning Systems
Recommended Reason:
SmarAct is mainly relevant to buyers looking for compact, high-resolution encoder technology for precision equipment. The METIRIO encoder is designed for closed-loop positioning and can be integrated as an OEM component, which gives equipment manufacturers more flexibility during system design. Its products are more closely suited to semiconductor equipment, precision instruments, microscopy, and other applications where positioning accuracy and compact size are important.
#7.RLS
Introduction:
RLS is a Slovenian encoder maker based in Komenda, just outside Ljubljana. The name stands for Rotary and Linear Motion Sensors, and the company was set up in December 1989. In 2000, it became an associate company of Renishaw, which owns half of the business and sells RLS encoders through its own global network; from that point, RLS narrowed its focus to magnetic sensing. Almost everything it makes is magnetic: rings, tapes, readheads, board-level modules, and the chips behind them. The plant in Komenda includes its own cleanroom, and the encoders are used in robots, medical equipment, and factory automation.
Location: Komenda, Slovenia
Established: 1989
Business Scope:
- Absolute magnetic rotary encoders (AksIM)
- Incremental magnetic rotary encoders (Orbis)
- Magnetic ring encoders
- Linear magnetic encoders and magnetic scales
- Shaft, shaftless, and kit encoders
- Encoder chips and PCB level modules
- Magnetic rings and magnetic tapes
- Encoder interfaces and accessories
Recommended Reason:
Not many companies do only magnetic encoders. RLS does, and it shows in how deep the range goes. You can buy a finished encoder, a bare readhead, a magnetic ring on its own, or the chip if you are laying out your own board. Renishaw owns half the business and sells the products worldwide, so you get a small specialist to work with and a large company standing behind the supply. The readhead is designed to work with a gap between it and the ring, which forgives the tolerances real machines actually have. There is also an online shop, so a small quantity does not turn into a sales negotiation.
#8.Oriental Motor
Introduction:
Oriental Motor is one of the older names on this list. The business started in Tokyo in 1885 and still runs from Higashi Ueno in Taito ward, with a catalog of roughly 50,000 products covering stepper motors, brushless and AC motors, servo motors, actuators, drivers, and cooling fans. It sells directly through its own subsidiaries in North America, Europe, and Asia rather than through a distributor chain. Feedback is not sold as a separate product line here. It comes built into the motor, most visibly as the ABZO sensor in the AZ and AZX series, which works out position from magnets fitted inside a small gear train.
Location: Japan
Established: 1885
Business Scope:
- Stepper motors with built-in absolute encoders
- Battery-free absolute encoder servo motors
- ABZO mechanical absolute sensor
- Brushless DC motors and AC motors
- Gear motors and speed control motors
- Electric linear and rotary actuators
- Drivers, controllers, and network products
- Cooling fans
Recommended Reason:
Oriental Motor is worth a look if you would rather not treat the encoder as a separate purchase at all. The sensor sits inside the motor; it still knows where the machine is after the power has been off, and there is no battery to replace or to declare when the equipment ships abroad. That takes home sensors, limit switches, and the homing routine out of your design, which usually saves more time than the feedback itself costs. Stock is deep and delivery is quick, since nearly everything is a catalog item. The trade-off is simple enough: you have to buy their motor to get their feedback.
#9.Allegro MicroSystems
Introduction:
Allegro MicroSystems has been developing sensing and power semiconductor products since 1990. Rather than supplying complete magnetic encoders, the company focuses on magnetic sensor ICs used for angle, position, speed, and motor feedback. Its magnetic position sensor range covers 1D, 2D, and 3D sensing, including contactless rotary angle measurement for industrial, automotive, and robotics applications. These ICs can be combined with magnetic rings or encoder magnets to build customized position-feedback systems.
Location: Manchester, New Hampshire, USA
Established: 1990
Business Scope:
- Magnetic Position Sensors
- Angle Sensor ICs
- Motor Position Sensors
- Linear Hall Sensors
- 3D Magnetic Sensors
- Speed Sensors
- Hall-Effect Sensors
- Current Sensors
Recommended Reason:
For companies developing their own magnetic encoder or motor feedback system, Allegro provides a wide range of magnetic sensing ICs. Its angle sensors support contactless rotary measurement and different output interfaces, giving engineers more flexibility when designing the sensor, magnet, and control electronics together. This makes Allegro especially relevant to motor manufacturers, robotics companies, and OEMs that need sensor-level components rather than a finished encoder.
#10.Nidec Avtron Encoders
Introduction:
Avtron has been developing industrial feedback products since the 1960s and is now part of Nidec. Its encoder range is built mainly for heavy-duty and harsh industrial environments. Magnetic sensing is used across many Avtron models because it can continue working around dust, oil, moisture, and other contamination that may affect optical encoders. The product line includes solid-shaft, hollow-shaft, modular, incremental, and absolute encoders for motors and industrial machinery.
Location: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Established: 1953
Business Scope:
- Magnetic Encoders
- Incremental Encoders
- Absolute Encoders
- Heavy-Duty Encoders
- Severe-Duty Encoders
- Hollow-Shaft Encoders
- Solid-Shaft Encoders
- Modular Encoders
Recommended Reason:
Nidec Avtron Encoders are mainly known for applications where encoder reliability is important. Its magnetic models are designed for equipment exposed to vibration, dust, oil, moisture, and demanding operating conditions. Products such as the HS44 and AV44 use magnetic sensing and are intended for motors and industrial machinery, while the wider range covers different mounting and duty requirements. This makes Avtron a suitable supplier for steel, mining, paper, cranes, conveyors, and other heavy industrial equipment.
Conclusion
Choosing the right magnetic encoder manufacturer depends on your application, required accuracy, installation space, working environment, and system design. The companies listed above offer different strengths, from complete magnetic encoders and motor feedback systems to magnetic sensor ICs and customized encoder components.
If your project requires custom encoder magnets, multipole magnetic rings, specific magnetization patterns, or magnetic components for OEM encoder designs, GME can provide tailored solutions based on your sensor structure and application requirements. Contact us with your drawing, pole configuration, material, and operating conditions, and our team can help you develop a suitable magnetic solution for your encoder system.
Magnetic Rotary Encoder
Magnetic Linear Sensor
Magnetic Rotary Sensor
Magnetic Linear Encoder
FAQ
Q: What is a magnetic encoder?
A: A magnetic encoder uses a magnetic field to measure position, speed, or rotation. It is often used in motors, robotics, and industrial automation.
Q: What are the main types of magnetic encoders?
A: Common types include absolute encoders, incremental encoders, rotary encoders, linear encoders, ring encoders, and shaftless encoders.
Q: Are magnetic encoders suitable for harsh environments?
A: Yes. Magnetic encoders generally perform well in environments with dust, oil, moisture, vibration, and other contamination.
Q: What should I consider when choosing a magnetic encoder?
A: You should check resolution, accuracy, output interface, installation space, operating environment, shaft size, and speed requirements.
Q: Can magnetic encoder components be customized?
A: Yes. Encoder magnets, magnetic rings, pole counts, magnetization patterns, materials, and dimensions can often be customized for OEM projects.
Q: Where are magnetic encoders commonly used?
A: They are widely used in motors, robotics, CNC machines, automation equipment, medical devices, AGVs, and other motion control systems.
