The company began as a metal etching factory that was founded in Berlin by Wilhelm Heidenhain in 1889. This factory manufactured templates, signs, graduations and scales. After the company was destroyed in World War II, the DR. JOHANNES HEIDENHAIN Company was founded in Traunreut by Wilhelm Heidenhain’s son. The first products were again graduations and price scales for the retail trade. Optical position measuring systems for machine tools were soon added to the program. At the beginning of the Sixties came the transition to linear and angle encoders with photoelectric scanning. These developments made it possible for the first time to automate many machines and systems in the manufacturing industry.
Since the mid-Seventies HEIDENHAIN has become an increasingly important manufacturer of numerical controls and drive technology for machine tools.
From the very beginning, the company had taken a highly technical direction. In order to secure the continuity of the company as well as its technical direction, Dr. Johannes Heidenhain placed his shares of the company in a foundation in 1970. This enables HEIDENHAIN today to invest extensively in research and development.
1889
Founding of the metal-etching company W. HEIDENHAIN in Berlin
1923
Dr. Johannes Heidenhain joins his father’s company
1948
The company DR. JOHANNES HEIDENHAIN starts over in Traunreut
1950
The DIADUR process is invented: Production of resistant precision graduations onto glass by copying a master graduation
1970
Founding of the non-profit DR. JOHANNES HEIDENHAIN-STIFTUNG GmbH
1980
Death of Dr. Johannes Heidenhain
2014
HEIDENHAIN is represented in all industrialized countries
Angle encoders for the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST, previously Advanced Technology Solar Telescope, ATST)
1936
Photomechanically copied glass scale with ± 0.015 mm accuracy
1943
Copied circular scale with ± 3 seconds accuracy
1952
Weight scales become main source of revenue
1967
Self-supporting gratings, microstructures
1985
Distance-coded reference marks for incremental linear scales
1986
Phase-grating scales
1995
Area grids for two-coordinate encoders
2002
Planar phase-grating structures for interferential linear encoders
2005
Contamination-tolerant amplitude gratings, manufactured by laser ablation
2009
Large-area lattice grid (400 mm x 400 mm) for measuring systems in the semiconductor industry
Optical linear encoders for machine tools
1961
LID 1 incremental linear encoder, grating period 8 µm / measuring step 2 µm
1963
LIC absolute linear encoder with 18 tracks, pure binary code / measuring step 5 µm
1965
Laser interferometers for machine tool calibration
1987
LIP 101 exposed interferential linear encoder, measuring step 0.02 µm
1989
LIP 301 exposed interferential linear encoder, measuring step 1 nm
2008
LIP 200 interferential linear encoder with signal period 0.512 µm, for traversing speeds up to 3 m/s
2010
LIC 4000 absolute exposed linear encoder with 2 tracks, pseudo random code, EnDat 2.2 for measuring lengths up to 27 m and resolution of 1 nm
2012
1966
LIDA 55.6 sealed incremental linear encoder with steel scale
1975
LS 500 incremental linear encoder with glass scale, measuring lengths up to 3 m, measuring step 10 µm
1977
LIDA 300 incremental linear encoder, measuring lengths up to 30 m
1994
LC 181 sealed absolute linear encoder with 7 tracks, EnDat interface, measuring length 3 m, measuring step 0.1 µm
1996
LC 481 absolute linear encoder with 2 tracks, PRC, EnDat, measuring lengths up to 2 m
2011
LC 200 absolute linear encoder, measuring lengths up to 28 m, PRC, measuring step 10 nm
Optical angle encoders
1957/1961
ROD 1 photoelectrical angle encoder with 40,000 signal periods per rev, 10,000 lines
1962
ROD 1 with 72,000 signal periods per rev
1964
ROC 15 absolute angle encoder / resolution 17 bits
ROD 800 incremental angle encoder, accuracy ± 1 second
RON 905 incremental angle encoder, accuracy ± 0.2 second
1997
RCN 723, absolute angle encoder with integral stator coupling in hollow shaft version, 23-bit singleturn, EnDat interface, accuracy ± 2 seconds
2000
ERP 880 interferential angle encoder with 180,000 signal periods per rev, accuracy ± 0.2 second
2004
RCN 727 absolute angle encoder with hollow shaft diameter up to 100 mm
ROP 8080 interferential angle encoder for wafer probers, combination load bearing and angle encoder, 360,000 signal periods per rev
ERP 1080 miniaturized interferential angle encoder in single-chip encoder design
ROD 1 incremental photoelectric rotary encoder with 10,000 lines
1981
ROD 426 incremental rotary encoder: the industrial standard
ROC 221 S absolute multiturn encoder, 12-bit singleturn, 9-bit multiturn
1992
ERN 1300 incremental rotary encoder for servo drives, operating temperature up to 120 °C
1993
ECN 1300 and EQN 1300 absolute singleturn and multiturn rotary encoders
EQN 1100 miniaturized absolute multiturn rotary encoder with chip-on-board technology
ECN 100 absolute singleturn rotary encoder for hollow shaft diameter up to 50 mm
ECI 1100 and EQI 1100 miniaturized absolute singleturn and multiturn rotary encoders (with inductive scanning)
2007
Absolute rotary encoders with “Functional Safety” for applications up to SIL2/PL d and EnDat 2.2 interface SIL2/PL d and EnDat 2.2 interface