In Simple Terms--Potentiometers Sep 27, 2010 Potentiometers,
sometimes called "pots," are used frequently on modern farm
equipment. In simple terms, potentiometers connect to a shaft or
linkage that in turn is connected to some part of the equipment
that pivots or moves in some way. A soybean platform automatic
header height control is a good example. There is a shaft that
goes all the way across the skid shoes underneath platforms that
rotates as the skid shoes flex. A potentiometer, connected to
the end of that sensing shaft, allows the combine to "sense" the
position of the shaft/skid shoes and raise or lower the platform
as necessary. Potentiometers merely measure movement and
translate the movement into a voltage reading. Of the three
wires that go to potentiometers, one is supplied constant
voltage, one is ground, and the other is "signal" that varies
with the position of the potentiometer's shaft. The amount of
signal voltage varies as the potentiometer's input shaft/linkage
is rotated. You often hear