Ruffy Controls has unveiled the TS3 Series, a new miniature industrial joystick designed for uncrewed aerial and ground vehicle control stations. As the smallest product in the company’s lineup, the TS3 Series is engineered to meet growing demands for compact, portable and power-efficient human–machine interfaces in military and robotic applications, writes Peter Donaldson.

The joystick operates on a new low-power electrical architecture, consuming just 3.3 V at under 8 mA, and outputs signals via a serial protocol interface. This ultra-low power draw significantly extends battery life in field-deployable controllers – a critical advantage for operators such as military personnel. The TS3 Series achieves this through a proprietary Hall-effect sensor chipset and optimised firmware, both developed in-house, according to Ruffy Controls’ Mark Petersen.

In addition to its miniaturised footprint and power efficiency, the TS3 Series is environmentally panel-sealed to IP67 standards, ensuring durability and reliability in harsh conditions. Its contactless Hall-effect sensing technology offers high longevity, supporting millions of actuation cycles.

The TS3’s cap is offered in four-way and single-axis form, in several styles including castle and round convex with bumps, and in elastomer and hard plastic materials. It has a diameter 0.55 in and stands 0.47 in high above the base plate or surface of the remote control unit body, to which it is fixed by an M8 x 1 mm nut. The 10-position, 0.5 mm pitch rigid flex connector tail is 1.0 in long.

The joystick is supplied as a component-level product for integration into larger handheld control systems by OEMs, and is currently undergoing final EMC qualification.