Electric positional actuator

An actuator comprising:

• a housing including a spring boss;
• a motor mounted to the housing;
• a shaft coupled to the motor by a series of gears, wherein rotation of the motor drives the gears to rotate the shaft, said shaft extending along a shaft axis;
• a printed circuit board mounted within the housing, said printed circuit board including a processor being responsive to control signals to control the operation of the motor;
• a link-arm coupled to the shaft, said link-arm including a lever arm extending along an axis substantially parallel to the shaft axis and adjacent to the spring boss;
• and
• a spring assembly positioned around the shaft, said spring assembly including a helical spring having a first end and a second end, said first end being positioned on one side of the lever arm and the spring boss, and said second end being positioned on an opposite side of the lever arm and the spring boss, said spring being operable to position the shaft in a default position.

An actuator comprising:

• a housing including a spring boss;
• a DC motor mounted to the housing;
• a shaft rotatably mounted within the housing and extending along a shaft axis, said shaft being rotatable on first and second bearings press fit into a common block of the housing;
• a plurality of intermeshed gears including a first shaft gear rigidly coupled to a motor shaft of the motor, a second shaft gear rigidly coupled to one end of the shaft, and at least one idler gear therebetween, wherein the shaft rotates in response to rotation of the motor through the plurality of gears;
• a printed circuit board mounted within the housing proximate the plurality of gears, said printed circuit board including a processor providing control signals to control the operation of the motor;
• a sensor mounted to the printed circuit board and sensing the rotational position of the shaft;
• an electrical connector mounted to the housing, said electrical connector providing electrical signals to the printed circuit board;
• a link-arm coupled to the shaft, said link-arm including a lever arm extending along an axis substantially parallel to the shaft axis adjacent to the spring boss;
• and
• a spring assembly positioned around the shaft, said spring assembly including a helical spring wrapped around a spring bushing and including a first end and a second end, said first end being positioned on one side of the lever arm and the spring boss, and said second end being positioned on an opposite side of the lever arm and the spring boss, said spring being operable to position the shaft in a default position.