PLANAR ACCELEROMETER WITH INTERNAL RADIAL SENSING AND ACTUATION
First Claim
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1. An inertial sensor comprising:
- a planar resonator for in-plane vibration with two in-plane vibration modes and having a central mounting point, a plurality of compliance elements etched in the planar resonator around the central mounting point and a plurality of slots arranged in a symmetrical pattern around the compliance elements;
a support to support the planar resonator at the central mounting point;
at least one excitation electrode within at least one of the plurality of slots of the planar resonator to excite vibration of the two vibration modes; and
at least one sensing electrode within at least one of the plurality of slots of the planar resonator for sensing the two vibration modes.
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Abstract
An inertial sensor that includes a planar mechanical resonator with embedded sensing and actuation for substantially in-plane vibration and having a central rigid support for the resonator is disclosed. At least one excitation or forcing electrode is disposed within an interior of the resonator to excite in-plane vibration of the resonator, and at least one sensing or pickoff electrode is disposed within the interior of the resonator for sensing the motion of the excited resonator. In one embodiment, the planar resonator includes a plurality of slots in an annular pattern around the central rigid support. The planar resonator has a simple pair of in-plane vibration modes.
19 Citations
21 Claims
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1. An inertial sensor comprising:
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a planar resonator for in-plane vibration with two in-plane vibration modes and having a central mounting point, a plurality of compliance elements etched in the planar resonator around the central mounting point and a plurality of slots arranged in a symmetrical pattern around the compliance elements; a support to support the planar resonator at the central mounting point; at least one excitation electrode within at least one of the plurality of slots of the planar resonator to excite vibration of the two vibration modes; and at least one sensing electrode within at least one of the plurality of slots of the planar resonator for sensing the two vibration modes. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21)
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17. An inertial sensor comprising:
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a resonator body having a central mounting point; a plurality of radial segment openings in the resonator body around the central mounting point; a plurality of slot openings in the resonator body around the plurality of radial segment openings, wherein the plurality of slot openings are symmetrically arranged in the resonator body; a plurality of excitation electrodes in at least four of the plurality of slot openings; and a plurality of sensing electrodes in at least four of the plurality of slot openings. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification