Cyclically driven gyro and adjusting system therefor

• US 4,791,815 A
• Filed: 04/03/1987
• Issued: 12/20/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Hiroshi, Hayashi, Yoshitake, Kimura, Suzushi
• Primary Examiner(s): CHAPMAN JR, JOHN E
• Application Number:
  US07/033,761
• Time in Patent Office: 627 Days
• Field of Search: 73/505, 73/510, 73/1 D, 73/1 DV
• US Class Current: 73/504.16
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 19/5607 using vibrating tuning forks double-ended tuning forks using planar vibrating masses suspended at opposite ends G01C19/5719

Abstract

A gyro which realizes a small error response to a disturbance inertia such as vibration, impact, etc. and an adjusting system thereof has a pair of mass elements which are cyclically driven symmetrically. A pair of sensors independently detect forces produced in response to an input angular rate and generate a pair of detection outputs. An adjustable adder synthesizes components proportional to the disturbance inertia contained in the detection outputs with an optimum addition ratio so that they are mutually completely cancelled and generates a synthesized output. A signal processing circuit processes the synthesized output to generate an output proportional to the input angular rate. The adjusting system applies to the gyro in an operating condition a disturbance vibration in the vicinity of the drive frequency of the gyro. By adjusting the addition ratio of the adjustable adder in a manner so as to make the response at this time a minimum, the best characteristic can be obtained.

Claims

1. A cyclically driven gyro comprising:

a pair of mass elements which are symmetrically driven cyclically in opposite directions with respect to each other;

a pair of deflection detection means which independently detect forces acting on said pair of mass elements in response to an input angular rate and output deflection detection signals;

an adjustable addition means which adds said deflection detection signals with a desired ratio and outputs an added signal said adjustable addition means being constituted so that contribution rates of said deflection detection signals with respect to the added signal vary in linkage in such manner that when one of the contribution rates is increased the other of the contribution rates decreases so as to keep a total gain of said adjustable addition means constant; and

a signal processing circuit which processes said added signal to generate an output signal in proportion to the input angular rate.

2. A cyclically driven gyro according to claim 1, wherein a resonance frequency of said deflection detecting means is at least twice a frequency of the cyclic motion of the mass elements.

3. An adjusting system for a cyclically driven gyro comprising:

a pair of mass elements which are symmetrically driven cyclically in opposite directions with respect to each other;

a pair of deflection detection means which independently detect forces acting on said pair of mass elements in response to an input angular rate and output deflection detection signals;

an adjustable addition means which adds said deflection detection signals with a desired ratio and outputs an added signal;

a signal processing circuit which processes said added signal to generate an output signal in proportion to the input angular rate;

a vibration means which vibrates at a frequency in the vicinity of a drive frequency of said mass elements in a sensitivity direction of said deflection detection means;

a means for detecting an error response from the output signal of said signal processing circuit so as to generate an error amplitude signal; and

an adjusting means which adjusts an addition ratio of said adjustable addition means so that said error amplitude signal becomes within a prescribed range.