Flexible disc rotor rate gyro
First Claim
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1. A gyroscopic rate sensor comprising:
- housing means,drive shaft means supported for rotary motion within said housing means,motor rotor means adapted for spinning about a spin axis of said drive shaft means,flexible disc rotor means coupled to said motor rotor means and including a rotor body and integrally formed articulating support means for providing a predetermined spring restrain coefficient and a rotor spin axis substantially independent of said spin axis of said drive means, so that said disc rotor means responds to precessional forces as a rigid rotor articulated at said drive shaft means,squeeze film damping means for damping said flexible disc rotor means, comprising a substantially rigid disc coupled for rotation with said motor rotor means in spaced relationship therewith and in spaced relationship with said flexible disc rotor means and having a diameter greater than said flexible disc rotor and a thickness substantially greater than said flexible disc rotor, fluid means surrounding said flexible disc rotor means and confined within said housing means, so that undesired oscillations of said rotor means are effectively damped while allowing substantially free deflection of said spin axis of said flexible disc rotor means, anddetection means fixed in relation to said drive shaft means and substantially mechanically independent of said housing means for sensing the angular deflection of said rotor spin axis with respect to said spin axis of said drive shaft means in response to gyrodynamic reaction when said flexible disc rotor means is precessed about an axis perpendicular to said spin axis of said drive shaft means.
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Abstract
A gyroscopic rate sensor has a motor driven shaft on which is mounted a flexible disc rotor enclosed in a gas-filled housing with a rotating rigid plate, also mounted on the shaft, to provide viscous gaseous restraint. A rotating capacitive plate assembly referenced to the drive motor spin axis provides a stable electrical output signal proportional to periodic deflections of the disc rotor. By perforating the disc rotor near the spin axis, spring restraint is minimized while the squeeze film damping provides improved dynamic response.
19 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A gyroscopic rate sensor comprising:
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housing means, drive shaft means supported for rotary motion within said housing means, motor rotor means adapted for spinning about a spin axis of said drive shaft means, flexible disc rotor means coupled to said motor rotor means and including a rotor body and integrally formed articulating support means for providing a predetermined spring restrain coefficient and a rotor spin axis substantially independent of said spin axis of said drive means, so that said disc rotor means responds to precessional forces as a rigid rotor articulated at said drive shaft means, squeeze film damping means for damping said flexible disc rotor means, comprising a substantially rigid disc coupled for rotation with said motor rotor means in spaced relationship therewith and in spaced relationship with said flexible disc rotor means and having a diameter greater than said flexible disc rotor and a thickness substantially greater than said flexible disc rotor, fluid means surrounding said flexible disc rotor means and confined within said housing means, so that undesired oscillations of said rotor means are effectively damped while allowing substantially free deflection of said spin axis of said flexible disc rotor means, and detection means fixed in relation to said drive shaft means and substantially mechanically independent of said housing means for sensing the angular deflection of said rotor spin axis with respect to said spin axis of said drive shaft means in response to gyrodynamic reaction when said flexible disc rotor means is precessed about an axis perpendicular to said spin axis of said drive shaft means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method for sensing precession rate in a gyroscopic rate sensor having a housing enclosing flexible rotor disc of unitary construction, a drive motor for spinning the rotor disc along a shaft spin axis, and a detector for sensing deflections of the spin axis of the rotor disc in accordance with a precession rate of the sensor, wherein the improvement comprises:
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capacitively detecting deflections of said rotor disc spin axis with respect to said shaft spin axis along predetermined coordinate axes with respect to said housing, capacitively isolating said detector to provide mechanical independence from said housing, providing an integrally formed strain relief axially disposed within said rotor disc to minimize the spring restraint coefficient, and providing a rigid disc in spaced relationship with said rotor disc for damping said rotor disc when surrounded by a gaseous atmosphere, thereby to restrain angular and axial motion of said rotor disc.
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Specification