Biaxial rate gyro comprising elastic joint parts

• US 5,561,246 A
• Filed: 11/10/1994
• Issued: 10/01/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lfk-Lenkflugkã¶Rpersysteme GmbH (MBDA)
• Original Assignee: Deutsche Aerospace AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Inventors: Gruber, Ernest, Becker, Hendrik
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams, Hezron E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kwok, Helen C.
• Application Number:
  US08/339,226
• Time in Patent Office: 691 Days
• Field of Search: 73/504, 73/505, 73/517 R, 74/5.6 D, 74/5.6 A, 74/5 F, 74/5.6 R, 74/5.6 E
• US Class Current: 73/504.11
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 19/28 Pick-offs, i.e. devices for taking-off an indication of the displacement of the rotor axis
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 19/42 for indicating rate of turn; for integrating rate of turn
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/1275 Electrical

Abstract

A two-axis rate gyro has two articulation elements arranged sequentially. The first articulation element is connected with a drive shaft of the rate gyro and the second articulation element is connected with a gyro rotor. The two articulation elements are connected together by two narrow ribs located laterally with respect to a central bore and perpendicularly or radially with respect to the central axis of the articulation elements. Spring elements are provided in one of the articulation elements which act on pretensioned force-measuring elements and are tensioned with respect to one another. The spring elements deform elastically and symmetrically around the ribs under the influence of a sinusoidally alternating torque, so that the force-measuring elements are loaded and unloaded alternately and generate measurement signals proportional to the forces acting on them.

Claims

1. Two-axis rate gyro comprising:

a drive shaft rotatable about a central axis,

a gyro rotor rotatable about the central axis,

a first articulation element connected with the drive shaft to rotate together with the drive shaft,

a second articulation element connected with the gyro rotor to rotate together with the rotor,

a pair of aligned narrow ribs extending radially of said central axis at opposite lateral sides of said central axis and connecting said first and second articulation elements together, and

spring elements acting on pretensioned force-measuring elements and being tensioned with respect to one another, the spring elements deforming elastically and symmetrically around the ribs under the influence of a sinusoidally alternating torque during operation of the gyro through which the force-measuring elements are loaded and unloaded alternately and generate measurement signals proportional to forces acting on the force-measuring elements.

2. Rate gyro according to claim 1,

wherein each of the first and second articulation elements include a pair of bores extending parallel to said central axis at respective opposite diametric sides of said aligned narrow ribs, said bores of said first articulation element being axially aligned with respective corresponding bores of said second articulation element,

wherein said spring elements are arranged in said bores of said first articulation element,

and wherein respective ones of said force measuring elements are arranged axially in line with respective ones of said spring elements at a location intermediate the articulation elements adjacent a slit provided between the articulation elements.

3. Rate gyro according to claim 2, wherein the articulation elements are cylindrical in shape, and wherein the spring elements include two diametrically disposed spring elements supported at one of the articulation elements.

4. Rate gyro according to claim 1, comprising a pulse disk, provided with a light barrier for generating an angle reference signal for evaluation electronics.

5. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the articulation elements are cylindrical in shape, and wherein the spring elements include two diametrically disposed spring elements supported at one of the articulation elements.

6. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein the force measuring elements include two diametrically disposed force measuring elements aligned with the respective spring elements.

7. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the spring elements are cup springs.

8. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the spring elements are special compression springs.

9. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the spring elements are expansion bolts.

10. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the force-measuring elements are quartzes.

11. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the force-measuring elements are piezoceramic elements.

12. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein each of the two spring elements are cup springs.

13. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein each of the two spring elements consist of special compression springs.

14. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein each of the spring elements are expansion bolts.

15. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein the force-measuring elements are quartzes.

16. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein the force-measuring elements are piezoceramic elements.

17. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein the spring elements include expansion bolts having respective heads resting in the second articulation element and respective shafts passing through the first articulation element, and wherein the force-measuring elements are mounted externally on the shafts and abut the first articulation element by nuts with pretensioning.

18. Rate gyro according to claim 5, wherein each of the spring elements include expansion bolts having respective heads resting in the second articulation element and respective shafts passing through the first articulation element, and wherein the force-measuring elements are each mounted externally on respective ones of the shafts and abut the first articulation element by respective nuts with pretensioning.

19. Rate gyro according to claim 17, wherein each of said force-measuring elements are electrically connected by a contact sheet and wired in parallel with another of said force measuring elements, and are placed on a respective one of the expansion bolts with the contact sheet being connected by leads with a slip-ring transfer device.

20. Rate gyro according to claim 18, wherein the force measuring elements include two diametrically disposed force measuring elements aligned with the respective spring elements and wherein the two force-measuring elements are each electrically connected by a contact sheet and wired in parallel, and are placed on respective ones of the expansion bolts with the contact sheet being connected by leads with a slip-ring transfer device.

21. Rate gyro according to claim 1, wherein solder spots are provided externally on the force-measuring elements, leads from the solder spots connecting the force-measuring elements with a slip-ring transfer device.

22. Rate gyro according to claim 2, wherein solder spots are provided externally on the force-measuring elements, leads from the solder spots connecting the force-measuring elements with a slip-ring transfer device.