Sextant Avionique

Thales

Etienne Bonnaudet

Eric Loil

Yves Jaulain

Jacques Cordonnier

Jean-Paul Pocholle

Gilles Feugnet

Sylvain Schwartz

Mehdi Alouini

Andre Boura

François Gutty

Pierre Gallon

Francois Gutty

Patrick Vauzelle

Laurent Thibaudeau

Selvin David

Eric Hemery

The general field of the invention is that of gyrolasers comprising at least one ring-shaped optical cavity comprising at least three mirrors, a solid state amplifying medium pumped by a laser diode whose optical emission power is determined by a current supply source, the cavity and the amplifying medium being such that two so-called contra-rotating optical modes propagate in opposite directions to each other within the said optical cavity, the gyrolaser being a class B gyrolaser, the gyrolaser also comprising means of measuring the difference in optical frequency existing between the two optical modes. The gyrolaser comprises means of measuring the total optical power circulating in the optical cavity and first means of control of the current delivered by the supply source in such a way as to maintain the total optical power substantially constant in a narrow spectral band centred on the relaxation frequency of the laser.

Solid state gyrolaser with controlled optical pumping

The present invention relates to a laser gyro of the type comprising an optical block comprising three communicating resonant optical cavities which form a regular octahedron having eight triangular sides, each of the cavities presenting four capillary segments forming a square perpendicular to a corresponding sensitive axis, these cavities being arranged so that each of the angles of one cavity coincides and communicates with the angle of another cavity, a mirror associated with each pair of coinciding angles being oriented so as to be used by the two cavities forming said pair, each cavity using four mirrors including a reading mirror and a cavity-length servo mirror, said gyro also comprising an activation mechanism for driving the block according to a reciprocating rotation movement about an activation axis, and it is characterized in that this gyro comprises three cathodes each linked to two cavities out of the three, these two cavities being each time taken by circular permutation.

Device for improving the life of a triaxial gyro

Triaxial laser rate gyro symmetrized with respect to its axis of

A device for fastening an optical unit to an actuating ring of an actuating device including a fastening ring joined to the actuating ring and having a plurality of securing shims bonded to the optical unit and connected to the fastening ring by flexible axial tongues. The device can be applied to a triaxial laser gyrometer.

Device to fasten a laser gyrometer optical unit to an actuating mechanism

In the disclosed laser gyrometer, the three resonant optical cavities of the block are connected to a cathode chamber by means of the three cathode capillary tubes and to a balancing chamber by means of three balancing capillary tubes. The axis of the cathode is identified with the axis of actuation. The block is actuated by means of an actuating ring in thermal contact with the cathode so as to provide for dissipation of the heat generated at the cathode. The invention makes it possible to solve the problems relating to wobble (or lack of dynamic balance) as well as thermal gradients.

Triaxial laser gyrometer including an actuating mechanism in thermal

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St. Georges les Baillargeaux, France

Etienne Bonnaudet