Hrl Laboratories, LLC

Santa Barbara Research Center

Other

The Boeing Company

Hughes Aircraft Company

Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey

Hughes Electronics Corporation

Richard J Joyce

Randall Lynn Kubena

Raviv Perahia

Logan D Sorenson

Hung P Nguyen

Deborah J Kirby

David T Chang

Roderic L Osgood

Walter S Wall

A Dorian Challoner

Yook-Kong Yong

Randall L Kubena

Ichiro Kasai

Harris P Moyer

Allan R Kramer

Robert E Eck

Ronghua R Wei

Robert Thomas M'Closkey

Jonathan Lake

Charley B Burgett

Joseph L Davis

Charley B Bargett

Michael D Warfield

Robert E Doty

Hung Nguyen

An angular rate sensor. The sensor includes a Coriolis vibratory gyroscope (CVG) resonator, configured to oscillate in a first normal mode and in a second normal mode; a frequency reference configured to generate a reference signal; and a first phase control circuit. The first phase control circuit is configured to: measure a first phase difference between: a first phase target, and the difference between: a phase of an oscillation of the first normal mode and a phase of the reference signal. The first phase control circuit is further configured to apply a first phase correction signal to the CVG resonator, to reduce the first phase difference. A second phase control circuit is similarly configured to apply a second phase correction signal to the CVG resonator, to reduce a corresponding, second phase difference.

High stability angular sensor

A RF field sensor in which a magnetostrictive film is deposited on one or more electrodes of one or more quartz resonator(s) in which an electric field of the RF field is detected along one axis of the RF field sensor and a magnetic field of the RF field is detected along an orthogonal axis of the RF field sensor simultaneously.

Dual magnetic and electric field quartz sensor

A sensor includes an acceleration or magnetic field sensitive microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) resonator, configured to oscillate in at least a first normal mode and a second normal mode. The sensor further includes: a coarse readout circuit configured to drive the first normal mode, measure a motion of the first normal mode, and derive from the measured motion a coarse measurement of the true acceleration or true external magnetic field; and a fine readout circuit configured to drive the second normal mode, measure a motion of the second normal mode, and derive from the measured motion and the coarse measurement a measurement of the difference between the true acceleration or true external magnetic field and the coarse measurement.

High dynamic range gyroscope

A geopositioning system. The geopositioning system includes an accelerometer including three sensing axes, a gyroscope including three sensing axes, and a magnetometer including three sensing axes, and a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to calculate a location of the geopositioning system as a latitude, longitude, and altitude with respect to the Earth.

Gyromagnetic geopositioning system

An angular sensor. The angular sensor includes a Coriolis vibratory gyroscope (CVG) resonator, configured to oscillate in a first pair of normal modes including a first normal mode and a second normal mode and a second pair of normal modes including a third normal mode and a fourth normal mode. The angular sensor further includes a coarse readout circuit configured to drive the first pair of modes, measure the motion of the first pair of modes, and derive from the measured motion of the first pair of modes a coarse measurement of an angular rate of the resonator. The angular sensor further includes and a fine readout circuit configured to derive a measurement of the difference between the true angular rate of the resonator and the coarse measurement.

A gyroscope includes a cylindrical shell having a first end and a second end, a pedestal, a plurality of spokes coupled from the pedestal to the second end of the cylindrical shell, and a plurality of tuning tabs extending from one or more of the plurality of spokes.

Gyroscope frequency tuning tabs on support spokes

A method for fabricating a Microelectromechanical System (MEMS) resonator includes providing a dielectric substrate defining a resonator and depositing a conductive coating having a resistivity of approximately 1 to 50 &#x3bc;&#x3a9;-cm on that substrate by Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD). A resonator fabricated according to this process includes a dielectric substrate defining a resonator and a conductive coating having a resistivity of approximately 1 to 50 &#x3bc;&#x3a9;-cm for electrically coupling the resonator to electronics. Another method for fabricating a MEMS resonator includes providing a dielectric substrate defining a resonator, depositing an aluminum oxide film on that substrate by ALD, and depositing a noble metal film on the aluminum oxide film, also by ALD.

ALD metal coatings for high Q MEMS structures

A gyroscope includes a vibratory structure, and a control mechanism including at least a first electrode, and at least a second electrode adjacent the first electrode, wherein the vibratory structure is separated from the control mechanism by a gap, wherein to drive a vibration in the vibratory structure, the control mechanism is configured to apply an alternating electrical voltage between the first electrode and the second electrode, and wherein to sense motion in the vibratory structure, the control mechanism is configured to apply a direct current voltage bias between the first electrode and the second electrode.

Gradient force disk resonating gyroscope

A magnetometer has a resonating structure which is naturally resonant in at least first and second resonant modes, a resonant frequency of the second mode being at least an order of magnitude greater than a resonant frequency of the first mode, the resonating structure having two sense electrodes disposed on opposing major surfaces of the resonating structure and having a conductive path formed as a loop, the loop being disposed near or at edges of the resonating structure and the two sense electrodes being formed inwardly of the edges of the resonating structure and also inwardly of said loop. First and second oscillators are provided, the first oscillator being coupled to the loop for applying an oscillating current to the loop, the oscillating current having a frequency essentially equal to the resonant frequency of the first mode of the resonating structure, the second oscillator being coupled to said sense electrodes, the second oscillator oscillating with a fundamental frequency corresponding to the resonant frequency of the second mode of the resonating structure, the second oscillator also producing sidebands indicative of the magnetometer sensing an external magnetic field.

Micro-scale piezoelectric resonating magnetometer

A gyroscope including a dielectric resonator, a laser vibrometer on a first side of the dielectric resonator, and a laser dump for redirecting or absorbing light received at the laser dump from the laser vibrometer, the laser dump on a second side of the dielectric resonator. A first distance between the dielectric resonator and the laser vibrometer ranges from 10 nm to 20 &#x3bc;m, and a second distance between the dielectric resonator and the laser dump ranges from 10 nm to 20 &#x3bc;m.

Integrated laser vibrometer MEMS micro-shell gyroscope

A MEMS assembly comprising a substrate and a MEMS device; wherein the MEMS device is connected to the substrate by at least two flexible support structures made in a conductive layer formed on a first portion of one of the substrate and the MEMS.

MEMS device connected to a substrate by flexible support structures

A method for reducing the phase noise of a oscillator includes monitoring a phase slope of a resonator, and controlling the resonator to operate the resonator at a high phase slope condition, wherein the resonator comprises a piezoelectric material, or piezoelectric quartz.

Phase noise reduction control loop for oscillators using nonlinear resonator operation

Packaging techniques for planar resonator gyroscopes, such as disc resonator gyroscopes (DRGs) are disclosed. In one embodiment, a packaged resonator gyroscope comprises a carrier, a substrate layer mounted to the carrier, a baseplate coupled to the substrate to define a cavity between the substrate and the baseplate, and a resonator mounted to the baseplate and suspended in the cavity. Other embodiments may be described.

Growing community of inventors

Thousand Oaks, CA, United States of America

Richard J Joyce