| 摘要 |
An improved electro-mechanical inertial rotation sensor comprising a rotor which spins at substantially constant speed with respect to an inertial frame of reference. A pickoff generates a signal relating the rotational position of the rotor relative to the apparatus, as a function of time. A phase comparator compares this pickoff signal to a reference signal relating the rotational position of the rotor relative to a fixed orientation in an inertial frame of reference, as a function of time. Changes in phase between the two signals indicate changes in orientation of the apparatus with respect to the inertial frame of reference. In one embodiment, the rotor is driven through an Eddy current coupling and simultaneously braked by an Eddy current brake, in a matched torque drive. To generate an accurate reference signal, the rotations of the rotor with respect to the inertial frame of reference are accurately determined using parallel measurements from a similar rotor, used as a test rotor.
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