Experimental and Numerical Study of a Thermal Expansion Gyroscope for Different Gases

A new single-axis gas thermal gyroscope without proof mass is presented in this paper. The device was designed, manufactured and experimentally characterized. The obtained results were compared to numerical simulation. The working principle of the gyroscope is based on the deflection of a laminar gas flow caused by the Coriolis effect. A bidirectional hot air flow is generated by alternating activation of two suspended resistive micro-heaters. The heated gas is encapsulated in a semi-open cavity and the gas expands primarily inside the cavity. The thermal expansion gyroscope has a simple structure. Indeed, the device is composed of a micromachined cavity on which three bridges are suspended. The central bridge is electrically separated into two segments enabling to set up two heaters which may be supplied independently from each other. The two other bridges, placed symmetrically on each side of the central bridge, are equipped with temperature detectors which measure variations in gas temperature. The differential temperature depends on the rotational velocity applied to the system. Various parameters such as the heating duty cycle, the type of the gas and the power injected into the heaters have been studied to define the optimal working conditions required to obtain the highest level of sensitivity over a measurement range of around 1000 degrees/s. The robustness of the device has also been tested and validated for a shock resistance of 10,000 g for a duration of 400 mu s.