Improvement of transitional response characteristics of a piezoelectric vibratory gyroscope

We describe the transitional responses in piezoelectric vibratory gyroscopes used as angular rate sensors. The transitional responses for a stepped angular velocity and an external impulse force are experimentally determined. Then, it is shown that these responses are dependent on the difference between the two resonant frequencies in the gyroscope. A new gyroscope structure, in which the null signal is reduced and the responses are improved by using the active damping method, is proposed. The improved responses are presented and the design conditions are clarified.