I-Corps: Navigation-Grade Micro Gyroscope

陀螺仪目前用于广泛的应用，包括国防，航空航天，消费电子和工业。这是一个数十亿美元的市场，增长率非常高。当前的微机电系统（MEMS）陀螺仪在所需的尺寸、价格点和精度方面都无法用于市场寻求的许多新应用，例如在无法接收GPS信号的区域（例如建筑物和隧道内）用于引导无人驾驶飞行器、汽车和人类的导航单元。这些应用需要比目前可用的MEMS陀螺仪高100倍的精度。该项目旨在商业化超高精密微机电系统（MEMS）陀螺仪，称为鸟浴谐振陀螺仪（BRG）。所提出的工作将加强对主要能量损失机制的理解和进一步提高这些谐振器性能的方法。该团队已经展示了BRG概念验证，并在实验室中进行了非理想温度条件下的测试。该装置证明了精度，并已被发现足以用于一些工业和军事应用（例如天线，机器人或直升机平台的稳定）。通过参与I-Corps项目，该团队将联系使用陀螺仪的市场参与者，了解他们在单位尺寸、功率、成本和技术性能要求方面的需求，包括满足和未满足的需求。该团队将努力了解其技术的潜在市场规模，并对已经进入该领域的竞争对手进行分析，以了解他们如何以满足当前客户需求的方式为市场提供服务。如果开发成功，BRG技术将被广泛应用于新的领域。这将为开发利用超高性能MEMS陀螺仪的硬件和软件创造新的就业机会，从而造福社会。

Gyroscope is currently used in a wide range of applications including defense, aerospace, consumer electronics, and industrial. It is a multi-billion dollar market with a very high growth rate. Current Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS) gyroscopes at the needed size, price point, and accuracy are not available to be used in many of the new applications the market seeks, such as in the navigation unit for guiding Unmanned Air Vehicles, automobiles, and humans in the regions where GPS signals are not receivable, for instance, inside buildings and tunnels. These applications require accuracy that is ~100 times higher than that of current available MEMS gyroscopes. This project aims to commercialize ultra-high-precision Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS) gyroscopes, called the birdbath resonator gyroscope (BRG). The proposed work will enhance the understanding of dominant energy loss mechanisms and ways to further improve the performance of these resonators.The team has demonstrated the proof of concept BRG, and was tested at the lab under non-ideal temperature conditions. The device demonstrated accuracy and has been found to be sufficient for some industrial and military applications (e.g. stabilization of platforms for antenna, robots, or helicopters). By participating in the I-Corps program, the team will contact market participants that use gyroscopes to understand their needs, both met and unmet, regarding unit size, power, cost, and technical performance requirements. The team will work to learn the potential market size for its technology, and conduct an analysis of competitors already in the space to see how they are supplying the marketplace in a way that meet current customer needs. If successfully developed, the BRG technology could be adopted in a wide range of new applications. This will benefit the society by creating new jobs for developing both hardware and software for utilizing ultra high performance MEMS gyroscopes.