Systems and methods for fiber optic gyroscopes utilizing reference ring resonators

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9459101-B1
Application number	US-201514739393-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Jun 15, 2015
Priority date	Jun 15, 2015
Publication date	Oct 4, 2016
Grant date	Oct 4, 2016

Abstract

Systems and methods for fiber optic gyroscopes are provided. In one embodiment, a resonating fiber optic gyroscope comprises: first and second laser sources producing first and second optical beams; a first resonator having a hub comprising a hub material, wherein the first and second optical beams circulate within the first resonator in opposite directions; a second resonator having a hub comprising the hub material, wherein the first and second optical beams circulate within the second resonator in opposite directions; first and second servo loops; the first loop controls the first laser source based on a beam that has circulated through the first resonator and a beam that has circulated through the second resonator; the second servo loop controls the second laser source based on a beam that has circulated through the first resonator and a beam that has circulated through the second resonator; and a rotation rate detection circuit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A resonating fiber optic gyroscope, the gyroscope comprising:
a first laser light source producing a first optical beam;
a second laser light source producing a second optical beam;
a first fiber optic ring resonator comprising a first length of a fiber optic material wound around a first hub comprising a hub material, wherein the first optical beam and the second optical beam circulate within the first fiber optic ring resonator in opposite directions;
a second fiber optic ring resonator comprising a second length of the fiber optic material wound around a second hub comprising the hub material, wherein the first optical beam and the second optical beam circulate within the second fiber optic ring resonator in opposite directions;
a first servo loop coupled to the first fiber optic ring resonator and the second fiber optic ring resonator, wherein the first servo loop controls the first laser light source using a first feedback signal, where the first servo loop generates the first feedback signal as a function of a first error signal derived from a first measurement of a first portion of the first optical beam, where the first portion of the first optical beam has at least in part circulated through the first fiber optic ring resonator, and as a function of a second error signal derived from a second measurement of a second portion of the first optical beam, where the second portion of the first optical beam has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator;
a second servo loop coupled to the first fiber optic ring resonator and the second fiber optic ring resonator, wherein the second servo loop controls the second laser light source using a second feedback signal, where the second servo loop generates the second feedback signal as a function of a third error signal derived from a first measurement of a first portion of the second optical beam, where the first portion of the second optical beam has at least in part circulated through the first fiber optic ring resonator, and as a function of a fourth error signal derived from a second measurement of a second portion of the second optical beam where the second portion of the second optical beam has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator; and
a rotation rate detection circuit that outputs a rotation rate measurement signal, wherein the rotation rate measurement signal is function of a difference between a first resonant frequency of the second fiber optic ring resonator locked-on to by the first optical beam, and a second resonant frequency of the second fiber optic ring resonator locked-on to by the second optical beam.

2. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the first servo loop comprises:
a first photo-detector that receives a light beam comprising a portion of the first optical beam that has circulated through the first fiber optic ring resonator; and
a second photo-detector that receives a light beam comprising a portion of the first optical beam that has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator;
wherein the first servo loop generates a control signal to the first laser light source as a function of a first error signal derived from an output of the first photo-detector and a second error signal derived from an output of the second photo-detector, wherein the first servo loop adjusts the control signal to lock the first optical beam onto a resonant frequency of the first fiber optic ring resonator and resonant frequency of the second fiber optic ring resonator;

wherein the second servo loop comprises:
a third photo-detector that receives a light beam comprising a portion of the second optical beam that has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator; and
a fourth photo-detector that receives a light beam comprising a portion of the second optical beam that has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator;
wherein the second servo loop generates a control signal to the second laser light source as a function of a third error signal derived from an output of the third photo-detector and a fourth error signal derived from an output of the fourth photo-detector, wherein the second servo loop adjusts the control signal to lock the second optical beam onto a resonant frequency of the first fiber optic ring resonator and a resonant frequency of the second fiber optic ring resonator.

3. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the second portion of the first optical beam that has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator, and the second portion of the second optical beam that has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator have each also circulated through the first fiber optic ring resonator prior to circulating through the second fiber optic ring resonator.

4. The gyroscope of claim 3 , wherein the first optical beam and the second optical beam each comprise sideband heterodyne (SHD) modulation;
wherein the first length of fiber optic material is sized to produce resonant frequencies in the first fiber optic ring resonator that pass SHD modulated sidebands of the first optical beam and the second optical beam to the second fiber optic ring resonator.

5. The gyroscope of claim 4 , wherein the first length of fiber optic material is further sized to not pass a laser carrier frequency component of the first optical beam and the second optical beam to the second fiber optic ring resonator.

6. The gyroscope of claim 3 , further comprising an optical coupler coupled to the first fiber optic ring resonator, wherein the optical coupler taps out a portion of the first optical beam and the second optical beam from the first fiber optic ring resonator to the second optic ring resonator.

7. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the fiber optic material is one of:
a solid core fiber;
a hollow core fiber; or
a dielectric filled fiber.

8. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the hub material for both the first fiber optic ring resonator and the second fiber optic ring resonator comprises a piezoelectric ceramic material.

9. The gyroscope of claim 8 , wherein the first fiber optic ring resonator comprises a first piezoelectric transducer;
wherein the second servo loop comprises a servo coupled to the first piezoelectric transducer; and
wherein the servo coupled to the first piezoelectric transducer adjusts a resonant frequency of the first fiber optic ring resonator based on an error signal derived from a measurement of the second portion of the first optical beam that has circulated through the second fiber optic ring resonator.

10. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the first servo loop comprises a first Pound-Drever-Hall (PDH) technique servo to generate a first control signal to control the first laser light source lock the first optical beam onto a resonant frequency of the first fiber optic ring resonator and a resonant frequency of the second fiber optic ring resonator; and
wherein the second servo loop comprises a second Pound-Drever-Hall (PDH) technique servo to generate a second control signal to control the second laser light source to lock the second optical beam onto a resonant frequency of the first fiber optic ring resonator and resonant frequency of the second fiber optic ring resonator.

11. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the first length of fiber optic material is equal to the second length of fiber optic material.

12. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the first length of fiber optic material is an integer divisor of the second length of fiber optic material.

13. The gyroscope of claim 1 , wherein the rotation rate detection circuit comprises:
an optical coupler that mixe

Assignees

• Honeywell Int Inc

Inventors

• Strandjord Lee K
• Sanders Glen A
• Qiu Tiequn

Classifications

• G01C19/64

  Gyrometers using the Sagnac effect, i.e. rotation-induced shifts between counter-rotating electromagnetic beams · CPC title

• G01C19/727 Primary

  using a passive ring resonator · CPC title

• G01C19/72

  with counter-rotating light beams in a passive ring, e.g. fibre laser gyrometers · CPC title

• G01C19/66

  Ring laser gyrometers · CPC title