ARS-12G inertial angular vibration sensor provides nanoradian measurement

Applied Technology Associates' ARS-12 is the most sensitive inertial angular vibration sensor available in the market today. The sensing mechanism is based on magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) principles. This sensor has a bandwidth from 1-1000 Hz and a noise-equivalent angle of less than 35 nanoradians from 2-1000 Hz. The ARS-12 can measure inertial angular motions of less than 10 nanoradians at discrete frequencies. Their solid state design makes these sensors smaller and more rugged than any previous angular vibration sensor. In addition, the ARS-12 is essentially impervious to linear acceleration and angular cross-axis sensitivity is limited to incorrect physical alignment. The ARS-12 has recently undergone several design changes in order to survive the space environment. This new model, the ARS-12G, also has increased reliability and tighter performance specifications. The ARS-12G design, testing, and performance will be reviewed in this paper. Several ARS-12G sensor packages are currently being tested and space-qualified for Boeing(HSC) and Japan's space agency, NASDA.© (2001) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.