Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110146402 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH CONTINUOUS SELF-TEST FUNCTION, AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE - A microelectromechanical gyroscope includes a body and a sensing mass, which is movable with a degree of freedom in response to rotations of the body about an axis. A self-test actuator is capacitively coupled to the sensing mass for supplying a self-test signal. The capacitive coupling causes, in response to the self-test signal, electrostatic forces that are able to move the sensing mass in accordance with the degree of freedom at an actuation frequency. A sensing device detects transduction signals indicating displacements of the sensing mass in accordance with the degree of freedom. The sensing device is configured for discriminating, in the transduction signals, spectral components that are correlated to the actuation frequency and indicate the movement of the sensing mass as a result of the self-test signal. | 06-23-2011 |
20130025368 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH IMPROVED READING STAGE AND METHOD - A gyroscope, including: a body; a driving mass, mobile along a driving axis; a driving device that keeps the driving mass in oscillation according to the driving axis at a driving frequency; a sensing mass, coupled to the driving mass to move according to the driving axis and is mobile with respect to the driving mass along a sensing axis; and a reading device, which receives a sensing signal associated with the movement of the sensing mass and supplies an output signal indicating a position of the sensing mass. The reading device includes an analog-to-digital converter, which receives a voltage signal associated with the sensing signal. The voltage signal includes a useful signal component and a spurious signal component, phase-shifted with respect to one another by approximately 90°, and the analog-to-digital converter is configured for sampling the voltage signal at maximum values assumed by the useful signal component. | 01-31-2013 |
20130031950 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH SELF-CALIBRATION FUNCTION AND METHOD OF CALIBRATING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE - A microelectromechanical gyroscope having a supporting structure; a mass capacitively coupled to the supporting structure and movable with a first degree of freedom and a second degree of freedom, in response to rotations of the supporting structure about an axis; driving components, for keeping the mass in oscillation according to the first degree of freedom; a read interface for detecting transduction signals indicating the capacitive coupling between the mass and the supporting structure; and capacitive compensation modules for modifying the capacitive coupling between the mass and the supporting structure. Calibration components detect systematic errors from the transduction signals and modify the capacitive compensation modules as a function of the transduction signals so as to attenuate the systematic errors. | 02-07-2013 |
20130033274 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SENSOR WITH DIFFERENTIATED PERFORMANCES AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SENSOR - A microelectromechanical sensor includes a supporting structure and a sensing mass, which is elastically coupled to the supporting structure, is movable with respect thereto with one degree of freedom in response to movements according to an axis and is coupled to the supporting structure through a capacitive coupling. A sensing device senses, on terminals of the capacitive coupling, transduction signals indicative of displacements of the first sensing mass according to the degree of freedom. The sensing device includes at least one first reading chain, having first operative parameters, one second reading chain, having second operative parameters different from the first operative parameters, and one selective electrical connection structure that couples the first reading chain and the second reading chain to the first terminals. | 02-07-2013 |
20130239651 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH CONTINUOUS SELF-TEST FUNCTION - A microelectromechanical gyroscope includes a body and a sensing mass, which is movable with a degree of freedom in response to rotations of the body about an axis. A self-test actuator is capacitively coupled to the sensing mass for supplying a self-test signal. The capacitive coupling causes, in response to the self-test signal, electrostatic forces that are able to move the sensing mass in accordance with the degree of freedom at an actuation frequency. A sensing device detects transduction signals indicating displacements of the sensing mass in accordance with the degree of freedom. The sensing device is configured for discriminating, in the transduction signals, spectral components that are correlated to the actuation frequency and indicate the movement of the sensing mass as a result of the self-test signal. | 09-19-2013 |
20140144230 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH IMPROVED START-UP PHASE, SYSTEM INCLUDING THE MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE, AND METHOD FOR SPEEDING-UP THE START UP PHASE - A driving device of a driving mass of a gyroscope comprises a differential read amplifier to supply first signals indicating a rate of oscillation of the driving mass; a variable-gain amplifier to supply second signals to drive the driving mass based on said first signals; a voltage elevator providing a power supply signal to the variable-gain amplifier; a controller generating a first control signal to control a gain of the variable-gain amplifier; and a first comparator, coupled to the variable-gain amplifier, generating a second control signal based on a comparison of the first control signal with a threshold, the second control signal controlling at least one among: (i) the variable-gain amplifier in such a way that the gain is increased only during the start-up phase of the gyroscope, and (ii) the voltage elevator in such a way that the power supply signal is increased only during the start-up phase. | 05-29-2014 |
20140190258 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH COMPENSATION OF QUADRATURE SIGNAL COMPONENTS - A gyroscope includes: a mass, which is movable with respect to a supporting body; a driving loop for keeping the mass in oscillation according to a driving axis; a reading device, which supplying an output signal indicating an angular speed of the body; and a compensation device, for attenuating spurious signal components in quadrature with respect to a velocity of oscillation of the mass. The reading device includes an amplifier, which supplies a transduction signal indicating a position of the mass according to a sensing axis. The compensation device forms a control loop with the amplifier, extracts from the transduction signal an error signal representing quadrature components in the transduction signal, and supplies to the amplifier a compensation signal such as to attenuate the error signal. | 07-10-2014 |
20140260609 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE HAVING AN OSCILLATING MASS AND A FORCING STAGE, AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE - A microelectromechanical device includes: a body; a movable mass, elastically coupled to the body and oscillatable with respect to the body according to a degree of freedom; a frequency detector, configured to detect a current oscillation frequency of the movable mass; and a forcing stage, capacitively coupled to the movable mass and configured to provide energy to the movable mass through forcing signals having a forcing frequency equal to the current oscillation frequency detected by the frequency detector, at least in a first transient operating condition. | 09-18-2014 |