Patent ID: 7675627

Claim:
A fiber optic sensor, comprising: a housing having first and second end plates with a sidewall extending therebetween, the sidewall having an inwardly facing groove therein; a flexural disk having a central passage therethrough and having an outer edge portion mounted in the inward facing groove in the housing, the flexural disk being formed to have a stepped thickness such that the flexural disk has a first thickness at the outer edge portion and a second thickness in a region spaced apart from the housing, the first thickness being less than the second thickness; and a first fiber optic coil mounted on a first side of the flexural disk in the region of the flexural disk having the second thickness and a second optical fiber mounted on a second side of the flexural disk opposite the first fiber optic coil, the first and second fiber optic coils being optically coupled together by a fiber optic coupler to form an interferometer that produces an output signal in response to axial acceleration of the flexural disk, wherein the flexural disk has a selected inner diameter for the central passage and a hub is formed at the inner diameter integrally with the flexural disk, the hub being formed to have a first through-hole near a first side of the flexural disk and a second through-hole near a second side of the flexural disk, the first fiber optic coil being formed to have a first mirrored fiber end secured within the first through hole and the second fiber optic coil being formed to have a second mirrored fiber end secured within the second through hole.