Patent ID: 8800370

Claim:
A method of operating an interchangeable micromachined z-axis vibratory rate gyroscope capable of operating in a robust mode and capable of operating in a precision mode comprising: interchangeably switching between the robust mode and the precision mode during real-time operation by operating the gyroscope in the precision mode by selection of the dynamic parameters of the 1-DOF drive subsystem and the 2-DOF sense subsystem and electrostatically tuning the 2-DOF sense subsystem to switch to the robust mode of operation; and detecting the switching between the robust mode and the precision mode during real-time operation by measuring quadrature magnitude output of the gyroscope, wherein the dynamic parameters of the 1-DOF drive subsystem and the 2-DOF sense subsystem comprise: adjusting a drive suspension of the 1-DOF drive subsystem; adjusting at least two resonant sense frequencies of the 2-DOF sense subsystem; adjusting the amount of coupling between at least two masses of the 2-DOF sense subsystem; adjusting the mass of an inner and an outer decoupling frame of the 1-DOF drive subsystem; or adjusting a DC tuning voltage applied to at least one sense mass of the 2-DOF sense subsystem.