Fluidic angular rate sensor employing ionized gas

A fluidic angular rate sensor comprising:

• means for generating and directing a gas stream along an axis passing through a quantity of substantially stationary gas;
• means for creating ions over a predetermined region of said gas stream and said stationary gas;
• a center electrode positioned on said axis;
• ion-collecting means comprising at least two ion-collecting electrodes for collecting ions from said gas stream at least two positions displaced symmetrically from said axis by a first predetermined transverse distance in a first plane passing through said axis, to form first and second ion currents;
• a pair of compensating electrodes disposed symmetrically about said axis at a second predetermined transverse distance greater than said first predetermined transverse distance in said first plane, said pair of compensating electrodes being biased with respect to said center electrode by a bias amount such that ions are attracted from the vicinity of said ion-collecting electrodes toward said compensating electrodes, the amount of said bias being such that ion flow from said ion-collecting electrodes to said compensating electrodes is substantially equal to ion flow from said center electrode to said ion-collecting electrodes, whereby current flow common to both said ion currents is reduced;
• means for combining said first and second ion currents to form a signal representative of the difference between said ion currents.