High performance fiber optic accelerometer

A fiber optic sensor that includes a flexural disk having a pair of fiber optic coils mounted on opposite sides thereof and optically coupled together to form an interferometer that produces an output signal in response to acceleration of the flexural disk, comprising:

• a housing having first and second end plates with a sidewall extending therebetween, the sidewall having an inwardly facing groove therein, the flexural disk having an outer edge portion mounted in the inwardly facing groove;
• a compressive damper mounted in the housing and arranged to exert a compressive force on the flexural disk to control movement thereof in response to acceleration of the flexural disk along a sensing axis and thereby control the output signal amplitude over a selected operational frequency range, and
• wherein the housing includes:
• a first housing member that includes the first end plate, a first sidewall portion extending from an outer edge of the first end plate, and a first post extending from a central region of the first end plate;
• and
• a second housing member that includes the second end plate, a second sidewall portion extending from an outer edge of the second end plate and a second post extending from the second end plate, the first and second sidewall portions each having inwardly facing notches at end edges thereof, the first and second housing members being arranged end-to-end such that the inwardly facing notches define the inwardly-facing groove in which the outer edge of the flexural disk is mounted and such that the first and second posts are aligned end-to-end to define the support member.

A method for forming a fiber optic sensor that includes a flexural disk having a pair of fiber optic coils mounted on opposite sides thereof and optically coupled together to form an interferometer that produces an output signal in response to acceleration of the flexural disk, comprising the steps of:

• forming a housing to have first and second end plates with a sidewall extending therebetween, the sidewall being formed to have an inwardly facing groove therein;
• mounting the flexural disk in the inwardly facing groove;
• mounting a compressive damper in the housing;
• arranging the compressive damper to exert a compressive force on the flexural disk to control movement thereof in response to acceleration of the flexural disk along a sensing axis and thereby control the output signal amplitude,
• wherein the step of mounting a compressive damper in the housing comprises the steps of:
• mounting a first compressive damping member between a first side of the flexural disk and the first end plate;
• and
• mounting a second compressive damping member between a second side of the flexural disk and the second end plate.

A method for forming a fiber optic sensor that includes a flexural disk having a pair of fiber optic coils mounted on opposite sides thereof and optically coupled together to form an interferometer that produces an output signal in response to acceleration of the flexural disk, comprising the steps of:

• forming a housing to have first and second end plates with a sidewall extending therebetween, the sidewall being formed to have an inwardly facing groove therein;
• forming each of the end plates to have ribbed inner surfaces with a plurality of ribs extending away from the end plates inward in the housing;
• mounting the flexural disk in the inwardly facing groove;
• mounting a compressive damper in the housing;
• and
• arranging the compressive damper to exert a compressive force on the flexural disk to control movement thereof in response to acceleration of the flexural disk along a sensing axis and thereby control the output signal amplitude.

A method for forming a fiber optic sensor that includes a flexural disk having a pair of fiber optic coils mounted on opposite sides thereof and optically coupled together to form an interferometer that produces an output signal in response to acceleration of the flexural disk, comprising the steps of:

• forming a housing to have first and second end plates with a sidewall extending therebetween, the sidewall being formed to have an inwardly facing groove therein;
• forming a first housing member that includes the first end plate, a first sidewall portion extending from an outer edge of the first end plate and a first post extending from a central region of the first end plate;
• forming a second housing member that includes the second end plate, a second sidewall portion extending from an outer edge of the second end plate and a second post extending from the second end plate;
• forming the first and second sidewall portions to each have inwardly facing notches at end edges thereof;
• and
• arranging the first and second housing members end-to-end such that the inwardly facing notches define an inwardly-facing groove, the first and second posts, being aligned end-to-end to define the support member;
• mounting the flexural disk in the inwardly facing groove;
• mounting a compressive damper in the housing;
• and
• arranging the compressive damper to exert a compressive force on the flexural disk to control movement thereof in response to acceleration of the flexural disk along a sensing axis and thereby control the output signal amplitude.