Gyro Bias Estimation Using a Dual Instrument Configuration

An innovative method is proposed for the estimation of inertial measurement biases. This method, that we call DriftLess, is based on fuzing the data from two sets of inertial measurement sensors that are displaced with respect to each other by a known angle. By varying the relative position of the sensors according to a predefined pattern, it is possible to acquire sufficient measurement data in order to estimate the biases of both sensors. The method was validated and tested in a laboratory installation and a numerical sensitivity study was conducted in order to evaluate the feasibility of the method for more realistic settings.