Type I and Type II micromachined vibratory gyroscopes

are based on the principle that the Coriolis forces produced by rotation of the gyro cause a transfer of energy between two of the gyro’s modes of vibration. Vibratory Gyroscopes can be classified into two broad types, angle gyroscopes (or Type I) and rate gyroscopes (or Type II). Gyroscopes of the first type measure orientation angles directly, while gyroscopes of the second type measure rotational rate. Most MVG implementations to date are found exclusively in the angular rate measuring variety, however there are opportunities for implementation on the micro-scale angle gyroscopes. This paper introduces a unified approach for description of MVGs and emphasizes the differences between the two types of devices. We also review our recent results in development of Type I and Type II gyroscopes. I