In this thesis a method for testing the dynamic accuracy of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) magnetic, angular rate, and gravity (MARG) sensors was developed. Many tests exist to check the static accuracy of MARG and inertial sensors or their individual components, but very few tests exist that adequately examine the dynamic accuracy of the final sensor package with sufficient precision and test repeatability. Based on a previous work that developed an inertial sensor test bench, a new test apparatus designed to model the motions of a human arm or leg was built using a rigid pendulum with MEMS MARG sensors attached on the end. Building materials were chosen to give minimal magnetic interference, and an optical encoder was used to accurately track the angle of the pendulum. A LabVIEW data acquisition system was built for data collection and a graphical user interface was written in MATLAB for easy data processing. The MicroStrain 3DM-GX1 and 3DM-GX3 sensors were tested on the new apparatus in a variety of dynamic motion tests, including free swinging in vertical and horizontal orientations, as well as "swing to impact" and semi-static tests, and their performances were compared for different target applications.

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http://archive.org/details/amethodfortestin109455269

US Air Force (USAF) author (civilian)