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When a deflective force is applied to a stationary gyro rotor, the rotor will move in the direction of the force. Precession is the tilting or turning of the rotor axis as a result of external forces. The aircraft attitude or heading can thus be compared to the rotor to enable the instrument to display the actual attitude or direction. For all intents, this allows the aircraft to rotate around the gyro without changing the position of the rotor. The rotor of a universally mounted gyro remains in the same position even as the surrounding circular frames or gimbals are moved. As a consequence, the rotors in gyroscopic aircraft instruments are constructed of heavy materials and are designed to spin at rates in the order of 10,000 to 15,000 revolutions per minute (RPM).Īttitude and heading indicators use gyros as an unchanging reference in space that is, once the rotor is spinning, it maintains a constant position with respect to the horizon or the direction. This stability will increases in proportion to any increase in mass or speed of the rotor. The spinning rotor inside a gyroscopic instrument maintains a constant attitude in space so long as no external forces act to change its motion. As stated in Newton's First Law, "a body in motion tends to move in a constant speed and direction unless acted upon by an external force". The primary trait of a spinning gyro rotor is rigidity in space, otherwise know as gyroscopic inertia. Explanation of the terms is as follows: Rigidity in Space A secondary gyroscopic principle which must be understood and compensated for, as necessary, is Precession.
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The principal characteristic of a gyro which makes it suitable for use in attitude instruments is Rigidity in Space. In more modern installations, mechanical gyroscopes have been replaced by laser gyros. The gyroscopes within the instruments are usually electrically or vacuum driven and make use of the basic gyroscopic principles to display the attitude of the aircraft. Examples of such instruments include attitude indicators, heading indicators and turn coordinators (turn and slip indicator). Gyroscopic flight instruments of some description are used in most general aviation aircraft and in older commercial aircraft. Gyroscopic Flight Instruments are instruments which have a mechanical gyroscope incorporated into their design.