Hello,

This has been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I have tried to
google it to no avail. Somebody must know the answer so that is why
I thought I will throw the question out on the floor here in the
hopes somebody knows.

Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow
the flip to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.

Similar things cause Radio Control Planes and Drones to know which
way is up and automatically adjust to maintain control.

Yes, I know that it is possible and it works quite well to perform
this bit of "magic".

THE QUESTION IS "What technology makes it happen??"

I want to say there is a ball of mercury floating in a IC Chip full
of copper pins in a circle that respond to the mercury conducting
current or electrons and some software reading these pins and telling
the picture to roll or the plane or drone to change direction.

Well that makes sense but I know it is potentially wrong!!

So what kind of techno device does the work??

I can't imagine that it is atmospheric pressure.................

Ok, so anyone here have a clue or a hint or maybe a SOLID ANSWER??

Oh, if it is a Deep Dark Secret that can't be revealed due to serious
legal ramifications then just say so. I might end my quest!! :-)

Ok, I now open the question to the floor!!

Thanks,

Les

On 7/29/2021 6:59 PM, ABLE1 wrote:
> Hello,
>
> This has been a puzzlement for me for a while now.  I have tried to
> google it to no avail.  Somebody must know the answer so that is why
> I thought I will throw the question out on the floor here in the
> hopes somebody knows.
>
> Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow
> the flip to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.
>
> Similar things cause Radio Control Planes and Drones to know which
> way is up and automatically adjust to maintain control.
>
> Yes, I know that it is possible and it works quite well to perform
> this bit of "magic".
>
> THE QUESTION IS "What technology makes it happen??"
>
> I want to say there is a ball of mercury floating in a IC Chip full
> of copper pins in a circle that respond to the mercury conducting
> current or electrons and some software reading these pins and telling
> the picture to roll or the plane or drone to change direction.

> Well that makes sense but I know it is potentially wrong!!
>
> So what kind of techno device does the work??
>
> I can't imagine that it is atmospheric pressure.................
>
> Ok, so anyone here have a clue or a hint or maybe a SOLID ANSWER??
>
> Oh, if it is a Deep Dark Secret that can't be revealed due to serious
> legal ramifications then just say so.  I might end my quest!! :-)
>
> Ok, I now open the question to the floor!!
>
> Thanks,
>
> Les
>

No mercury, but yes it is mechanical:

<https://www.siliconsensing.com/technology/mems-accelerometers/>

On 7/29/2021 3:59 PM, ABLE1 wrote:
> Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow the flip
> to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.

"orientation"

> Similar things cause Radio Control Planes and Drones to know which
> way is up and automatically adjust to maintain control.
>
> THE QUESTION IS "What technology makes it happen??"
>
> So what kind of techno device does the work??

It's an accelerometer. They are mechanical devices that instrument
a semirigid member to detect the forces acting on it.

In addition to detecting "up" vs. "down", they can also detect if
you *shake* them, tie the device onto a string and swing it around
over your head, etc.

It's up to the software "watching" the sensor to determine which of
these behaviors you've undertaken.

On Thursday, July 29, 2021 at 6:59:38 PM UTC-4, ABLE1 wrote:
> Hello,
>
> This has been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I have tried to
> google it to no avail. Somebody must know the answer so that is why
> I thought I will throw the question out on the floor here in the
> hopes somebody knows.
>
> Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow
> the flip to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.
You mean when the image is displayed sideways and you turn the phone to reorient the image to the correct orientation and the phone responds by rotating the image to keep it in the wrong orientation?

Yes, we all have seen that. This can be fixed by application of an appropriately sharp tool to the MEMS accelerometer.

--

Rick C.

- Get 1,000 miles of free Supercharging
- Tesla referral code - https://ts.la/richard11209

On 2021-07-29, ABLE1 <somewhere@nowhere.net> wrote:
> Hello,
>
> This has been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I have tried to
> google it to no avail. Somebody must know the answer so that is why
> I thought I will throw the question out on the floor here in the
> hopes somebody knows.
>
> Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow
> the flip to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.
>
> Similar things cause Radio Control Planes and Drones to know which
> way is up and automatically adjust to maintain control.
>
> Yes, I know that it is possible and it works quite well to perform
> this bit of "magic".
>
> THE QUESTION IS "What technology makes it happen??"
>
> I want to say there is a ball of mercury floating in a IC Chip full
> of copper pins in a circle that respond to the mercury conducting
> current or electrons and some software reading these pins and telling
> the picture to roll or the plane or drone to change direction.

That would basically make a very crude accelerometer, but an accelerometer
is not going to tell you which way is up. In flight an accelerometer
will only tell you which way the lift from the wings/rotors is
pointing relative to the craft, this is probably not useful information.

> I can't imagine that it is atmospheric pressure.................
>
> Ok, so anyone here have a clue or a hint or maybe a SOLID ANSWER??

To remeber which way is down you need a gyroscope,

> Oh, if it is a Deep Dark Secret that can't be revealed due to serious
> legal ramifications then just say so. I might end my quest!! :-)

Quality IMU parts are under export restriction I think, but so far
as I know they are not top secret.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_measurement_unit

https://www.amazon.com/Acceleration-Sensors-Accelerometer-Three-Axis-Quadcopter/dp/B07V67DQ5N

--
Jasen.

On 7/30/2021 7:02 AM, Jasen Betts wrote:

Jason,

Thanks Jason but this one won't fit in my iPhone. :-)
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_measurement_unit
>

This one is more of what I was questioning. Thanks for the hint!!
> https://www.amazon.com/Acceleration-Sensors-Accelerometer-Three-Axis-Quadcopter/dp/B07V67DQ5N
>

I find it interesting to think that such a small device can read the
smallest movement and respond accordingly.

Very cool stuff!!!

Thanks again!!

Les

On Fri, 30 Jul 2021 11:02:29 -0000 (UTC), Jasen Betts
<usenet@revmaps.no-ip.org> wrote:

>On 2021-07-29, ABLE1 <somewhere@nowhere.net> wrote:
>> Hello,
>>
>> This has been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I have tried to
>> google it to no avail. Somebody must know the answer so that is why
>> I thought I will throw the question out on the floor here in the
>> hopes somebody knows.
>>
>> Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow
>> the flip to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.
>>
>> Similar things cause Radio Control Planes and Drones to know which
>> way is up and automatically adjust to maintain control.
>>
>> Yes, I know that it is possible and it works quite well to perform
>> this bit of "magic".
>>
>> THE QUESTION IS "What technology makes it happen??"
>>
>> I want to say there is a ball of mercury floating in a IC Chip full
>> of copper pins in a circle that respond to the mercury conducting
>> current or electrons and some software reading these pins and telling
>> the picture to roll or the plane or drone to change direction.
>
>That would basically make a very crude accelerometer, but an accelerometer
>is not going to tell you which way is up. In flight an accelerometer
>will only tell you which way the lift from the wings/rotors is
>pointing relative to the craft, this is probably not useful information.
>
>> I can't imagine that it is atmospheric pressure.................
>>
>> Ok, so anyone here have a clue or a hint or maybe a SOLID ANSWER??
>
>To remeber which way is down you need a gyroscope,

Funny, but I seem to be able to do it without instruments, in the dark
even! Just as long as I'm not on a roller coaster or something.

>
>> Oh, if it is a Deep Dark Secret that can't be revealed due to serious
>> legal ramifications then just say so. I might end my quest!! :-)
>
>Quality IMU parts are under export restriction I think, but so far
>as I know they are not top secret.
>
>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_measurement_unit
>
>https://www.amazon.com/Acceleration-Sensors-Accelerometer-Three-Axis-Quadcopter/dp/B07V67DQ5N

Some guy got famous demonstrating that acceleration is
indistinguishable from gravity. Starts with E or something.

--

John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc

The best designs are necessarily accidental.

On 7/30/2021 5:57 AM, ABLE1 wrote:
> I find it interesting to think that such a small device can read the
> smallest movement and respond accordingly.

Why? If you hold a flimsy sheet of paper in your hand, in a vacuum,
don't you think it will deflect from the acceleration imparted by
your hand as you move it *in* that environment?

We're talking about *tiny* devices "machined" finely. You
tweek the dimensions/materials to get the response that
you want given the stimuli you're looking to monitor.

Tablet presses (machines that make "pills" out of "powder")
exert many *tons* of compressive force on the granulation
(powder) as the tablet is being formed. It is important to
measure the actual force as it gives you an indication of
the volume of granulation in the (fixed geometry!) mold cavity;
as force increases, so must the amount of compressed material!

You do this by instrumenting the rod that ties the upper and
lower portions of the compression mechanism together and then
measuring the deformation of that steel member, in real time.

Can you see the change? Measure it (statically) with a traditional
"scale"? Nope. But, instrument it with a set of strain gauges and
there's LOTS of signal to be seen!

On 2021-07-30, jlarkin@highlandsniptechnology.com <jlarkin@highlandsniptechnology.com> wrote:
> On Fri, 30 Jul 2021 11:02:29 -0000 (UTC), Jasen Betts
><usenet@revmaps.no-ip.org> wrote:
>
>>On 2021-07-29, ABLE1 <somewhere@nowhere.net> wrote:
>>> Hello,
>>>
>>> This has been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I have tried to
>>> google it to no avail. Somebody must know the answer so that is why
>>> I thought I will throw the question out on the floor here in the
>>> hopes somebody knows.
>>>
>>> Ok, so when you rotate your iPhone or Android phone the picture follow
>>> the flip to keep the picture or app in a proper viewing position.
>>>
>>> Similar things cause Radio Control Planes and Drones to know which
>>> way is up and automatically adjust to maintain control.
>>>
>>> Yes, I know that it is possible and it works quite well to perform
>>> this bit of "magic".
>>>
>>> THE QUESTION IS "What technology makes it happen??"
>>>
>>> I want to say there is a ball of mercury floating in a IC Chip full
>>> of copper pins in a circle that respond to the mercury conducting
>>> current or electrons and some software reading these pins and telling
>>> the picture to roll or the plane or drone to change direction.
>>
>>That would basically make a very crude accelerometer, but an accelerometer
>>is not going to tell you which way is up. In flight an accelerometer
>>will only tell you which way the lift from the wings/rotors is
>>pointing relative to the craft, this is probably not useful information.
>>
>>> I can't imagine that it is atmospheric pressure.................
>>>
>>> Ok, so anyone here have a clue or a hint or maybe a SOLID ANSWER??
>>
>>To remeber which way is down you need a gyroscope,
>
> Funny, but I seem to be able to do it without instruments, in the dark
> even! Just as long as I'm not on a roller coaster or something.

yeah, or something like piloting an aircraft, to return to the topic
being discussed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spatial_disorientation

--
Jasen.

On a sunny day (Fri, 30 Jul 2021 07:42:23 -0700) it happened
jlarkin@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote in
<ql38ggdelb6jmbcbj4t9lafa4kl1na11k9@4ax.com>:

>>> Oh, if it is a Deep Dark Secret that can't be revealed due to serious
>>> legal ramifications then just say so. I might end my quest!! :-)
>>
>>Quality IMU parts are under export restriction I think, but so far
>>as I know they are not top secret.
>>
>>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_measurement_unit
>>
>>https://www.amazon.com/Acceleration-Sensors-Accelerometer-Three-Axis-Quadcopter/dp/B07V67DQ5N
>
>
>Some guy got famous demonstrating that acceleration is
>indistinguishable from gravity. Starts with E or something.

My drone has a 3 axis magnetic compass you have to calibrate before takeoff.

On Fri, 30 Jul 2021 08:57:10 -0400, ABLE1 <somewhere@nowhere.net>
wrote:

>On 7/30/2021 7:02 AM, Jasen Betts wrote:
>
>Jason,
>
>Thanks Jason but this one won't fit in my iPhone. :-)
>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_measurement_unit
>>
>
>This one is more of what I was questioning. Thanks for the hint!!
>> https://www.amazon.com/Acceleration-Sensors-Accelerometer-Three-Axis-Quadcopter/dp/B07V67DQ5N
>>
>
>I find it interesting to think that such a small device can read the
>smallest movement and respond accordingly.

The IMU just reports accelerometer and gyro numbers to the processor.
It's up to the processor to do something with it, such as come up with
a vector direction for "down" or detect a tap, and the firmware is
fairly involved. Bosch has some example code available, I believe.
Quaternions are typically used- a kind of extension of complex numbers
that waited since the 1800s to find a good application.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaternion

Gyros + accelerometers (3 axis each) are insufficient to give you
complete information so some packages include 3-axis magnetometers (9
degrees of freedom total). That gives you accelerations, rotation
rates and orientation.

For navigation (including weapons) we can either make a very accurate
IMU that doesn't drift too much during the mission (seconds to tens of
minutes perhaps) and/or we can augment the data with GNSS, terrain
visual data or perhaps fix upon a star above the atmosphere.

--
Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany