Gyro and Magnetic Compass

What is a Magnetic Compass?

• A magnetic compass consists of a small,

lightweight magnet balanced on a nearly
frictionless pivot point.
• The magnet is generally called a needle. One
end of the needle is often marked “N” for
north.
Magnetic Compass on a ship
Principles of Magnetic Compass

• A Magnetic compass is a critical piece of marine

navigational equipment. Simply put, a magnetized
needle, suspended freely, points North because of
the forces caused by the Earth’s magnetic field.
Once North is known, the other directions are easily
found. The ship magnetic compass is usually housed
on the ‘monkey island’ above the navigating bridge
and reflected into the bridge by means of a
periscope like device, so a helmsman can easily read
the compass when he is steering the ship.
Magnetic North

• The direction of a compass needle point is

known as magnetic north.
• The compass aligns itself to the local (EARTH)
magnetic field/ which varies in a complex
manner over the Earth’s Surface, as well as
over time.
What is a Gyro Compass?

• A gyrocompass is a type of non-magnetic compass

which is based on a fast spinning disc and rotation of
the earth to automatically find geographical
direction.
Description of Gyroscope

• A gyroscope is a device for measuring or

maintaining orientation, based on the
principles of angular momentum.
Principles of a Gyroscope

• If you have a spinning

gyroscope and you
try to rotate its spin axis,
the gyroscope will instead
try to rotate about an axis
at right angles to your
force axis.
Applying Gyroscope to Gyrocompass
• Use weight to force the axis of the compass to remain horizontal
(perpendicular to the direction of the center of the earth)
• But allow it to rotate freely within the horizontal plane
• Gravity will then act as a torque forcing the compass’s axis toward
true north.
• Because the weights will confine the compass’s axis to be
horizontal with respect to the earth’s surface, the axis can never
align with the earth’s axis (except on the equator) and must
realign itself as the earth’s rotates.
• With respect to the earth’s surface, the compass will appear to be
stationary and pointing along the earth’s surface toward the true
north pole.
Compass Error

• The difference between compass heading and

true heading expressed as the algebraic sum
of variation and deviation.
Variation
• When influenced only by the earth’s magnetic field, a
compass needle will point towards the earth’s north magnetic
pole. This pole is located somewhere to the north of Canada
and is slowly moving. To find the value of variation for any
position simply consult the nearest compass rose on a marine
chart. The variation will be given for a specified year, together
with the rate of change, allowing calculation of variation for
any subsequent year.
Deviation
• In the unlikely event that a vessel is constructed entirely from non
magnetic materials and has no electronics close to the compass, variation
is the only error which will need to be accounted for. In all other cases the
vessel and/or its equipment will create magnetic fields of their own.
Some of these will be built into the vessel on the slip, others will change as
the vessel moves around within the influence of the earth’s magnetic
field.

• The compass adjuster is usually able to reduce the effect of the vessel’s
magnetic fields, but the causes are so complex that it is inevitable that
some effects remain. For the ship’s compass to work at all the effect of
the ship’s magnetism must be less than the force of the earth’s magnetic
field.
Magnetic Compass Error
• The difference between direction as measured by the
compass and the true direction as measured on the chart is
termed compass error, stated differently: - It is the angular
difference between true north and compass north. It is
named east or west to indicate the side of true north on
which the compass north lies.
Changing from Compass to True

C Compass Course 215° (C)

D Deviation 6° W (in this case between 210 and 220)

M Magnetic Course 209° (M) (add E so subtract W)

V Variation 11° E (from chart)

T True course 220° (T) (add E)

Changing from True to Compass

T True Course 220° (T)

V Variation - 11° E (from chart)

M Magnetic Course 209° (M) (from T to C subtract E)

D Deviation + 5° W (from table for 210)

C Compass course 214.5 ° (C) (add W)

Gyro Compass Error
• Although it is popularly believed that the gyro compass indicates true
North, this is not necessarily the case. The gyro is subject to course, speed
and latitude errors. These are kept to the minimum by input
corrections.The gyro error is rarely more than one or two degrees for a
correctly maintained gyro.

• To avoid confusion with magnetic errors, gyro error is named high (H) or
low (L).

• Gyro error is named high when the gyro course or bearing is higher than
the true course or bearing. Therefore high error must be subtracted from
the gyro reading to obtain the true reading. The opposite applies to low
error.
• Gyro error is known to be 2° high. The true course to be steered is 076°. What is the gyro
course?

True Course 076°

Gyro error 2° H

Gyro Course 078°

• A bearing taken with the same gyro gives 246° (G). What is the true bearing?

Gyro bearing 246°

Gyro error 2° H

True bearing 244°

References
• https://
webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/virtual_disk_library/index.cgi/5429240/FID89/
PUB9/Chapters/Chapt-06.pdf
• http://marinegyaan.com/what-is-the-magnetic-compass/
• https://www.academia.edu/
• http://
www.splashmaritime.com.au/Marops/data/text/Navtex/Naverror.htm