One embodiment is directed towards an inertial measurement unit (IMU) for measuring an input rate of rotation about an input axis. The IMU includes a first three dimensional gyroscope disposed such that a first axis of its three axes is oriented at a skew angle in degrees away from a reference plane, wherein the reference plane is normal to the input axis. The IMU also includes one or more processing devices coupled to the first gyroscope. The IMU also includes one or more data storage devices coupled to the one or more processing devices, the one or more data storage devices including instructions which, when executed by the one or more processing devices, cause the one or more processing devices to calculate the input rate of rotation based on dividing a sensed rate of rotation about the first axis by the sine of the skew angle.