SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DETERMINING AN ORIENTATION OF A DEVICE

A relative bearing sensor (102) for determining an orientation of a device is provided. The relative bearing sensor includes a ferromagnetic housing (104). The ferromagnetic housing a ferromagnetic ball (112) configured to roll with respect to an orientation of the ferromagnetic housing, a magnetic flux sensor (110), a permanent magnet (108) configured to emit a plurality of magnetic flux lines (120) through the magnetic flux sensor, the plurality of magnetic flux lines steered by a location of the ferromagnetic ball, and a processor (214) programmed to determine a flux angle (128,328,428) of the plurality of magnetic flux lines, compare the determined flux angle with a predefined flux angle, and determine an orientation of the device based on the comparing.