An accelerometer is a device that measures the proper acceleration of an object. Proper acceleration is the acceleration of the object relative to an observer who is in free fall. Proper acceleration
A typical accelerometer
Tri-axis Digital Accelerometer by Kionix, inside Motorola Xoom
An inertial measurement unit is an electronic device that measures and reports a body's specific force, angular rate, and sometimes the orientation of the body, using a combination of accelerometers,
Accelerometer
…Inclinometer Inertial measurement unit Inertial navigation system…