Electronics Technology


World's thinnest MEMS 3-axis accelerometer

11 July 2007 Electronics Technology

Freescale has expanded its micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)-based sensor portfolio with a 3-axis digital-output accelerometer that is 77% smaller than previous industry offerings.

Claimed to be the world's thinnest accelerometer, the MMA7450L is available in a 14-pin 3 mm x 5 mm x 0,8 mm thin plastic land grid array (LGA) package designed to meet the growing space constraints of feature-rich portable devices. Designed to simplify integration of microprocessors and microcontrollers, the device is ideal for handheld terminals that implement user interfaces based on hand movements and appliances that require movement, acceleration or inclination sensing.

The MMA7450L can communicate on both I C and SPI interface buses. The digital output streamlines communication with the MCU or microprocessor. It eliminates the need for a dedicated analog-to-digital converter and enables the sensor to share interfaces with other devices, saving further space in small-form-factor systems. Additionally, portable device manufacturers can connect the MMA7450L directly to a wireless platform, such as Freescale's i.MX architecture, or a highly integrated 8-bit MCU to design accelerometers into cellphones and portable media devices. The MMA7450L enables an array of motion-based functions, such as tilt scrolling, gaming control, tap to mute and freefall hard disk drive protection.

In addition to providing an on-board digital output, the MMA7450L embeds features such as threshold and pulse or click-detect for quick motion detection and offset calibration, eliminating the need for external memory. It also includes a g-select feature with three sensitivities (2g, 4g and 8g). This gives designers the flexibility to select the g-force detection level required for a specific application. The MMA7450L is an ideal solution for portable consumer electronics that require a fast response time, high sensitivity, low-current consumption, low-voltage operation and a standby mode in a small package.



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