STMicroelectronics has fleshed out its iNEMO motion sensing portfolio with the introduction of a new inertial module and software suite.
The new LSM330DLC multisensor module integrates three-axis sensing of linear and angular motion in a 4 x 5 x 1 mm package. It is fully software compatible with ST’s latest-generation 3-axis digital accelerometers (LIS3DH) and gyroscopes (L3GD20), making it easy for customers using ST’s single-function sensors to upgrade their designs, reaping the package-level integration benefits of size reduction and reliability. The module solution provides inherently precise alignment of the two sensors’ reference axes and the design of its mechanical sensing structure ensures enhanced thermal and mechanical stability.
The device combines a user selectable full-scale acceleration range from 2 to 16 G with angular rate detection from 250 to 2500 dps along the pitch, roll and yaw axes. Addressing power constraints in battery-operated portable devices, the module includes power-down and sleep modes and an embedded FIFO (first-in first-out) memory block for smarter power management. In addition, it can operate with any supply voltage over the range of 2,4 to 3,6 V.
The inertial module targets a wide range of applications that include motion-activated user interfaces in mobile phones, tablets and other smart consumer devices; dead reckoning and map matching in personal navigation devices; and intelligent power saving and free-fall detection in portable electronics.
To support the new module, and in fact the entire iNEMO range, ST also introduced its iNEMO Engine Sensor Fusion Suite, a platform of advanced filtering and predictive software that uses sophisticated algorithms to integrate outputs from multiple MEMS sensors. This real-time onboard motion sensor data fusion is aimed at improving the user experience, increasing accuracy, resolution, stability and response time.
The iNEMO Engine can be combined with iNEMO inertial modules to create complete and customisable hardware/software multi-axis MEMS sensor solutions for enhanced motion and accurate heading recognition. Based on the Kalman filter theory, the software employs a set of adaptive prediction and filtering algorithms that make sense of all the complex information coming from multiple sensing devices, including accelerometers, gyroscopes, compasses and pressure sensors. The software automatically corrects measurement distortions, inaccuracies and interference among the sensors.
The Fusion Suite includes the iNEMO Engine Lite, a free software library for motion detection system evaluation, and the iNEMO Engine Pro, a compiled software library with data fusion algorithms for multiple sensor output processing, customisable for different operating systems and hardware platforms.
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