STMicroelectronics heralds 6 degrees of freedom

Aug. 4, 2011—STMicroelectronics, Geneva, Switzerland, last week unveiled a new MEMS device—the LSM330DL—that combines three-axis sensing of both linear and angular motion, according to a company news release.

ST's new gyroscope/accelerometer six-axis combo chip targets consumer electronics such as Wii remotes. Photo courtesy ST.

The multi-sensor module detects acceleration up to 16g and angular rate up to 2,000 dps along the pitch, roll and yaw axes. The integration of a three-axis digital accelerometer with a three-axis digital gyroscope in a single package targets a wide range of applications that include intuitive user interfaces in pointers and remotes, motion monitoring in black-box recorders, dead-reckoning and map-matching in advanced navigation systems, and smart power-saving and free-fall detection in portable electronics.

The module leverages the same micromachining technology process that ST has used for more than 1.4 billion motion sensors the company has already sold in the market.