industry news
Subscribe Now

Bosch launches smart ultra-low power IMU BMI270 optimized for wearables

Includes intuitive activity, context and gesture recognition
  • Newest member of Bosch’s next-generation BMI260 family of IMUs
  • Optimized for wearable and hearable applications
  • Strongly increased system battery life
  • Available with context and activity recognition or gesture recognition
  • Bosch at CES: booth 14020

At CES in Las Vegas, Nevada, Bosch Sensortec announced the BMI270, an ultra-low power smart Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) specifically targeted at wearable applications. It offers a strongly improved accelerometer offset and sensitivity performance, enabled by the newest Bosch MEMS process technology.

The BMI270 is the latest member of Bosch Sensortec’s BMI260 family of IMUs. It includes intuitive gesture, context and activity recognition with an integrated plug-and-play step counter, which is specially optimized for accurate step counting in wrist-worn devices. The IMU is also well suited for other types of wearable devices, such as hearables, smart clothes, smart shoes, smart glasses and ankle bands.

As an ultra-low power IMU, the BMI270 significantly extends system battery life by handling multiple activity tracking, step counting and gesture recognition functions independently of the main system processor, without having to wake it up. These processor-independent functions include tasks such as sending an interrupt when a certain number of steps is reached, or geofencing to activate GPS when the user stands up and starts walking.

Powerful, accurate gesture and activity recognition features therefore run in the ultra-low power domain, with current consumption of just 30 μA. This noticeably reduces power consumption and users can benefit from extended battery charging intervals.

“The BMI270 combines robustness, accuracy and ultra-low power consumption, making it ideal for wearables,” says Dr. Stefan Finkbeiner, CEO of Bosch Sensortec. “It also features a dedicated set of functions developed for wrist-worn and other wearable devices, giving wearable manufacturers and vendors the capability to develop differentiated products with a competitive edge.”

Two versions: gesture and context/activity

Bosch Sensortec’s smart IMU is available in two application-specific versions. The ‘gesture’ version, which detects gestures including flick in/out, arm up/down, and wrist tilt. This version is fully compliant with Wear OS by Google, ensuring a user-friendly and feature-rich experience for end users. The ‘context and activity’ version has advanced features for recognizing context activity and activity change, for example standing, walking or being in a vehicle.

The BMI270 is designed to provide maximum flexibility to customers. Manufacturers not only benefit from the excellent sensor performance of the IMU but can also customize it based on the specific use case with gesture and context/activity features.

Broad range of features

Building on the latest Bosch MEMS process technology, the BMI270 combines the automotive-proven gyroscope technology with a significantly improved accelerometer. The sensor includes a 2 kB FIFO.

Bosch’s unique and motionless Component Retrimming (CRT) feature provides built-in gyroscope self-calibration without a rotation stimulus, which saves OEMs valuable time and costs during testing and manufacturing. The embedded plug and play features of the BMI270 help to substantially cut time to market.

The BMI270 measures only 2.5 x 3.0 x 0.8 mm3, and is pin-to-pin compatible with the BMI160, BMI260, BMI261 and BMI263.

Availability

The BMI270 will be available for distribution in the second quarter 2019.

Leave a Reply

featured blogs
Mar 28, 2024
The difference between Olympic glory and missing out on the podium is often measured in mere fractions of a second, highlighting the pivotal role of timing in sports. But what's the chronometric secret to those photo finishes and record-breaking feats? In this comprehens...
Mar 26, 2024
Learn how GPU acceleration impacts digital chip design implementation, expanding beyond chip simulation to fulfill compute demands of the RTL-to-GDSII process.The post Can GPUs Accelerate Digital Design Implementation? appeared first on Chip Design....
Mar 21, 2024
The awesome thing about these machines is that you are limited only by your imagination, and I've got a GREAT imagination....

featured video

We are Altera. We are for the innovators.

Sponsored by Intel

Today we embark on an exciting journey as we transition to Altera, an Intel Company. In a world of endless opportunities and challenges, we are here to provide the flexibility needed by our ecosystem of customers and partners to pioneer and accelerate innovation. As we leap into the future, we are committed to providing easy-to-design and deploy leadership programmable solutions to innovators to unlock extraordinary possibilities for everyone on the planet.

To learn more about Altera visit: http://intel.com/altera

featured chalk talk

Embedded Storage in Green IoT Applications
Sponsored by Mouser Electronics and Swissbit
In this episode of Chalk Talk, Amelia Dalton and Martin Schreiber from Swissbit explore the unique set of memory requirements that Green IoT designs demand, the roles that endurance, performance and density play in flash memory solutions, and how Swissbit’s SD cards and eMMC technologies can add value to your next IoT design.
Oct 25, 2023
20,158 views