STMicroelectronics ISM330BX inertial measurement unit

The STMicroelectronics ISM330BX 6-axis inertial measurement unit (IMU) combines edge-AI processing, an analog hub for sensor expansion and ST’s Qvar electric charge variations sensing for energy-efficient industrial sensing and motion tracking applications.

The IMU contains a 3-axis gyroscope and a 3-axis accelerometer with a low-noise architecture and bandwidth up to 2 kHz, suitable for vibration sensing in machine-tool condition-monitoring applications. Additional use cases include industrial and domestic robots and automated guided vehicles (AGV), intelligent appliances and motion trackers.

The inertial measurement unit also integrates ST’s edge-processing engine that teams a machine-learning core (MLC) with AI algorithms and a finite state machine (FSM). The IMU is designed to offload the host processor and save system power. The IMU also embeds ST’s Sensor Fusion Low-Power (SFLP) algorithm for 3D orientation tracking, which can enhance energy efficiency in applications like robotics and smart safety helmets. Leveraging adaptive self-configuration (ASC), the sensor can also automatically enhance its settings in real time for best performance and power.

With its autonomous capabilities, the IMU alleviates data transmission and offloads the main processor, thereby providing low latency and low power consumption. The integrated analog hub provides more opportunities for energy-efficient system integration by directly connecting external analog sensors to the edge-processing engine for data filtering and AI inference.

With ST’s Qvar electric charge variation detector also built in, the IMU can integrate touch and close-proximity detection, or value-added functionality such as water leak sensing, to boost system integration and energy efficiency.

The launch of the ISM330BX advances MEMS technology for industrial markets and further enriches the MEMS ecosystem by offering developers access to essential hardware such as the STEVAL-MKI245KA adapter board. There are also software resources including MEMS Studio and ready-to-go application examples in GitHub free of charge, presenting a collaborative environment for innovation.