Ameya360:EPC GaN eToF Laser Driver IC Enables Higher Density Lidar Systems
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Ameya360:EPC GaN eToF Laser Driver IC Enables Higher Density Lidar Systems

　　Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) has launched the EPC21701, a laser driver that monolithically integrates an 80V, 40A FET with gate driver and 3.3 logic level input into a single chip for time-of-flight lidar systems used in robotics, surveillance systems, and vacuum cleaners. It is tailored to lidar systems for gesture recognition, time of flight (ToF) measurement, robotic vision, or industrial safety.　　The EPC21701 laser driver uses 5V supply voltage and is controlled using 3.3V logic. It is capable of very high frequencies greater than 50MHz and super short pulses down to 2ns to modulate laser driving currents up to 15A. Voltage switching time is less than 1ns and delay time from input to output is less than 3.6ns. The EPC21701 is a single-chip driver plus GaN FET using EPC’s proprietary GaN IC technology in a chip-scale BGA form factor that measures only 1.7-by-1-by-0.68mm. The wafer level packaging is small, low inductance, and lays out very well with the laser system. With this small form factor and the integration of several functions, the overall solution is 36% smaller on the printed circuit board (PCB) compared to an equivalent multi-chip discrete implementation.　　The 80V EPC21701 complements the ToF driver IC family in chip-scale package (CSP) that also includes the 40V, 15A EPC21601 and the 40V, 10A EPC21603 options.　　Integrated devices in a single chip are easier to design, easier to layout, easier to assemble, save space on the PCB, increase efficiency, and reduce cost. This family of products will enable faster adoption and increased ubiquity of ToF solutions across a wider array of end-user applications.　　“This new family of GaN integrated circuits dramatically improves the performance while reducing size and cost for time-of-flight lidar systems,” said Alex Lidow, CEO, and co-founder of EPC. “Integrating a GaN FET with driver on one chip generates an extremely powerful and fast IC and reduces size and cost for wider adoption in consumer and industrial applications. With EPC21701 we expand the family to 80V and 15A and will soon extend the family further to 100V and 125A.”　　The EPC9172 development board features the EPC21701 eToF laser driver IC and is primarily intended to drive laser diodes with short, high current pulses. Capabilities include minimum pulse widths of <2ns, 15A peak currents, and bus voltage rating of 40V.　　Designers interested in replacing their silicon MOSFETs with a GaN solution can use the EPC GaN Power Bench’s cross-reference tool to find a suggested replacement based on their unique operating conditions.
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Release time：2023-01-28 11:04 reading：2014 Continue reading>>
Chirp Adds Sonar-on-Chip to ToF Battle
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Chirp Adds Sonar-on-Chip to ToF Battle

　　Whether they appear in drones, robotic vacuums, VR/AR headsets, smartphones or cars, sensors are proliferating in consumer and industrial systems, to capture “accurate range and position measurement” information.　　Depth information is critical in an imaging world when things are fast transitioning from 2D to 3D sensing. Knowing accurate distances, for example, can augment position tracking in VR/AR headsets, and prevent robotic vacuum cleaners from running into walls or objects.　　Although the market has already seen time-of-flight (ToF) sensors built on different technologies — such as IR and optical — Chirp Microsystems believes its new MEMS-based millimeter-sized ultrasound chip will become an effective alternative to the competition. Chirp boasts that it operates at ultra-low power with high precision range. It stands up to harsher environments while working both in total darkness and under the full sun, according to the company.　　IHS Markit, currently preparing a report on ToF sensors, told EE Times that shipments “started to become relevant in 2016,” and then growing quickly. The market research firm predicts annual shipments to expand to 600 million units in 2019.　　Michelle Kiang, Chirp's CEO, first talked to EE Times earlier this year about her Berkeley, Calif.-based startup and its ultrasound sensing technology. Since then, “We’ve been busy adding a new product — a longer range sensor device (whose operating range extends to 5 meters) and the development of sensing solutions including software and system integration,” Kiang said. Chirp’s ultrasonic ToF sensors, the CH-101 and CH-201, are both sampling today.　　How does Chirp stack up?　　Manuel Tagliavini, principal analyst for MEMS and sensors at IHS Markit, told us, “The Chirp solution has its working principle based on a reflected ultrasonic wave, while the standard ToF devices are based on the measurement of the time a laser pulse requires to be reflected.”　　Depending on its final application, the ultrasonic solution has strengths and weaknesses, he noted. For example, the wider field of view enabled by the Chirp’s piezo technology is advantageous for IoT appliances like the Amazon Echo, in sensing the user’s presence in a room, he said. But an ultrasonic solution applied to the AF system for cameras, for example, Tagliavini said, provides a general scene distance without necessarily measuring “the single details and object’s distance.”　　According to Chirp, its ultrasonic ToF sensors offer 180-degree of Field of View (FoV), compared to the 20-25 degrees offered in IR-based solutions. Kiang told us that while IR-based ToF sensors are mainly used for front-facing applications, ultrasonic sensors are more flexible when designed into a system. “You can install it in a non-front facing panel and you can still see a lot," Kiang said.　　Comparing Chirp’s solution with optical ToF sensors, Jean-Christophe Eloy, President & CEO, at Yole Développement, agreed its main advantage is in the viewing angle. “The field of view of ultrasonic solutions is much larger than optical solution. The price is low, so it is easy to integrate multiple sensors.” He believes the ultrasonic solution, initially, “will be used for applications where optics is difficult.”　　Two ultrasonic devices　　Chirp is coming out with two ultrasonic ToF sensors. Kiang calls the CH-101, designed for a one-meter mid-range distance, “good for arm’s length applications” such as AR and VR.　　The company’s CH-201, designed for a distance up to 5 meters, is for “room-scale applications,” she explained. It will apply best to home security applications such as Nest Cams or digital voice assistants as it can sense a human presence in a room.　　Both the CH-101 and CH-201 come in a system-in-package that integrates a piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (PMUT) and an ultra-low power SoC.　　The SoC is there to run Chirp’s own ultrasonic DSP algorithms, such as rejecting noise and processing detected signals, explained Kiang. Asked whose microcontroller or DSP cores Chirp is using in its SoC, the CEO said that both are Chirp’s custom cores. “This SoC part is essentially an ASIC with a lot of hardware functions integrated.” The combined SiP — ASIC and MEMS (a transducer) part — receives and processes signals, and pipes that data to where it needs to be, she added.　　Chirp can factory-program CH-101 and CH-201 to enable different functions, such as time-of-flight range-finding, proximity sensing, human presence sensing, the company said.　　Chirp also stressed that the ultra-low power consumption of its ToF sensors quoted in the company’s data sheets includes “everything” — power needed for both MEMS and data processing. The company said that the CH-101, operating in a range from 1 cm to 1.2 m, consumes 15 ?W (10 cm max range) and 27 ?W (1.2 m max range) at 1 sample per second. Operated at 30 samples per second, it consumes 70 ?W (10 cm max range) and 340 ?W (1.2 m max range).　　Both CH-101 and CH-201 use an ASIC with the same interface and pinouts, so that a drop-in replacement is possible, noted the Chirp CEO.　　Why go after the smartphone market?　　In announcing the new ultrasonic sensors, Chirp described smartphones as “another important target market.”　　Acknowledging that Chirp’s ultrasonic sensors initially generated a lot of interest among smartphone vendors, Kiang said she was reluctant to test the market largely because smartphone manufacturers wanted Chirp’s solution at the same, already commoditized price as that for IR-based sensors, even though ultrasonic sensors function better.　　Consider, for example, the “black hair issue,” she noted. When an IR-based proximity sensor gets closer to black hair or black material, it becomes unreliable, sometimes prompting the user’s cheek to start dialing a smartphone. Ultrasonic sensors have no issues with black hair.　　Second, smartphone vendors’ interest in ultrasonic sensors has grown as handset designers seek to get rid of optical windows from a handset. Smartphone manufacturers, who now regard an optical opening as “an eyesore,” prefer ultrasound sensors to IR, Kiang said. “But they told us they wanted our solution at the same price as IR sensor. Naturally, we said, ‘No.’”　　Today, the smartphone design trend has gone even further. The goal now is an all-glass, full-screen, no-bezel display. “The CH-101allows product designers to remove the optical proximity sensor from the front of the phone to create a bezel-less display,” Kiang explained. “That’s because the CH-101’s wide field-of-view allows it to measure range even when it is mounted on the top or bottom sides of the phone. Since this is the location of the microphone and speakers, it’s easy for designers to add another acoustic sensor at these locations.”　　This time around, smartphone manufacturers appear willing to pay more to make the no-bezel screen possible.　　While acknowledging a growing trend for bezel-free screens, Frédéric Breussin, MEMS and sensors business unit manager at Yole Développement, is skeptical. He observed that the focus in mobile phones, at the moment, is “really dedicated to optical functions that are easily integrated below the glass surface.” Breussin suspects, “Pushing the mobile phone players to look at ultrasonic sensors may be difficult.”　　IHS Markit’s Tagliavini remains more optimistic. He expects Chirp’s ultrasonic sensors to get their shot at the smartphone market. Further, he noted, “In the long term the ultrasound solution could enable new functions, for example the 3D reconstruction and mapping of indoor environments with low power requirements.　　Compete with ST and Ams?　　As companies such as STMicroelectronics and Ams pour resources into leading smartphone vendors’ demand for 3D sensing cameras, how will Chirp compete?　　Kiang said, “We get that question a lot.” But she stressed, “Look, we are not in a camera business. We aren’t competing with them directly on 3D camera. Rather, we’d like to think there is synergy between us.”　　Today, Apple is using a “very expensive piece of technology” for its TrueDepth module in iPhone X, she explained. “However, we think there are other ways to add the third dimension to the 2D image sensors.”　　Chirp is working with a CMOS image camera company to add depth-sensing, said Kiang. But she declined to name the partner or reveal its progress.　　Market predictions　　Yole offers ToF sensor market predictions on a granular level, dividing the market into several different segments, including simple ToF sensors, complex ToF sensors for movement detection, complex ToF sensor for 3D imaging for mobile phone applications and others. Here’s Yole’s forecasts:Simple ToF sensor for proximity sensing and laser ranger (this is the existing device from STM, Sony, AMS…) for mobile phone: market potential of $7000 million (see slide below) in 2022Complex ToF sensor for movement detection (and analysis of in cabin movement) in automotive applications: market potential could reach $200 million minimum in 2021Complex ToF sensor for 3D imaging for mobile phone applications: it could replace SL of Apple. It is a $6 billion market opportunity in 2022 at camera module level (with the optics…). But Yole highlights a very strong technology competition.Complex ToF sensor for 3D imaging for industrial, medical…: about $600 million in 2022, according to YoleSo in total, the ToF market potential should reach around $7.5 billion, with a very strong competition with other 3D sensing technologies (like structured light) or simple proximity sensing/range finder
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Release time：2017-12-20 00:00 reading：1162 Continue reading>>
ST Prepares for ToF Sensor Product Ramp
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ST Prepares for ToF Sensor Product Ramp

　　STMicroelectronics has revealed better than expected second quarter results. Net revenues of $1.92 billion were up 5.6 percent sequentially, 12.9 percent year over year.　　“We are putting together quarters of successive improvement in our financial results. The second quarter delivered further improvement, with strong sequential and year-over-year revenue growth, and with operating income and net income following the same trajectory,” said Carlo Bozotti, STMicroelectronics president and CEO.　　Of particular interest to analysts is the company’s imaging products sector, as there has been speculation in the industry that Apple’s iPhone 8, expected later this year, incorporates an ST time of flight (ToF) imaging sensor. ToF sensor technology is used in proximity and ranging sensors for smartphones. ST’s cumulative shipments for its FlightSense ToF technology have reached 300 million, and they are already in more than 80 smartphone models from 15 OEMs.　　Revenue for imaging products this quarter increased 60 percent compared to the same quarter last year, but was down slightly on a sequential basis to $68 million. This sequential dip, Bozotti said, is temporary while the company prepares to ramp “a key new program” during the third quarter. Revenue acceleration from this new program will increase into the fourth quarter, he said. To support the ramp of this program, capital expenditure in 2017 will be increased over previous estimates of $1.1 billion to between $1.25 billion and $1.3 billion.　　ST’s outlook for the third quarter has revenue over all product sectors expected to increase around 9 percent sequentially — this represents year on year growth of about 16.6 percent. Full year 2017 revenues are expected to come in at the high end of the range previously given, up around 14 percent year-over-year, plus or minus 1.5 percentage points.　　For the other product groups, the automotive and discrete group was a good performer, with revenue increasing by 6.6 percent sequentially and 4.7 percent year over year, partly explained by the increasing semiconductor content of the latest generations of vehicles. Bozotti gave the example of the Audi A8, in which ST expects to contribute up to 1,000 components.　　The analog and MEMS group also saw strong growth, with revenues increasing 8.9 percent sequentially (28.3 percent compared to this quarter last year). Operating margin increased to 14.5 percent, from 10.1 and 0.2 percent in the prior and year-ago quarters, respectively. MEMS played a particular part in this growth with a number of design wins across the consumer electronics sector.　　Microcontrollers and digital ICs’ revenue increased 3.3 percent compared to last quarter (10 percent up year over year). This is due to double-digit growth and record revenue in general purpose microcontrollers, offset slightly by lower digital IC sales. Operating margin was 11.6 percent for this period.
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Release time：2017-07-27 00:00 reading：1076 Continue reading>>

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