The 2024 Innovative Product of the Year Award Finalists:
AI/Machine Learning
Lam Research Equipment Intelligence® Solutions by Lam Research
Automotive/Autonomous
Sonair - a Breakthrough 3D Ultrasonic Sensor for Autonomous Robotics by Sonai
Cleantech/Sustainability
LAYER®Vault by Dracula Technologies
Connectivity
Blecon: Enabling Sensor IoT Connectivity with Bluetooth Low Energy by Blecon
Edge Technology
Visual Servoing Using AI at the Edge with the MAX78000 Microcontroller by Analog Devices
Embedded Computing
Snapdragon X Elite Platform by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Industrial & Manufacturing
Next Generation High Precision 6DoF Inertial Sensor for Industrial Applications by Murata Electronics
IoT
NOVELDA X7 Ultra-Low Power Presence Sensor by Novelda AS
MEMS
World’s First Navigation Grade, Multi-Axis, Chip Scale MEMs 3 Axis Accelerometer by MEI Micro, Inc.
Optical & Imaging
VD55G1 camera sensor by STMicroelectronics
Power
EnerCera rechargeable battery by NGK Insulators, LTD.
Medical & Wearables
ZenVoice Bone: Ultimate Deep Noise Reduction Algorithm For TWS Earbuds by AiZip & Bosch
The company has previously introduced the first half of the award-winning list , and this article introduces the companies and products in the second half of the list.
Qualcomm Technologies, Inc
Embedded Computing
Snapdragon X Elite Platform by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Qualcomm Incorporated is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, and incorporated in Delaware. It creates semiconductors, software, and services related to wireless technology. It owns patents critical to the 5G, 4G, CDMA2000, TD-SCDMA and WCDMA mobile communications standards.
The award-winning product, Snapdragon X Elite Platform, was released in October 2023. Snapdragon X Elite adopts a brand-new design, integrating Oryon CPU, Adreno GPU, and Hexagon NPU. It not only upgrades performance and energy efficiency, but also brings more outstanding AI features, mainly used in the PC field. Snapdragon X Elite also integrates Qualcomm Sensor Hub (Sensing Hub), integrated Micro NPU, and always-aware ISP. It is worth mentioning that Snapdragon X Elite is also the first PC processor to integrate a moderately aware ISP. According to Qualcomm, Qualcomm Sensor Hub brings 2 times the AI performance and 50% more memory, which can further enhance the intelligent experience of AI-assisted noise reduction, AI assistant, etc.
Murata Electronics
Industrial & Manufacturing
Next Generation High Precision 6DoF Inertial Sensor for Industrial Applications by Murata Electronics
Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. is a Japanese manufacturer of electronic components, based in Nagaokakyo, Kyoto. It produces ceramic passive electronic components, primarily capacitors, and has a majority marketshare worldwide in ceramic filters, high-frequency parts, and sensors.
Award-winning product Next Generation High Precision 6DoF Inertial Sensor for Industrial Applications Murata Manufacturing has developed a small 6-axis inertial sensor "SCH16T-K01" that can detect attitude angles and its own position with ultra-high level of accuracy, mainly for industrial equipment applications. Samples are now available, and mass production is scheduled to start in March 2024. The next-generation 6-axis SCH16T series, led by this product, will gradually expand its product lineup in the future.
The SCH16T-K01 includes a precision gyroscope with a typical bias instability of 0.5dph and a noise density of up to 0.3mdps/√Hz. The accelerometer has a dynamic range of up to 26g and is resistant to saturation and vibration. Overall, the component exhibits excellent linearity and offset stability over the entire temperature range. The output of the component is also internally cross-axis compensated, eliminating the need for extensive calibration on the user side. Furthermore, by integrating these features, the SCH16T-K01 can provide incredibly accurate measurements in machine control and guidance without the need for field calibration. The SCH16T-K01 is ideal for industrial applications and use cases such as construction and agricultural machinery, material handling equipment, and marine instrumentation.
Novelda AS
IoT
NOVELDA X7 Ultra-Low Power Presence Sensor by Novelda AS
Novelda is headquartered in Oslo, Norway and was founded in 2004. The company was founded on a sailboat in the Oslo Fjord, named Novelda. It is a global leader in ultra-wideband (UWB) sensing.
Novelda is a well-known developer and supplier of adaptive smart sensors. It uses ultra-wideband (UWB) radar sensor technology to develop the NOVELDA human presence sensor® human presence sensor solution, which is known as the world's most reliable human presence sensing sensor.
The award-winning NOVELDA X7 ultra-low power presence sensor was demonstrated at Embedded World 2024. NOVELDA's X7 radar chip is already capable of performing the world's lowest power presence detection, child presence detection (CPD) and vital signs monitoring. X7 now adds seat occupancy detection through software upgrades. A single UWB sensor can detect the presence of people in every seat in the cabin, making it the most reliable and cost-effective seat occupancy radar solution on the market.
MEI Micro, Inc
MEMS
World’s First Navigation Grade, Multi-Axis, Chip Scale MEMs 3 Axis Accelerometer by MEI Micro, Inc.
MEl Micro is a fabless sensor company that develops MEMS multi-axis inertial sensors, next-generation MEMS packaging technology, and motion applications for various industries such as consumer electronics, healthcare/medical, industrial, automotive, and aerospace/defense.
The winning product is the world's first navigation-grade, multi-axis, chip-level MEMS 3-axis accelerometer. Traditionally, high-precision inertial sensors mainly refer to fiber optic gyroscopes (FOGs), ring laser gyroscopes (RLGs), and quartz resonant accelerometers. These devices are either large or very expensive and sensitive to shock. Only a few MEMS devices can achieve tactical performance, but they are often single-axis devices that must be mechanically aligned and individually vacuum packaged, which increases their cost and size. Therefore, they are also much more expensive. MEI Micro has developed a new dual-use, chip-level, multi-axis inertial MEMS platform that achieves high-precision performance from tactical to navigation levels in a chip-level design for the first time.
STMicroelectronics
Optical & Imaging
VD55G1 camera sensor by STMicroelectronics
STMicroelectronics NV (commonly referred to as ST or STMicro) is a multinational corporation and technology company of French-Italian origin. Incorporated in the Netherlands, its headquarters are in Plan-les-Ouates, Switzerland ST is the largest European semiconductor contract manufacturing and design company.
The award-winning VD55G1 camera sensor is a 2.16μm back-illuminated global shutter image sensor with a resolution of 800x700, using ST Ultra compac technology, and a small die size of 2.7mm x 2.2mm (even smaller size than other VGA sensors). It also improves near-infrared sensitivity (QE in 940nm). It is designed for high-performance computer/machine vision applications, including AR/VR, personal and industrial robots, drones, barcodes, biometrics and gestures, embedded vision or scene recognition.
NGK Insulators, LTD
Power
EnerCera rechargeable battery by NGK Insulators, LTD.
NGK Insulators was founded in 1919 and is a Japanese ceramic company. It mainly produces insulators, but also produces other products, especially ceramic products. NGK is headquartered in Tokyo.
The award-winning product EnerCera rechargeable battery is an ultra-thin and ultra-small lithium-ion rechargeable battery. EnerCera is a semi-solid battery developed with crystal-oriented ceramic plates originally created by Nanyang, Japan as electrodes. It has high capacity, high output, high heat resistance, long life and other characteristics that are difficult to integrate with existing lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. It is usually used in small medical devices that run on independent power supplies. The thickness of 0.45 mm makes it very different from traditional batteries. It is elastic and can fit on curved surfaces such as wine bottles. It can still operate normally at extreme temperatures of -40 to 105°C. The company hopes to introduce additional functions such as positioning in the future, and the market development prospects are quite worth looking forward to.
AiZip & Bosch
Medical & Wearables
ZenVoice Bone: Ultimate Deep Noise Reduction Algorithm For TWS Earbuds by AiZip & Bosch
Aizip, headquartered in Silicon Valley, USA, was founded in 2020 and is a global leader in the design of artificial intelligence for the Internet of Things (AIoT) models. With its breakthrough neural network architecture and proprietary automated design tools, Aizip has demonstrated a variety of deep neural networks (DNNs) with outstanding performance. Bosch is a global leader in MEMS sensors.
The award-winning product ZenVoice Bone: Ultimate Deep Noise Reduction Algorithm For TWS Earbuds was developed by AiZip in collaboration with Bosch. Noise reduction is a key challenge in the field of audio processing. Using the transformative power of artificial intelligence, Aizip solves complex acoustic interferences such as wind noise and low signal-to-noise ratio scenarios with unparalleled proficiency. The DNR program was launched shortly after Aizip was founded in 2020, and its cornerstone is the innovative Zenet neural network architecture. This technological wonder has demonstrated outstanding efficiency and effectiveness, mainly catering to the needs of the endpoint device market.
Conclusion
The 2024 Best Sensor Awards cover innovative technologies in multiple fields, which are groundbreaking and leading. Chinese sensor companies are also following suit, keeping up with the times and participating in the competition in the global sensor market. Contact us immediately to obtain detailed sensor information.