Silicon Labs is making capacitive touch and promixity tasks easier to implement with its QuickSense portfolio. This includes the Si1120 infrared sensor and the C8051Fxx/C8051F8xx 8-bit microcontrollers. The micros include a 10-bit analog-to-digital converter (ADC) along with a capacitive sense unit for capacitive touch applications. The IR sensor is a high-sensitivity photodiode that can detect reflections up to 50 cm away. It can be combined with 850-nm IR LEDs in a linear fashion to implement a touchless slider. An L-shape demo board using three LEDs and one Si1120 provides 3D position and movement gesture sensing. The hardware/software combination has a fast response time and can shift modes quickly, allowing very low-power operation by switching to a high-accuracy mode when an object comes within range. The QuickSense Studio software handles sensing chores, including ambient light sensing.
Silicon Labs
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