Weartech Design

STMicroelectronics’ newest miniature motion sensors feature enhanced precision for accurate event reconstruction while meeting the most stringent sustainable-materials standards. The new 6-axis sensors, or inertial measurement units (IMU), will be used in consumer devices like fitness trackers, smart tags, and professional applications such as industrial asset monitors, robots, and drone applications including photography and agricultural surveying.

STMicroelectronics’ L9962 lithium-battery management IC delivers precision by integrating a 12-bit analog-digital converter (ADC), coupled with generous cell-balancing current of 70mA, to ensure rapid voltage correction for improved battery health. Designed for lithium-ion (Li-ion) and lithium-polymer (Li-Po) battery packs with up to 10 series-connected cells, the L9962 provides monitoring, balancing, and protection to optimise performance and enhance safety and stability.

Infineon Technologies and mPTech are strengthening their cooperation to bring secured, convenient payment experiences to the next generation of wearables. mPTech, a European original equipment manufacturer (OEM) has integrated Infineon’s SECORA secured payment technology into its latest flagship Hammer smartwatch.

Mouser is now stocking the MSPM0G5187 mixed-signal microcontrollers (MCUs) from Texas Instruments. Featuring the Arm Cortex-M0+ 32-bit core platform and ultra-low-power system architecture, the MSPM0G5187 MCUs increase performance while reducing energy consumption. The MSPM0G5187 series is ideal for applications requiring up to 128KB of flash memory in small or high-pin-count packages, including home appliances, medical devices, building automation, mobile phones, and wearables.

Mouser has announced its new digital resource centre for consumer technology, providing engineers with emerging technologies, reference designs, and implementation guidance to accelerate product development. This resource centre supports faster prototyping, streamlined integration, and accelerated development of smarter consumer products. As consumer devices become more portable, intelligent, and interconnected, engineers must design seamless connectivity and adaptive user experiences.

Avnet Silica, an Avnet company has released the latest edition of its quarterly Trendliner market report. Providing an overview of global and European semiconductor market conditions, the latest report includes updated regional and application forecasts, alongside critical lead-time, supplier, and product-lifecycle updates.

Kioxa Europe have announced its UFS(1) 5.0 embedded flash memory solutions, designed to deliver the performance, efficiency and capacity required for the next generation of AI-enabled mobile and edge devices.

element14, an Avnet community, has launched a new smart home and healthcare design challenge inviting engineers, makers and technology enthusiasts to design and build innovative prototypes focused on improving everyday living environments and personal wellbeing. The challenge encourages participants to create a prototype smart home or healthcare system designed to support a happier, healthier person or household.

Rohm has developed a new evaluation board, the BD83070GWL-EVK-002. It is designed to fully demonstrate the features of the BD83070GWL DC-DC converter IC, which combines high efficiency with ultra-low current consumption. In recent years, battery-powered electronic devices-such as wearables, mobile devices, and IoT devices have become ubiquitous in everyday life.

Cameras, sensors, and AI-powered systems are increasingly taking on tasks once performed exclusively by humans. They recognise faces, track eye movements, monitor vehicle occupants, and guide autonomous machines through complex environments. What all of these applications have in common is their reliance on powerful yet virtually invisible infrared illumination. As image sensors become more sophisticated and AI algorithms more demanding, expectations for infrared light sources continue to rise.