Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions

As an important basic component of the intelligent era, the demand for MEMS sensors has grown rapidly in recent years. Some data are expected to exceed $10 billion by 2019, with a compound annual growth rate of approximately 11.2%. Among them, consumer products have become an important market for MEMS sensors. The Yole Developpement research report predicts that the global consumer electronics MEMS sensor market will reach $6.4 billion by 2018.

At the just-concluded 2018 Munich Shanghai Electronics Show, Bosch Sensortec, the world's leading MEMS sensor supplier, officially launched three heavyweight products for the Chinese market, including low power consumption and high performance perfect for wearable devices. The accelerometer BMA400, the high-performance inertial measurement unit (IMU) BMI085 for AR/VR and the interactive projection module for virtual user interfaces in the Internet of Things, further expand its reach in the consumer market to a larger territory.

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 1: Bosch booth at the 2018 Munich Shanghai Electronics Show

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 2: Leopold Beer, President, Asia Pacific, Bosch Sensortec GmbH

Leopold Beer, President of Bosch Sensortec Asia Pacific, said at the Bosch "Vientiane Core, Smart Future" press conference held at the same time: "The global MEMS market is currently about $5 billion, mainly for vehicles other than cars. Mobile phones, consumer, industrial and other fields. At present, a large number of sensors such as gyroscopes, pressure sensors, temperature and humidity sensors are used in smart phones, but the future growth of MEMS sensors is not only mobile phones, but also other consumer areas such as wearable devices, AR/ VR, smart glasses and other fields are also the key investment directions for Bosch in the future."

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 3: Bosch Sensortec's adjustment strategy is expanding consumer target market territory

Overcome wearable design pain points, ultra-low power consumption and high performance combined with sensors

In 2017, the wearable market has seen many exciting products such as new smart watches, tech-based clothing and fitness activity trackers. According to IDC's survey of global wearable devices, shipments of wearable devices reached 11.5 million units in 2017, an increase of 10.3% from 104.6 million units in 2016. Shipments across the wearable device market will increase from 113.2 million units this year to approximately 222.3 million units in 2021.

The segmentation of IoT, such as smart home, smart agriculture, and environmental monitoring, has yielded results, but it has not been widely used. Ralf Schellin, head of Bosch Sensortec's microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) products, said at the press conference: "Because the application of IoT is too fragmented, I don't think there will be a killer application outbreak, but smart home and personal health related applications. It will show value in the early stage, especially the combination of these two fields. The value of personal health through wearable products, and the integration with smart home, its value will be easy to present."

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 4: Ralf Schellin, Head of Bosch Sensortec Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) Products

The size and weight of smartphones continue to increase, making it very inconvenient for users to exercise, and the smaller size of wearable devices with integrated motion detection capabilities. Because of the "Permanent Messaging" feature, wearable devices require frequent charging, which requires a low-power solution to make battery life more powerful. At the same time, in order to better adapt to the needs of consumers, the function of the bracelet is also constantly enriched, in addition to the step-by-step function, it also adds elements of fashion and design. In addition, wearable devices will also produce a wider range of products, including watches, earrings, jewelry, apparel and more.

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 5: BMA400 physical map of ultra-low power consumption and high performance accelerometer

Usually the low power consumption and high performance of the accelerometer are not compatible, and the BMA400 has designed these two requirements in the product at the same time. Ralf Schellin stressed: "With its ultra-low power consumption of 4μA, the BMA400, combined with its intelligent power management function, can significantly extend the life of wearable battery."

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 6. How does BMA400 from Bosch Sensortec solve user pain points?

The BMA400 is an unparalleled product designed specifically for wearable devices. In addition to its low power consumption and high performance, the BMA400 is only 2.0 x 2.0 x 0.95mm3, which can be designed into very small watches, earrings and even Among the glasses, thanks to its compact package, the BMA400 can be integrated into other wearable devices to help promote the wearable devices with fashion elements.

In addition to being used in wearable devices, the BMA400's unique combination of ultra-low power and high performance can also motivate developers to design more IoT-related applications, even IoT applications where the battery, bridge vibration detection, etc. cannot be replaced frequently. .

Breaking through technical bottlenecks, AR/VR high-end market has broad prospects

According to DigiTImes Research, the global average growth rate of AR and VR headsets will reach 41.6% from 2017 to 2022. The sales of higher-end AR/VR equipment can further expand this market. key.

Ralf Schellin pointed out: "Low-cost head-mounted displays will gain more market share in the next two years, but we can see more independent high-performance helmets will gain market share for a long time, AR, VR applications It will also grow rapidly."

As the next generation of the BMI055, the BMI085 is a high-performance inertial measurement unit designed for virtual and augmented reality applications. For the most prone to dizziness in AR/VR devices, the BMI085 combines a very low drift gyroscope with a low noise accelerometer to significantly reduce unpleasant motion sickness effects, and its ultra-precise transient detection of head motion will The time delay is reduced to an almost imperceptible minimum. In addition, the BMI085's rock-solid temperature stability provides impressive low temperature coefficient compensation (TCO), typically less than 0.2 mg/K and a temperature coefficient sensitivity (TCS) of 0.002%/K. The gyroscope's bias instability is typically less than 2°/h.

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 7: Physical map of the high performance inertial measurement unit BMI085

IoT and AI, interactive projection module pushes IoT applications to a higher level

According to IDC research data, the estimated amount of global Internet of Things (IoT) spending will increase to an annual growth rate of 14.6% to $77.2 billion in 2018. In 2020, it will break through the integer level of $1 trillion and further increase to 1.1 in 2021. In US dollars, the average compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for 2017-2021 is expected to be 14.4%. More applications in the future, such as smart speakers, voice control, etc., will also require more and more low-power and compact solutions and visual user interfaces. Despite this, the development of IoT is still limited by many aspects: large-screen display, frequent charging of mobile devices, and insufficient online voice control for all scenarios.

Wearable devices, AR/VR, smart glasses, etc. will be Bosh's future investment directions
Figure 8: Bosch Sensortec interactive projection module for virtual user interface

“The interactive projection module is small in size and solves the pain point of the display. It has ultra-low power consumption, the interface moves during projection, and does not need to move when not projected. The interactive projection module can realize the focus-free laser through MOEMS technology. Projection and the flexibility to transform any surface into a particularly intuitive and visually appealing virtual user interface (UI) that is ideal for use with home appliances, smart speakers, augmented reality glasses, wearables, etc." Bosch Sensortec GmbH Leopold Beer, president of Asia Pacific, said, "Compared to DLP and LCOS technology, MOEMS laser scanning technology is directly applied to the image to be imaged by laser, so the focus ring of the lens is not required to focus, and autofocus can be achieved."

The emergence of the Bosch Sensortec interactive projection module is expected to push the application of the IoT segments to a higher level. Leopold Beer is very optimistic about the development of interactive projection applications. "The future usage scenarios will be more and more, and more users will accept its value. Three years later, there may be a large outbreak period."

Summary of MEMS sensor development trends

With the requirements of miniaturization, digitization, intelligence, multi-function, systemization and networking, the sensors are also developing in a smaller, faster and more flexible direction. Ralf Schellin concludes that there will be three major trends in the future of sensors:

First, the integration between the sensor and the sensor.

Second, the integration of sensors and MCUs and algorithms.

Third, the integrated connection, such as integrating the sensor and processor through Bluetooth, provides a separate module for IoT customers.

The three new products meet the above development trends and can truly meet new market demands: the intelligent motion sensor BMA400 can increase the battery life of wearable devices by 10 times; the high-performance IMU BMI085 can achieve realistic enhancements.

And virtual reality experience; interactive projection modules provide a flexible human-machine interface for emerging IoT applications. As a leader in the MEMS sensor industry, Bosch Sensortec hopes to deliver the world's most advanced sensing solutions for smartphones, computers, wearables and IoT devices through innovative technologies that drive downstream applications.

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