Bosch Sensortec launches sensor hubs for wearables at MWC
Today at the 2016 Mobile World Congress, Bosch Sensortec introduced its first generation of sensor hub products with optimized vital sensing features. These devices fuse photoplethysmography (PPG) signals with the onboard inertial MEMS sensors signals for robust, motion-compensated heart-rate measurement and provide users with valuable insights about their wellbeing and fitness level using Firstbeat’s field-proven vital analytics algorithms.
These new BHV250 and BHV160 sensors are designed for always-on sensor-enabled wearable applications such as fitness wristbands, earphones, and smart textiles. According to industry analysts, wearables are a market of increasing importance. IDC predicts that by 2019, total shipments in the wearables market will reach some 214 million units.
As complete sensor solutions, the BHV250 and BHV160 feature ultralow power consumption in a compact package, with integrated software and wide-range support for different PPG chipsets. The integrated software from Firstbeat processes raw sensor data to open up a world of motion-compensated vital monitoring, activity recognition applications, and gesture-based user interfaces.
The unique combination of the Bosch’s Vital Sensor Hubs with Firstbeat’s extensive vital analytics software enables a rich user experience by providing the tools for sleep analysis, calorie consumption calculation, fitness training evaluation, and “stress and recovery” monitoring.
“With this all-round sensor subsystem, our customers can now focus on providing added value to their end users, confident in the knowledge that they have a highly integrated, ultralow power solution,” said Jeanne Forget-Funk, VP of marketing at Bosch Sensortec. “With the fitness tracking and wearables markets expanding so rapidly, we await with great interest the explosion of innovation that will be triggered by this technology”.
“Firstbeat’s revolutionary analytics software creates a digital model of a user’s physiology through advanced modeling of heart function and heart rate variability (HRV),” said Joni Kettunen, CEO and cofounder of Firstbeat. “The Bosch sensor subsystem provides the accurate data and flexible programmability that enables our software to deliver new insights to users at ultra-low power consumption.”
Product details
The BHV250 and BHV160 respectively integrate 3- and 6-axis inertial MEMS sensors designed around the new Bosch Sensortec DSP “Fuser Core” powering Firstbeat’s vital analytics software. Both devices include an accelerometer, and the BHV160 also includes a gyroscope.
The Android Wear-compatible sensor hubs are low power, helping to significantly extend system battery life time. The sensor hubs have tiny footprints that are indispensable for applications where space is tight. The BHV160 measures 3 x 3 x 0.95 mm3, while the BHV250 only a mere 2.2 x 2.2 x 0.95 mm3.
Samples are available today. Mass production is ramping up in Q2 2016.
