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Sensor Platforms Introduces FreeMotion™ Library and Software Development Kit
Library algorithms use data from sensors in mobile devices to interpret users’ contexts and intents
San Jose, California, Mach 26, 2012 – A library of software algorithms and middleware that combines and processes data from sensors in smartphones and tablets, to interpret users’ movements, context, and intent, was announced today by Sensor Platforms, Inc. of San Jose, CA. A Software Development Kit (SDK) was also introduced.
The company’s FreeMotion™ Library takes raw data from pre-installed accelerometers, magnetometers, gyroscopes and barometers on smartphones and tablets, in order to enable the mobile applications to become “context aware,” understanding the situations and environments of their users.
FreeMotion Library allows mobile device designers and application developers to improve product performance and reduce platform fragmentation by:
- conserving sensor power: The challenge of adding new capabilities to a mobile device lies in minimizing the associated power consumption. In the case of sensors, this means up to 10mW in added power when sensors are in use. The FreeMotion Library includes a proprietary algorithm that would turn off power hungry sensors, like the gyroscope, and emulate its function with lower power sensors when user movements are slow, thereby dropping sensor power consumption by 90 percent.
- enabling alternate sourcing: Applications optimized for one sensor may perform poorly with a counterpart from a different vendor, and applications written to the lowest common denominator are useless. The FreeMotion Library applies sensor fusion across the entire suite of sensors so that users always receive the best available information, independent of the quirks of any individual sensor.
- maintaining sensor calibration: All sensors require frequent calibration to maintain their data quality. For example, suboptimal calibration in many devices today has resulted in large compass heading errors. The FreeMotion Library is built on an architecture that supports reliable sampling, and ongoing cross-sensor calibration to assure reliable sensor information for application developers and end users;
- empowering application developers with more than motion data: The FreeMotion library populates application programming interfaces (API), so the data produced by its sensor calibration and sensor fusion provides robust data with superior accuracy. But apps need information about the user him/herself, not just changes in the user’s motion or direction. The FreeMotion Software Development Kit establishes a foundation to extend the types of information and insights that applications can gain from sensor data.
According to Ian Chen, Executive Vice President of Sensor Platforms, “Sensor fusion, which improves virtual sensor results by combining data from several sensors rather than relying on only one, will become a base requirement for all mobile devices this year. Our library enables that and takes it to the next step; that is, unlocking even more information that is available from sensor measurements in order to enable activity-based service and context. And that will open up possibilities for a whole range of applications that people are only beginning to think about.”
The FreeMotion Library features the lowest power consuming sensor fusion solution available for inertial sensors by allowing:
- dynamic configuring to optimize battery life;
- automatic throttle to reduce sensor power consumption;
- efficient fixed point implementation;
- power conscientious at the core of its architecture.
The SDK for the FreeMotion Library is available now from Sensor Platforms: FMLib@ sensorplatforms.com, or (408) 850-9350.
ADDENDUM
ANALYST COMMENTS
Jérémie Bouchaud, Director and Senior Principal Analyst, MEMS and Sensors, IHS
As the number of sensors in handsets and tablets increases, processing and fusing the signal of all these sensors becomes more challenging. Sensor manufacturers, system OEMS, and even processor manufacturers are beginning to realize they need great algorithms and software not just for motion tracking but to make mobile applications context aware. Companies specialized on these software algorithms, like Sensor Platforms, can help accelerating time to market to deliver increased value to consumers.
Rick Sizemore, Chief Strategist, MultiMedia Intelligence
Sensor Platforms truly brings life to mobile devices such as smart phones and new tablets. They have done this by, among other things, developing intelligent middleware that can pull together the symphony of sensor technologies available on state-of-the-art mobile devices today. And with an eye to minimizing power draw at every opportunity, they use optimized fixed-point code to maximize CPU efficiencies, and innovative techniques that, for example, automatically throttle gyro power when not in motion. The company’s FreeMotion Library is truly hardware agnostic, and this is one of the many reasons Sensor Platforms will become a go-to technology house for mobile platform designers.
Tony Massimini, Chief of Technology, Semico Research
An important trend in MEMS development is sensor fusion, especially for inertial sensors. The MEMS ecosystem must address the needs of MEMS vendors and system designers in order to utilize these designs as efficiently as possible. Sensor Platforms is providing the essential software tools to fully realize sensor fusion.
SENSOR PLATFORMS PRESENTATIONS AT ESC
Wednesday, March 28, 4:30 PM, Room J2
AD-306 Integrating Sensors Into Custom Android Hardware;
Rian Sanderson, Director of Software, Sensor Platforms
Wednesday, March 28 4:30 PM, Room: J3
AD-307: Getting Reliable and Meaningful Sensor Information for Android Apps;
Dr. Jim Steele, Vice President of Engineering, Sensor Platforms
Thursday, March 29 1:00 pm, Sensors in Design Theatre
TH2-08 Optimization and Validation for Mobile Sensor Subsystems
Dr. Kevin A. Shaw. Chief Technology Officer, Sensor Platforms
About Sensor Platforms (www.sensorplatforms.com)
Sensor Platforms is a venture-financed company located in Silicon Valley that licenses algorithmic software and platforms that enable mobile consumer applications to better serve the users.
The company’s FreeMotion™ library provides the sophisticated intelligence needed to combine and process data from various sensors installed in smartphones and tablets, in order to interpret the users’ movements and situations, and infer their intents.
The library makes it easy for device OEMs to purchase their sensors from multiple suppliers without damaging user experience. It also automatically optimizes sensor and platform power consumption based on user movement and contexts, to enable longer battery life.
To create the breadth of the FreeMotion library, the company has assembled a multi-disciplinary engineering team with proven track records in control systems, machine learning, mixed signal design, motion kinematics, real-time systems, semiconductor device physics, and signal processing.
The company is located at 2860 Zanker Road, #210, San Jose, CA 95134. For information:[email protected], or (408) 850-9350.