DigiKey at Sensors Converge 2023

Sensors Converge is a conference on sensors, processing, and connectivity. There’s a lot of exciting convergence going on with sensors and related fields this year. DigiKey held a booth at his year’s conference (June 20-22nd, 2023) that was held in Santa Clara, California, and had about ten employees in attendance.

One of the big trends noted at the conference this year was: how the worlds of sensors, wireless, and edge computing/AI processing continue to inter-mingle. Analog Devices demonstrated this at their booth with a motor whose mounting hardware could be loosened and cause more vibration when it was operating. This vibration data was picked up and fed through a Machine Learning (ML) model that could do anomaly detection.

(In this graphic from the Analog Devices booth, their demo showed operation in the green section when both sides of the motor were tightened tightly, yellow when one side was loosened, and red when both mounts were loosened.)

Another trend spotted at Sensors Converge this year was increased collaboration between companies. For example, there was an STMicroelectronics and Sensirion Collaboration on an environmental sensor (SENSEVAL-SCB4XV1 – Combination Board). The board includes:

• Sensirion SHT40 – Humidity and Temperature Sensor
• Sensirion SGP40 – VOC Sensor
• STMicroelectronics LPS22DF – Barometric Pressure Sensor

Collaborative Sensirion and STMicroelectronics environmental sensor

The environmental sensor measures indoor air quality, helping to raise awareness of harmful environmental impacts. It was shown in a demonstration by STMicroelectronics with the DIL 24 Socket (STEVAL-MKI109V3 motherboard and UNICO-GUI).

STMicroelectronics GUI displays data from the Collaborative Sensirion and STMicroelectronics environmental sensors

A product that both showed collaborative efforts and the convergence of wireless, sensors, and edge computing was Golioth IoT. Golioth IoT is a cloud platform to designed to develop and deploy systems. The devices themselves can be developed from different manufacturers, and they run software that helps aggregate the data into the cloud service. Users of the service then can enjoy logging/monitoring, provisioning of devices, and over-the-air updates from a webpage.

A layout showing further information on the Golioth IoT solution

Screenshot of a computer demo running the Golioth IoT solution

TDK had some exciting demos showing sensors in inventive applications. The Smart Bug 2.0 sensor, backed by ML, was worn as a wristband. It could determine the type of workout you were doing, all the way down to lunges. I did not expect that the subtle hand gesture of lunges would be picked up and interpreted correctly by a wrist-tracking sensor.

Screen at the TDK booth registering lunges from a health tracker worn on the wrist

TDK also had a robot on display that was doing tilt detection and keeping liquid from spilling as it navigated some uneven terrain.

Robot navigating bumpy terrain while tilt compensating so no liquid was spilled)

TDK showed earbuds that had a vibration sensor setup such that audio from the earbuds would only be muted when the person with the earbuds was speaking.

A TDK demo shows data picked up from a vibration sensor only when the person wearing the earbuds was talking

TDK Smarter Health Sensors had a demo showing how it uses a set of sensors to determine a cup size and then fill it to 80% of its height. The demo had several cup types including a clear plastic cup and a wine glass. It worked great regardless of the cup type.

TDK sensors making a delightful solution to an everyday problem

Bosch had a series of Particulate Matter (PM) and pressure sensors that operated at an extremely smaller size than the competition. The BMV080 – PM Sensor was demonstrated with hand sanitizer spray. The alcohol in the hand sanitizer mist spikes the PM sensor, and the fast response could be seen on the screen in real-time. It’s so small that it helps to see it in person. Bosch boosts: “World’s smallest PM sensor, more than 450 times smaller in volume compared to any alternative sensor on the market”. There are power savings as this unit does not require a fan, which also makes it noiseless and maintenance-free.

Enclosure housing both the BMV080 PM Sensor and the BME688 Temperature, Humidity, Pressure, and VOC sensor

Bosch was also demonstrating their BMP581 (High-Performance Pressure Sensor) in a fun and unique way. They had a Lego® building with each floor being 10 centimeters (cm) tall. It showed a Lego figure that could be moved from floor to floor. The pressure sensitivity of the sensor was so high that the screen readout would show which floor the Lego person was on. It had a quick response time, and I did not expect a pressure sensor could discern the difference of a 10 cm change in altitude.

Bosch’s Lego demonstration and iPad to indicate which floor the Lego person was on

There was a great deal of engaging talks and demos at Sensors Converge, 2023, in Santa Clara. It’s great to see individual sensors increase their sensitivity and efficiency, and it’s also great to see the larger pieces of sensors, wireless, and edge computing continue to inter-mingle.