Infineon Introduces New i-ToF VGA Sensor for Long-Range, Low-Power 3D Camera Systems

By Tiera Oliver

Associate Editor

Embedded Computing Design

March 06, 2023

News

Infineon Introduces New i-ToF VGA Sensor for Long-Range, Low-Power 3D Camera Systems

Munich, Germany – In collaboration with 3D time-of-flight technology provider, pmdtechnologies, Infineon Technologies AG announced the IRS2976C Time of Flight (ToF) VGA sensor, part of the REAL3™ product family and designed to support long-range, low-power 3D camera use cases with Infineon's advanced pixel technology.

According to the company, the aforementioned pixel technology allows the pixels to achieve a quantum efficiency of around 30 percent, while maintaining a low cost, making the IRS2976C sensor the first ToF imager in the world to pass Googles Class 3 (Strong) certification for face ID, which operates under the mobile device’s display.

The IRS2976C imager supports a measurement range of about 10 meters, and pmdtechnologies' patented Suppression of Background Illumination (SBI) technology is integrated into each pixel, enabling data in high dynamic range (HDR) and sunlight scenes.

“Our unique ToF CMOS process ensures excellent sensitivity and robust operation in indoor and outdoor environments,” said Christian Herzum, Vice President 3D-sensing at Infineon. “In addition, our IRS2976C 3D ToF imager offers a high level of functionality and maximum flexibility to optimize 3D camera designs. The sensor is ideal for applications like secure authentication for smartphones, payment terminals, smart door locks and also for virtual and augmented reality (AR/VR) headsets, service robots, and various IoT devices.”

The IRS2976C is featured in a form factor of 23 mm² and is drop-in compatible with the previous IRS2877C imager for suitable upgrade. The solutions also supports a system VGA resolution of 640 x 480 depth points and when combined with the IRS9102C VCSEL driver, the new IRS2976C enables the design of small 3D camera systems.

Engineering samples of the IRS2976C imager are available.

For more information, visit: www.infineon.com/real3

Tiera Oliver, Associate Editor for Embedded Computing Design, is responsible for web content edits, product news, and constructing stories. She also assists with newsletter updates as well as contributing and editing content for ECD podcasts and the ECD YouTube channel. Before working at ECD, Tiera graduated from Northern Arizona University where she received her B.S. in journalism and political science and worked as a news reporter for the university’s student led newspaper, The Lumberjack.

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