STMicroelectronics has unveiled the world’s first motion sensor that measures very high accelerations along all three axes at ultra-low current consumption. The H3LIS331DL accelerometers address the need for precise shock detection up to 400 g in space- and power-constrained applications, from car black boxes to medical monitoring devices and sports equipment.

The industry’s first 3-axis high-g accelerometers with ultra-low current consumption optimized for battery-operated applications, ST’s power-stingy, precise high-shock detection devices target applications from car black boxes to portable medical instrumentation and sports equipment.

There is a need to detect and measure high-g shocks in a broad range of applications. Whereas existing high-g shock-detection solutions are mostly based on single- or dual-axis, power-hungry ‘airbag-type’ sensors, ST’s new high-g accelerometers deliver both the three-dimensional precision and ultra-low current consumption optimized for battery-operated applications. The devices open new possibilities for portable medical instrumentation and concussion monitoring in high-impact sports like ice hockey, American football or car racing.

They also vastly improve crash-detection capabilities in event data recorders (black boxes) and freight monitoring systems, as well as enhance anti-shock protection functionality in consumer electronics.

They provide three-axis motion sensing across selectable from ±100 g up to ±400 g full-scale ranges, and boast excellent stability over time and temperature. An on-chip IC interface converts the acceleration data into a 12-bit digital bit stream that is transmitted with high reliability to a dedicated microcontroller chip through a standard SPI or I2C protocol.

The H3LIS331DL combines a novel sensing-structure design with the market-proven low-power interface of ST’s LIS331DLx acceleration sensors, the industry-standard devices that have shipped in several hundred million units to date.

While samples are available, volume production is expected to start by the end of Q2 2012.