March 30, 2012 — Movea, motion-sensing and motion-control technology provider, formed a technology partnership with fabless Nordic Semiconductor ASA (OSE:NOD) to develop motion-enabled 2.4GHz RF remote control reference designs.
Nordic’s ultra-low power RF semiconductor chips will work with Movea’s motion-processing technology, providing low-cost RF connectivity to support motion control for navigating complex multimedia user interfaces. Also read: Sensor fusion opens MEMS supply chain to sensor management players
The nRFready Smart Remote is a complete hardware and software reference design for advanced browsing control of Internet-/Web-2.0-enabled TVs and set-top boxes. The nRFready 2.4GHz RF Smart Remote reference design features a multi-touch-enabled TouchPad, a 6-axis motion sensing module (3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis gyroscope) and ultra-low-power accelerometer, and a miniaturized QWERTY keyboard. RF connectivity is enabled by Nordic’s nRF24LE1 System-on-Chip (SoC) and Gazell 2.4GHz RF protocol stack. Movea’s SmartMotion firmware is ported to the SoC’s integrated microcontroller.
Nordic expects smart TVs to hit 800 million units by 2016.
Motion-control "smart" remotes must replace button-cluttered designs to keep up with the new applications, streaming capabilities, and other options on next-generation televisions, said Sam Guilaumé, CEO of Movea. "Motion control bundled with Movea’s gesture libraries delivers a more intuitive and efficient way to navigate the user interface." Pixel-accurate in-air pointing and advanced gesture recognition enable faster, easier user interface experiences, said Svenn-Tore Larsen, CEO, Nordic.
Movea provides motion processing software, firmware, and IP for the consumer electronics industry. Further information about Movea can be found at www.movea.com.
Nordic Semiconductor is a fabless semiconductor company specializing in ultra low power (ULP) short-range wireless communication in the license-free 2.4GHz and sub-1-GHz Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) bands. Nordic is a Norwegian public company listed on the Oslo stock exchange (OSE:NOD). To learn more about Nordic, visit www.nordicsemi.com.