Renesas Electronics has introduced two touch-free user interface (UI) solutions for simplifying the design of 2D and 3D control-based applications. Based on Renesas’ capacitive sensor microcontrollers, the new solutions support the development of UI that allows users to operate home appliances, as well as industrial and OA equipment without touching the devices. The UI solutions make it possible for appliance and equipment manufacturers to quickly develop touch-free interfaces that increase the added-value of their products in terms of both equipment convenience and design.
There are a variety of situations where touch-free operation is advantageous, such as when the users’ hands are wet, when the controls are out of reach, or when it is not safe for the user to touch the controls. Renesas new touch-free UI, for example in the kitchen, users could adjust water temperature and flow rate through hand gestures near the faucets or adjust stove fan operation by holding a hand over the hood. The touch-free UI solutions allow customers to easily implement these interfaces in their embedded equipment. The reference designs are available for download.
The new gesture solutions detect motion in a 2D coordinate system and in 3D space, respectively. With both solutions, Renesas provides design materials (circuit diagrams, board design data files and parts lists) that form the reference hardware for the capacitive touch-key MCU, as well as coordinate calculation middleware, sample programs, application notes and an evaluation tool for monitoring the detected coordinates. The touch-free UI solutions have passed class B testing for the IEC 61000 4-3 level 3 and 4-6 level 3 noise immunity standards, and can achieve stable operation.
The 3D gesture solution is available in three different sizes and can be selected based on the application:
- Standard version (160 × 160 × 100 mm) with RX231 MCU
- Miniature version (80 × 80 × 80 mm) with RX130 MCU
- Slim version (100 × 100 × 20 mm) with RX130 MCU for additional space saving
Renesas Electronics | www.renesas.com
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