HENDERSON, NV – Movella, a leading provider of full-stack solutions for digitizing movement, today announced that Macnica, Inc. (Headquarters: Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, President and CEO: Kazumasa Hara, hereinafter: Macnica) became an official channel partner for the Automation & Mobility business unit of Movella. By introducing highly reliable and robust inertial sensors to autonomous vehicles, it will be possible to stably obtain vehicle attitude information not only on well-maintained public roads, but also in harsh environments such as dusty mining sites, construction sites, and factories.
With the rapid spread of autonomous vehicles, demonstration experiments of autonomous driving are being carried out in various places. In addition to operating on paved public roads, autonomous vehicles operating in harsh environments are also gaining momentum. Private areas such as construction sites and factories offer a more flexible regulatory environment compared to public roads, accelerating the development and testing of autonomous vehicles.
There are certain technologies that are essential for the operation of autonomous vehicles. One of them is the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) sensor, which can accurately recognize the vehicle's posture, movement, and position. However, if you try to develop an IMU sensor from scratch, you have to start with circuit design, which requires a lot of development time. This is not desirable, as it takes a considerable amount of time and resources. In addition, in private areas with fewer regulations, it is essential to introduce a highly reliable and robust sensor unit that can operate in harsh environments.
To solve these issues, Macnica has turned its attention to the Xsens MTi sensor modules from Movella with its widest portfolio of industrial grade IMU’s with an easy ‘plug&play’ form factor. Macnica has now signed a contract with Movella and will begin selling Xsens MTi products.
An IMU sensor is a device that detects the three-axis angles (or speed angles) and acceleration that govern motion. This IMU sensor is an essential product for autonomous vehicles, as it allows accurate acquisition of data such as posture and movement. The Xsens MTi products are modularized and can be easily installed in vehicles after purchase. It also has dust and water resistance up to IP68, and is highly robust, ensuring stable operation even in bad weather or harsh environments with flying dust. Modules combined with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) are also available, making it a wide product lineup suitable for use in a variety of environments.
Macnica already uses a technology called SLAM. SLAM is a technology that simultaneously performs self-localization and mapping. By combining SLAM with an IMU sensor, a more accurate and robust SLAM solution can be built that minimizes motion blur and noise. Another feature of the Xsens MTi products is that they are highly compatible with the LiDAR products that Macnica handles. LiDAR can obtain high-precision 3D information over a wide area, but in order to attach it to mobility (moving objects) for SLAM or perception purposes, it is essential to accurately understand the orientation of the point information obtained. By combining the Xsens MTi products with LiDAR, it becomes possible to accurately obtain vehicle orientation information, etc.
Xsens MTi products can be used in a variety of fields, including Advanced Driving Assistance System (ADAS) for automobiles, precision control of robots, and drones, motion analysis, VR/AR... , and many more. In recent years, it is expected to be used as a sensor that can obtain position information for autonomous mobile robots in a wide range of scenes, such as aviation, marine, and factories.
Macnica develops and supports autonomous driving and remote control of mobility. They provide a comprehensive combination of sensors such as LiDAR and cameras, edge computers with built-in high-performance chips such as NVIDIA, and AI algorithms for autonomous driving, providing a consistent service from product selection to implementation and maintenance.
[MTi 100-series]
The MTi 100-series features vibration-rejecting gyroscopes and accelerometers, and offers high-quality position, velocity, acceleration, and orientation, even in challenging environments. The all-in-one sensor system supports optimized temperature calibration, high-frequency position and orientation output, and has configurable output settings for synchronization with any third-party device. The MTi 100-series is ruggedly built, with a protective, anodized, IP67 waterproof aluminum housing, waterproof connectors, and special studs for easy mounting and aligning. It is also MIL-STD tested.
[ MTi 600-series]
The MTi 600-series is designed to maintain high reliability and performance even in harsh environments, and the MTi-630R, MTi- 670G, MTi-680G are available with a rugged aluminum housing with IP68 standard. In addition, the MTi-670G and MTi-680G are equipped with a built-in RTK GNSS receiver, which allows highly accurate 3D position estimation. We also have a wide lineup of products to suit your needs, so please contact us below for more information.
[MTi 1-series]
At just 12×12 mm, the MTi 1-series is the smallest form factor available on the market. It’s SMD mountable and suitable for high-volume applications. The Xsens optimized strap-down algorithm performs high-speed dead-reckoning calculations at 1 kHz, allowing accurate capture of high-frequency motions. The MTi 1-series is cost-effective for a wide range of (embedded) applications. It relieves users from the design, integration and maintenance of gyroscopes, accelerometers and other sensors.
For more information about the Xsens MTi products, please visit the Movella website.
About Movella
Movella is a leading full-stack provider of sensors, software, and analytics that enable the digitization of movement. Movella serves the automation & mobility, entertainment and health & sports markets. Movella's innovations enable customers to capitalize on the value of movement by transforming data into meaningful and actionable insights. Partnering with leading global brands such as ABB Marine, Hewlett Packard, Kongsberg, Clearpath Robotics, Toyota, Siemens, Electronic Arts, EPIC Games, 20th Century Studios, Netflix and more than 500 sports organizations, Movella is creating extraordinary outcomes that move humanity forward. To learn more, please visit www.movella.com.
About Macnica
Since its founding in 1972, Macnica has been providing cutting-edge semiconductors, electronic devices, networks, and cybersecurity products with added technological value. In recent years, based on its traditional strengths of sourcing cutting-edge technology globally and technology planning capabilities, Macnica has been developing new businesses in fields such as AI/IoT, autonomous driving, and robotics. Going forward, under the slogan " Co.Tomorrowing ," Macnica will connect cutting-edge technology with its intelligence to provide unique services and solutions, creating social value and contributing to the development of the future society. Headquartered in Yokohama, Macnica operates globally with 85 locations in 23 countries around the world. For more information, please visit www.macnica.co.jp