At the upcoming CES 2020 trade show, Artilux will unveil what it claims is the first wide spectrum 3D time of flight (ToF) sensor based on germanium-on-silicon (GeSi) photonic technology.
The sensor operates on a long near-infrared wavelength that is more than 10 times safer than the currently used 940 nm wavelength, and it improves sensing accuracy and performance under sunlight.
Artilux will demonstrate the sensor at CES and will include an RGB-D camera for logistics applications and robot vision and a 3D camera system that can operate at longer wavelengths. The sensor is projected to enter mass production in the first quarter of next year targeting applications such as mobile devices, automotive lidar and machine vision.
The Explore series sensor operates in a range of 850 nm to 1550 nm and reduces the potential risk of eye damage since longer NIR wavelength radiation causes less or even no harm to the retina. This is in contrast to existing 3D sensors that typically operate at 850 nm to 940 nm.
Artilux is using Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) process manufacturing to develop the GeSi technology platform that works with light wavelengths up to 1.55 µm.
CES 2020 takes place Jan. 7-10 in Las Vegas.
