News

The AS5165 offers best protection available for automotive applications

Unterpremstaetten, Austria (May 11, 2010) – austriamicrosystems (SIX: AMS), a leading global designer and manufacturer of high performance analog ICs, has announced the AS5165, a contactless magnetic angle position sensor for accurate angular measurement over a full 360°. The new high-resolution magnetic rotary sensor offers best-in-class protection features for reliable operation in harsh automotive environments and includes a SENT J2716* interface for simple transmission of high-resolution sensor information.

The AS5165 magnetic encoder is a system-on-chip and combines integrated Hall elements, an analog front-end, digital signal processing, and best in class automotive protection features -- all in a single device. Offering the most reliable performance available, the AS5165 provides protection for the power supply and output pins against overvoltage up to 27 V; power supply pins are also protected against reverse polarity to -18 V. In addition, continuous short circuit detection and broken wire detection are provided, and a unique patented fully differential architecture makes the sensor insensitive to stray magnetic fields. Automotive applications for the AS5165 include throttle and valve position sensing and several power train sensing applications.

To measure an angle, only a simple two-pole magnet rotating over the center of the chip is required. The magnet may be placed above or below the IC. The AS5165 is tolerant of magnet misalignment, air gap variations, and temperature variations. No calibration is required because of the device’s inherent accuracy. The absolute angle measurement provides instant indication of the magnet’s angular position with a programmable resolution of 0.022° = 16384 positions per revolution.

The AS5165 is AEC-Q100 grade 0 qualified, comes in a TSSOP14 package, and operates from a +5 V supply over a -40 to +150°C temperature range.

The AS5165 high-resolution, contactless magnetic angle sensor will be showcased at the Sensor Expo, June 7-9, 2010, Rosemont, IL. Visit austriamicrosystems at booth # 815.

* About SENT
SENT stands for Single Edge Nibble Transmission and is an SAE approved encoding scheme intended for automotive applications where high-resolution sensor data needs to be communicated to an ECU (engine control unit). The main advantage is cost savings on the sensor and the ECU. Current implementations require multiple analog-to-digital conversions compared to just once with SENT. Other benefits include easier implementation of diagnostic functions, and CRC (cyclic redundancy check) for reliable data transmission.

Price & Availability
Contact austriamicrosystems for price and availability.

Technical Support
For further information on the AS5165, please visit www.austriamicrosystems.com/AS5165

About austriamicrosystems

austriamicrosystems is a leading designer and manufacturer of standard and customized high-performance analog ICs in the areas of power management, sensors & sensor interfaces and mobile infotainment. Complemented by its full service foundry services, the company focuses on the communications, industrial & medical and automotive markets. austriamicrosystems leverages more that 28 years of expertise in low power and high accuracy to provide industry-leading products, operating worldwide with more than 1,000 employees with its own state-of-the-art manufacturing and test facilities. austriamicrosystems is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange in Zurich (ticker symbol: AMS).