STMicroelectronics Time of Flight module shipments cross the 1 billion mark

     STMicroelectronics' ToF sensors are manufactured using its single photon avalanche Diode (SPAD) sensor technology at ST's 300mm pre-process fab in Crolles, France. The final module integrates the SPAD sensor and vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL), as well as the necessary optical components to improve product performance, and is packaged and tested in ST's advanced in-house post-process manufacturing facility.

     Eric Aussedat, General Manager, Imaging at STMicroelectronics, said: "ST was one of the first to develop time-of-flight technology and has now completed the transformation of its scientific findings into a fully production-ready, market-leading series of products. These products are now used in more than 150 smartphones, and shipments just crossed the 1 billion mark. In continuing to invest in this technology, ST's FlightSense time-of-flight product development roadmap has expanded from high-performance one-dimensional single-point ranging devices to multi-zone ranging devices, with the recent addition of high-resolution 3D depth sensors for innovative applications using advanced proximity detection sensors, human presence detection and laser autofocus."

     The VL6180, VL53L0 and VL53L1 families, as well as other products, are now in production and targeted for consumer electronics, personal computers and industrial markets. St manufactures time-of-flight sensors using its unique vertically integrated manufacturing model to provide customers with best-in-class service levels, product quality, customer support and product performance.

     The development and introduction of STMicroelectronics' high-performance time-of-flight technology brings significant performance benefits to customer products. By optimizing the module's size, power consumption and ranging capabilities, and providing a longer measuring distance than competing products, FlightSense ToF sensors enable a variety of use cases, such as user presence detection that can control the wake and sleep patterns of a laptop, monitor or other device; User proximity detection; Laser autofocus (LAF) in the hybrid focusing algorithm for smartphone cameras.

     Take the camera subsystem as an example, the camera subsystem is the main factor that keeps the smartphone differentiated. LAF improves the camera's focusing performance in harsh photographic conditions, such as low-light situations or low-contrast subjects that are difficult to cope with with traditional autofocus systems. Laser autofocus is already widely used by major smartphone manufacturers, most of which use ST's ToF technology. In fact, a widely recognized camera benchmark named the "10 best cameras" for smartphones, many of which feature ST's time-of-flight technology.

     There are also many mass market products that use STMicroelectronics' time-of-flight products. These products include sweeping robots, laptops, children's tablets (eye protection), automatic faucets, home drones, robots, projectors, etc.