Motion-sensing and motion-control technologies specialist Movea, is joining forces with Nordic Semiconductor ASA in a technology partnership to develop a new innovation in a motion-enabled 2.4GHz RF remote control reference design.
The nRFready Smart Remote is a complete hardware and software reference design for advanced browsing control of the latest Internet-enabled and Web 2.0-enabled TVs and set-top boxes (STBs). The 2.4GHz RF Smart Remote reference design features a multi-touch enabled TouchPad, a miniaturised QWERTY keyboard, a 6-axis motion sensing solution (3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis gyroscope), and an ultra low power accelerometer.
The RF connectivity is enabled by Nordic’s nRF24LE1 System-on-Chip (SoC) and Gazell 2.4GHz RF protocol stack. Movea’s SmartMotion firmware is ported to the SoC’s integrated microcontroller. This solution optimises a motion-enabled solution ready to be integrated within remote control and other computer peripheral designs.
Sam Guilaumé, CEO of Movea, explained: ‘As TVs are becoming smarter, streaming content from several sources, offering new applications and games, there is an increasing need for smarter remotes to navigate through the interface to sustain an enjoyable home entertainment experience. Current remotes cluttered with buttons are too clumsy and slow, motion control bundled with Movea’s gesture libraries, deliver a more intuitive and efficient way to navigate the user interface. We are delighted to work with Nordic to develop the next generation of remote control that will lead the path to an improved home entertainment.’
Svenn-Tore Larsen, CEO at Oslo-based Nordic, added: ‘Connected or ‘Smart’ TVs are expected to hit 800 million units by 2016 according to some estimates and we believe the revolution is in motion. Pixel accurate in-air pointing and advanced gesture recognition will bring ease of use and faster control to Smart TV remote controls.
Nordic’s ultra-low power RF solutions and Movea’s motion-processing technology is the perfect combination for next generation remote controls. This is because low cost RF connectivity is essential to support motion control and in turn, our customers recognise that motion control is a critically important feature for navigating today’s complex multimedia user interfaces.”
Movea
Nordic Semiconductor
