A family of acceleration sensors by Freescale Semiconductor, the Xtrinsic MMA65xxKW family of accelerometers, uses intelligent sensing technologies designed for front and side crash detection. They can be integrated in to vehicle airbag systems and are based on HAREMS (high-aspect-ratio micro-electromechanical systems) technology. They have a robust, streamlined in-vehicle communication system and crash detection capabilities to quickly and reliably deploy the passive safety system in the event of a collision. The accelerometers are the safing sensors located in the vehicle's main ECU if the airbag system uses satellite sensors. They work at 105g and have a 12bit data output with 18.2LSB/g. According to the company, this improves sensor resolution with no programming necessary by the manufacturer and wider dynamic range measurement capabilities, required for smaller vehicles. The sensors are compatible with a standard SPI protocol to be integrated into an airbag system. An arming pin reduces the risk of data corruption in the main crash sensor or safing sensor of the airbag system. The acceleration sensors have either a single- or dual-axis over-damped lateral inertial sensor housed in a quad flat no-lead package. The MMA6519KW, MMA6525KW, MMA6527KW, MMA6555KW and MMA6556KW are sampling now, with production planned for Q2, 2012.
