Infineon Releases PSOC 4 Multi-Sense, Expanding Capacitive Sensing Technology with Inductive and Liquid Sensing Solutions

The PSOCTM 4000T is Infineon's first product to feature the company's fifth-generation CAPSENSE™ technology and Multi-Sense functionality. This sensing technology can be integrated into a single PSOCTM 4 MCU to optimize performance (e.g., combining capacitive and inductive sensing), enable new use cases (e.g., underwater inductive sensing buttons), or achieve cost savings (e.g., combining system control with liquid sensing). Additionally, Infineon's fifth-generation CAPSENSE™ incorporates "permanent online" technology, reducing power consumption to one-tenth of previous devices and improving the signal-to-noise ratio by a factor of ten.

Vibheesh Bharathan, Director and Project Leader for Infineon PSOCTM 4 Multi-Sense, said: "The Multi-Sense functionality is not only a technological breakthrough but a paradigm shift, demonstrating Infineon's commitment to meeting customer needs for next-generation devices that support new HMI and sensing use cases. As a leader in the field of sensing and control for consumer and industrial markets, we will continue to bring new features to our customers, helping them design future digital solutions for home, office, and industrial applications."

The new Multi-Sense functionality added to the Infineon PSOCTM 4 series includes:

• Inductive Sensing: Based on a novel proprietary method, this technology is less susceptible to noise, more stable than current state-of-the-art methods, and performs better in terms of external noise immunity and manufacturability. Infineon's inductive sensing technology supports new human-machine interaction (HMI) use cases such as metal surface touch, pressure touch interfaces, and proximity sensing. This technology complements capacitive sensing and enables modern, metal, and waterproof designs, such as metal touch buttons on refrigerators and robust HMI interaction in underwater devices like cameras and wearables.

• Liquid Sensing: The PSOCTM 4 features non-invasive, non-contact liquid sensing based on AI/ML (artificial intelligence/machine learning) processing algorithms, providing a cost-effective and highly capable alternative to mechanical sensors and traditional capacitive solutions. This technology can resist environmental factors like temperature and humidity variations and detect liquid levels in containers of various shapes with up to ten-bit resolution. Additionally, this solution addresses issues that other liquid sensors cannot, such as foam suppression and residue reduction, and operates stably even when there is a varying air gap between the sensor and the container. The liquid sensing function of PSOCTM 4 brings more intelligence to various liquid management applications, such as robotic vacuums, washing machine detergent dispensing, coffee machines, and humidifiers.

• CAPSENSE™ Hover Touch: Hover touch sensing technology is suitable for new use cases that don't require direct button contact. In some applications, hover touch can replace multiple components (e.g., eliminating springs and seals in cooktop touch panels). By filling the air gap with hover touch technology, customers can significantly reduce materials (BOM), improve system performance, reduce design complexity, and accelerate time-to-market.