Melexis to participate in the MinTOFKA project to develop a miniaturized 3D camera system for vehicle interiors
Press release on the MinTOFKA kick-off event on 17 January 2019 for the VDI Technology Centre.
Tessenderlo, Belgium, 25 March 2019 – Passenger detection, hand-on-wheel detection and gesture control are examples of a range of safety and comfort features that are integrated into the future driving experience. Moving to the next level of automated driving requires a variety of safety systems that continuously monitor the driver's readiness to take over. This increases the demands on sensor systems that monitor the vehicle interior. At the same time, the design requirements and space restrictions of passive safety systems mean that the available space in the vehicle is limited. This implicates that miniaturization and system integration are key to higher performance and new features.
Together and within the next three years, the project partners BMW AG, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF, gestigon GmbH® a VALEO brand, Melexis GmbH and Melexis Technologies NV, as associated partner, intend to develop a miniaturized 3D camera system for vehicle interiors within the MinTOFKA project.
On 17 January 2019, the kick-off meeting for this cooperation took place at BMW AG in Munich amongst the partners and the project agency VDI Technologiezentrum GmbH. In addition to a get-together between the partners and the BMW departments, the meeting also served as a first exchange of future requirements for the planned camera system in view of next-generation developments in the automotive sector. In order to get a concrete impression of the camera functions on which the project is based, the current series status of the camera-based functions was presented on the target vehicle of the project, a BMW X5.
The MinTOFKA project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the call “Miniaturized optical systems with high integration density”. The project volume totals 3.4 million EUR, of which almost half will be provided by the industrial partners involved. The project, which started in December 2018, is expected to run until the end of November 2021.
Official MinTOFKA project announcement of the funding body, the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) of December 2018.