LG develops thin biosensor for wearables

LG has announced the development of thin biosensors for use in wearables and smartphones. The sensor must be capable of measuring heart rate, stress level and oxygen saturation level.

According to LG, the sensor has a lower energy consumption than other products on the market. In comparison with LG’s existing module, consumption should be twenty percent lower. LG also claims that the biometric information is more accurate. The sensor has a margin of error of five heartbeats per minute during activities. In the previous sensor it was still eight.

The sensor is 1mm thick and contains a photodiode, five LED lights and an integrated circuit. The inside is coated with gold to maximize lighting efficiency by reducing the amount of light from the LED bulbs that is absorbed. With the module, the transmitted signals must be thirty percent stronger.

To reduce the thickness of the sensor, the chip is integrated in the printed circuit board. In the older models, the chip was placed on the printed circuit board, after which the photodiode was placed on the printed circuit board. It is not yet known in which wearables and smartphones the sensor will be used.

LG’s Optical Biosensor Module