ams, the Austria-based Apple supplier, has announced the release of its new sensing component which can measure ambient light from behind an OLED screen.

The newly launched RGB light and IR proximity sensor IC, TCS3701, is featured with behind-screen light measuring ability. The capability supports today’s industrial design trend to maximize smartphone display area by eliminating front-facing bezels, where an ambient light/proximity sensor is typically located. With the new sensor, the next iPhone could be notch-free.

(Image: ams)

According to ams, it has developed unique algorithms which enable accurate detection of ambient light levels without knowledge of the display pixel brightness above the sensor. Although light transmission through an OLED screen is limited by its opacity, the TCS3701 is still sensitive enough to produce accurate light measurements in all lighting conditions.

“Smartphone OEMs today are striving to maximize their products’ screen-to-body ratio, reducing the bezel area as much as possible on the display’s face,” said David Moon, Senior Marketing Manager at ams. “The TCS3701 enables phone designers to take this trend to a new level, potentially eliminating the bezel entirely. This is only possible because the TCS3701 can operate behind an OLED display, a breakthrough enabled by the outstanding sensitivity of the device and by the implementation of sophisticated measurement algorithms to compensate for the optical distortion caused by the OLED display.”
 

2019 Infrared Sensing Application Market Trend- Mobile Sensing, LiDAR and Optical Sensing
Release Date: 01 January 2019
Languages: Traditional Chinese / English
Format: PDF
Pages: 181