Sensing tech firm Aeva has launched a line of high precision sensors for manufacturing automation applications. The Aeva Eve 1 line has been launched with the Eve 1D, an FMCW-based laser displacement sensor designed for high-volume and inline industrial automation applications, including factory and process automation. The new product addresses the growing $4 billion global laser displacement sensor market.

Laser displacement sensors measure the distance between the sensor and a target surface without physical contact. Designed for high-speed, non-contact operation, they can measure accuracy to the micrometre level, about 1/100th the thickness of a human hair. Used in industrial automation, quality control, and precision manufacturing, manufacturers use them to measure the thickness, height, or position of components, monitor the velocity or vibration of moving parts, and check for flatness or warping in manufacturing.

Eve 1D laser displacement sensors employ Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) laser technology and are powered by Aeva’s CoreVision lidar-on-chip modules. According to Aeva, they are the first laser displacement sensors in the industry to employ FMCW technology.

Each module is built using silicon photonics to integrate sensor elements on silicon. Combined with Aeva’s proprietary precision sensing software, Eve 1D provides a scalable, software-defined product free from the limitations of industry-standard laser triangulation technology in performance, cost and form-factor.

Eve 1D sensors are designed to measure down to sub-micron precision and can operate across a range of target stand-off distances from 100 millimetres to 20 metres within the same compact all-in-one form factor combining measurement and data processing.. They have an accuracy of 100 parts per million (0.01% linearity) and operate at high measurement speeds.

“Built on the same core FMCW technology found in our Atlas automotive 4D LiDAR products, our Eve 1 line of sensors opens an entirely new market with significant revenue opportunity for Aeva,” said Mina Rezk, Co-founder and CTO at Aeva. “Eve 1D delivers a unique combination of performance, cost, and scalability, and addresses many of the drawbacks of today’s laser displacement sensor technologies. The sensors will help increase quality control and precision as the global manufacturing industry becomes increasingly automated and reliant upon advanced sensor technologies.”