Low-profile plug-and-play proximity switches feature background suppression for reliable detection

Panasonic Automotive & Industrial Systems Europe (PAISEU) has introduced a new series of human detection proximity sensors. The MA Motion series sensors are 35% thinner than previous versions and are simple to install due to their 'plug and play' nature. The devices feature built-in trigonometric background suppression, so they are unaffected by changing scenes or by people passing by outside the detection range. Also, changing light conditions and bright daylight measuring up to 30k lux at the sensor's surface will not affect the performance of the sensor. Like previous versions, the proximity sensors measure 10mm wide and 20mm high, but their depth is only 12.7mm compared with 19.5mm. The timing of the signals can be adjusted so that the beam frequency of each adjacent sensor will not interfere with the other. For adjacent use or energy saving Panasonic also offers a version with external trigger input. "The sensor emits a ray of light towards a human body, and determines whether the person is within a given distance," said Alexander Hoch, product marketing department team leader, Panasonic. "If the sensor detects a person, it sets an output transistor to ON. MA Motion series proximity sensors are cost-effective yet offer high performance levels, suiting them to a wide range of industrial and consumer applications including: the detection of the presence of someone in front of machines, at automatic doors or in security gates; turning on lights when people enter public spaces or businesses; turning off faucets when people leave; counting people; and as non-contact switches for hygiene and medical applications." Thin MA Motion proximity switches feature a detection distance of 5 to 200cm and are available with NPN and PNP output trans ./ versionsin PNP or NPN open collector versions. They operate from 4.5VDC to 5.5VDC or in a wilder voltage version from 5.5vdc to 27VDC.