What is a Multifunction Sensor?

A multifunction sensor, in contrast to traditional sensors, combines multiple functionalities into a single unit, reducing the number of openings required as well as minimizing size, weight, and power needs for advanced features. These sophisticated multifunction sensors can perform several functions at once and are fully software-defined, enabling them to be reconfigured or quickly updated to address evolving threats without the need for costly hardware changes.

Multifunction sensors and transducers combine two or more individual sensors along with driving and output conditioning circuitry. The data is transmitted through a single output type, such as Bluetooth, USB, CAN bus, Ethernet, I2C, SPI, or RS-485. Examples of combinations include accelerometer-magnetometer, humidity-pressure-temperature, humidity-light-pressure-sound-temperature-tilt-vibration, and accelerometer-gyroscope.