Dexter Industries, a provider of LEGO MINDSTORMS sensors has announced that a new Inertial Motion Unit sensor with six degrees of freedom has been developed for the LEGO MINDSTORMS system.
The sensor includes a gyroscope which would determine rotation on three axes. It also contains an accelerometer for measuring motion on three axes. It is also possible to determine acceleration values up to 8Gs. Currently, both accelerometers and gyroscopes are offered for the MINDSTORM NXT separately, but this sensor from Dexter Industries would be the first device which would integrate both of them in one unit and also provide measurement along three-axis for both of them.
This Inertial Motion sensor is mainly intended for high school and middle school STEM programs with a focus on educational applications pertaining to high school math, physics and engineering. Dexter plans on launching the IMU sensor for LEGO MINDSTORM by the end of July 2011.
Dexter Industries manufactures a number of peripherals and advanced sensors for the Mindstorms NXT system, and also a series of sensors for hobbyists and educationists alike. They also provide sensors for a GPS guidance system, solar power systems, and pressure temperature sensors to be used in the Mindstorms NXT system.