Hardware for builders who need to sense the world.
Purpose-built sensing kits with full ROS2 integration, open-source firmware, and documentation written by someone who actually debugged the hardware.
mmWave 360° Sensing Kit — IWR6843AOP
Pre-order open — ships Q3 2026
The sensor your robot uses when it can’t see.
No camera. No lidar. The IWR6843AOP is a 60–64 GHz FMCW radar on a chip — it sees through dust, darkness, and direct occlusion, outputs a 3D point cloud over USB at 10 Hz, and connects to ROS2 in under an hour with the included driver package.
Built and tested on a Jetson Orin Nano Super. The config file included with the kit is the one actually running on the bench — not a sanitized example from a TI application note.
Pre-order — $279
Evaluation board for development use · Charge on order · Ships Q3 2026
What’s included
- IWR6843AOPEVM evaluation module
- ROS2 driver package (Python, tested on JetPack 6.2.2)
- Working config file — tuned for arm-mounted collision detection
- Zone detection library with
STOP/CAUTION/CLEARoutput - Getting started guide — written for builders, not datasheets
- Private repository access for all kit owners
Specs
| Frequency | 60–64 GHz (FMCW) |
| Range | 0.1 – 8.9 m |
| Field of view | ±90° azimuth / ±40° elevation |
| Output | x/y/z point cloud at 10 Hz via USB |
| Interface | Dual UART over USB (Silicon Labs CP2105) |
| Power | 5V USB · ~1.2W typical |
| Firmware | out_of_box_6843_aop — SDK 3.5.x / fw 3.6.0.0 |
| Tested on | Jetson Orin Nano Super, JetPack 6.2.2 |
| Ships as | Evaluation board — development use only |
Why no camera, why not lidar
Camera-based collision detection fails in direct sunlight, low light, dust, and any time the obstacle is behind something else in frame. Lidar is expensive, mechanically complex, and has its own occlusion problems on manipulator arms in motion.
mmWave radar has no moving parts, costs under $200, works in complete darkness, and doesn’t care about dust or spray. The tradeoff is resolution — you get a sparse point cloud, not a photo. For collision detection and presence sensing on a robot arm, that’s exactly the tradeoff you want.
IWRL6432AOP Mobile Kit — Coming Soon
Out of stock — notify me
Lower-power mobile variant of the kit. Same ROS2 integration, same documentation standard, optimized for standalone robots and mobile platforms where power budget matters.
Currently out of stock at DigiKey. Join the list to be notified when available at $199.