Sensor solutions supplier ams and Ibeo Automotive Systems, a specialist in automotive lidar sensor technology and software, have announced that their technology will be used in Level 3 automated driving on production vehicles at Great Wall Motor Company, starting 2022.
Ibeo’s flagship ibeoNEXT will be used in Great Wall vehicles to enable a highway pilot to drive semi-autonomously. Ibeo says that its ibeoNEXT solid-state lidar offers best-in-class large detection range, high resolution and large vertical angle. Through coupling Ibeo’s experience in both software and technology, Ibeo says its solid-state lidar sensor is a milestone on the road to fully automated driving.
The ams Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL) technology is a core component of Ibeo’s newly developed solid-state lidar solution ibeoNEXT, which will be used by the vehicle manufacturer.
Lidar systems emit laser pulses and then evaluate the light reflected from various objects. From the so-called time-of-flight, or the time it takes for the reflected laser pulse to reach the sensor again, software calculates the distance to the surrounding objects. Modern lidar systems can process many laser pulses in parallel; the result is a 3D model of the environment that recognizes crash barriers and road markings as well as cars, cyclists, and pedestrians, and their position and movement.
In combination with a long-range and a high spatial resolution, this accuracy is a key advantage of lidar technology. Unlike other lidar systems, the solid-state solution means no moving beam-steering mechanism, such as mechanical or MEMS mirrors. This brings significant benefits in terms of reliability and complexity.