The Future is LiDAR

On December 2, 2019, Driving Vision News (DVN) hosted the 2nd LiDAR Workshop in Frankfurt, Germany.

LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) has grown into a mature technology for atmospheric research, optical range finding, and many other applications. DVN is highly focused on the application of this technology to the cars and trucks of today, as well as to the autonomous vehicles of the future. The DVN LiDAR Workshop drew the attention of more than 100 companies and attracted a capacity crowd to Frankfurt. Workshop sessions covered a range of topics, from ready-to-use sensor cleaning systems to MEMS-based sensor packages and the outlook for integrated LiDAR devices on a chip.

LiDAR testing was also a featured topic; it was estimated that testing alone makes up about 40% of LiDAR R&D costs. This underlines the importance of LiDAR sensor reliability. There were questions about LiDAR range, detection probability, testing, package size, and performance in difficult weather conditions. There were also discussions about the importance of integrating sensors into car designs, whether to hide sensors in the car body or include them as visible elements in headlights. It is fair to see these discussions as a sign that LiDAR technology has matured over the past year.

LiDAR appears to be increasingly accepted for use in vehicle sensor arrays. It is a promising and rapidly developing technology to help enable levels 4 and 5 of driver assistance. The current push towards LiDAR within the automotive industry has helped create and grow a new technology that may lend itself to other applications in life as well.

If you’d like to read more, here are some links to check out:

• • • Driving Vision News LiDAR Conferences
      https://www.drivingvisionnews.com/dvn-lidar-conferences/
  • • Article: What is an Autonomous Car?
      https://www.synopsys.com/automotive/what-is-autonomous-car.html
  • • Article: Dude, Where’s My Autonomous Car? The 6 Levels of Vehicle Autonomy
      https://www.synopsys.com/automotive/autonomous-driving-levels.html
  • • White Paper: Application in Optical Design: Optimization for Receiver Enclosed Energy in LiDAR Systems
      https://www.synopsys.com/content/dam/synopsys/optical-solutions/documents/whitepapers/code-v-lidar-enclosed-energy-systems-wp.pdf