LiDAR (light detection and ranging) sensing is an optical perception technology that uses light in the form of lasers to map objects and landscapes. The essentials of the technology were explained more than 50 years ago, and it has since been used for mapping, atmospheric research, video gaming, security, civil engineering, and a host of other applications, according to experts at research consultancy IDTechEx.
The advent of autonomous vehicles in the late twentieth century, and the intense drive to develop such vehicles commercially in the twenty-first, have generated a surge of interest in LiDAR technologies and their applications in the automotive sector. When used in conjunction with other sensor technologies and artificial intelligence, GPS, and/or neural networks, the technology can assist a vehicle driver or even allow vehicles to navigate without a human driver.
LiDAR can be used for ADAS functions like automatic emergency braking, but it is more suitable in the race to make vehicles autonomous to the greatest extent possible—SAE Levels 4 and 5. In a recent report, IDTechEx provided an analysis of more than 100 key players in the global 3D LiDAR market and of the technologies and forces likely to shape that market in the next decade. IDTechEx experts identify MEMS LiDAR as likely to emerge with the largest market segment.
While the 3D lidar market was once dominated by a handful of companies, the market has become increasingly crowded with firms offering products for every part of the LiDAR system, each one claiming to be better than the rest. According to IDTechEx, these firms range from 3D LiDAR’s founders (e.g., Velodyne LiDAR), established LiDAR producers (e.g., Luminar, AEye), Tier 1 automotive suppliers (e.g. Valeo, Magna), to startups.
Founder makes headlines in Shanghai
At Auto Shanghai 2021 last week, Velodyne highlighted its technology leadership in LiDAR sensors and software addressing the current technology trend to address a wide range of industries, from advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) to autonomous vehicles, robotics, smart city infrastructure, delivery, and industrial.
“Throughout our fourteen-year history, we have worked closely with customers in China in autonomous vehicles, next-generation consumer vehicles, mapping, and robotics,” said Wei Weng, Executive Director of Asia, Velodyne LiDAR. “We remain committed to deepening our relationships and expand our partnerships with customers building the future of safer mobility and smarter cities.”
Velodyne serves its many customers in China via an office in Beijing. The company has partnered with Trunk.Tech to accelerate the commercialization of driverless trucks in China’s logistics market. Idriverplus makes commercial autonomous vehicle technology for vehicles such as street cleaners and logistics as well as for passenger cars. Velodyne also has a long-standing relationship with its investor Baidu, which uses its sensors for autonomy applications.
Its broad range of sensor technologies was on full display at the event. At the top end of its range is the Alpha Prime, the result of over ten years of development and learning made for autonomous driving in complex conditions up to highway speeds with a 300-m range for autonomous automotive and robotaxi companies.
The Velarray H800 is a solid-state sensor built using MLA (micro-LiDAR array) architecture, combining long-range perception and a broad field of view for collision avoidance in ADAS and autonomous mobility applications in a compact form factor that can be placed behind the windshield. The Velarray M1600 also uses the MLA technology to enable touchless mobile and last-mile delivery robots to operate autonomously without human intervention.
Velabit is Velodyne’s smallest sensor, with new levels of versatility and affordability for mid-range specialized use cases within vehicles, robots, unmanned aerial vehicles, and infrastructure.
Velodyne calls its Vella a breakthrough in ADAS software based on the directional view Velarray sensor. The company claims it is superior to existing approaches that use camera and radar sensors for ADAS functionalities such as adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, and PAEB (pedestrian automated emergency braking).
The company created a white paper and video on nighttime tests conducted of its LiDAR-based PAEB system that uses the Velarray H800 sensor and Vella compared to a highly rated system using camera and radar technology. In these conditions, the camera/radar-based system failed in all five scenarios while the LiDAR-based system avoided a crash in every situation tested.
New supply deals with Faraday, Gatik
In April, Velodyne made news with announcements of two OEM design wins.
The first was its selection by Faraday Future (FF) as the exclusive supplier of LiDAR for its flagship EV (electric vehicle). Velodyne’s solid-state Velarray H800 sensors will provide sensing for the FF 91’s autonomous driving system that aims to deliver a comprehensive suite of highway, urban, and parking autonomy features.
With the FF 91, Faraday aims to will deliver a unique electric mobility experience combining extreme technology, ultimate user experience, and a holistic ecosystem. The vehicle is planned for launch within 12 months of the closing of the recently announced merger with the SPAC (special purpose acquisition company) Property Solutions Acquisition Corp. (PSAC).
“We are embracing the latest technologies—including Velodyne’s Velarray H800—to develop driver assistance features that help us deliver new levels of safety, driver comfort, and convenience,” said Carsten Breitfeld, CEO, Faraday Future. “The sensor supports safe navigation and collision avoidance, incorporated in the current vehicle architecture in a way that allows the FF 91 to maintain its future-forward design.”
“Velodyne and Faraday Future are both committed to redefining the mobility experience through greater vehicle autonomy and safety,” said Anand Gopalan, CEO, Velodyne LiDAR. “Our close relationship led Velodyne to become a direct supplier to Faraday Future and help them bring their next-generation mobility vision to reality on roadways worldwide.”
The Velarray H800’s compact form factor allows for the sensor to be located behind the vehicle’s windshield for streamlined integration. With combined long-range perception and a broad field of view, it is designed for navigation and collision avoidance in ADAS and autonomous mobility applications.
Velodyne also announced a multi-year sales agreement with Gatik, an industry leader in automating on-road transportation networks for B2B middle-mile logistics. Gatik will use Velodyne sensors as a part of a fully redundant sensor suite to deliver goods safely and efficiently between micro-fulfillment centers, dark stores, and retail locations—the logistics flow known as the middle mile. The company fulfills autonomous orders daily, reducing customer costs and keeping delivery times short for multiple Fortune 500 customers in the U.S. and Canada, including Walmart.
Gatik operates a fleet of Class 3-6 trucks, equipped with multi-temperature compartments, 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, on routes up to 300 mi (480 km) in multiple markets across North America. Its solution helps retailers meet consumer demand for rapid delivery of goods driven by soaring e-commerce growth and help customers meet the exploding expectations for contactless delivery.
“Velodyne’s sensor solutions have the proven performance, reliability, and resilience our AVs need to operate safely and efficiently in complex urban operational design domains,” said Arjun Narang, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Gatik.
“It may be an eye-opener for many people to learn that Gatik’s AVs using Velodyne’s sensors were likely involved in delivering some of the goods they are using in their homes,” said Gopalan. “They are demonstrating how Velodyne sensors help AVs provide efficient and safe movement of goods.”
Gatik uses Alpha Prime and Ultra Puck sensors with Velodyne’s patented 3D surround-view technology, providing the real-time object detection needed for safe navigation and reliable operation. The sensors provide the range, accuracy, and resolution for autonomous logistics services. They detect and track vehicles, pedestrians, and other obstructions to help AVs safely navigate at various speeds, traveling night and day in a range of road conditions such as rain, sleet, and snow.
Ansys partnership to speed development
According to Velodyne, one of the challenges facing many advanced driver assistance systems is their robustness and dependability in recognizing potentially dangerous edge-case scenarios. The company is pitching its LiDAR as a necessary and redundant detection technology to locate and track objects across a range of operational situations. However, to be validated as reliable, LiDAR sensors must undergo exhaustive physical testing, which radically increases the development cost of systems.
To address the situation, the company is teaming with Ansys to develop software models of next-generation automotive LiDAR sensors to provide substantially improved hazard identification capabilities for highly advanced AVs (autonomous vehicles). The collaboration incorporates Velodyne’s LiDAR design into Ansys’ virtual sensor suite to expedite automaker integration of Velodyne’s sensor into AVs to drive safety drastically faster to market.
“Ansys VRXperience supports faster development and deployment of ADAS solutions using Velodyne’s LiDAR by providing a fully immersive environment to test and improve hazard identification capabilities,” said Gopalan. “Our collaboration helps engineers virtually run their ADAS applications in challenging roadway conditions so they can build solutions that achieve safe navigation and collision avoidance.”
Velodyne is collaborating with Ansys to integrate an encrypted “black box” physics-based LiDAR sensor model into Ansys’ VRXperience, a real-time interactive driving simulator that models, evaluates, and validates designs within a highly realistic virtual environment. This end-to-end capability empowers engineers to rapidly model many edge-case driving scenarios across millions of miles and substantially reduce physical tests.
“As part of Ansys’ AV ecosystem, Velodyne is helping to define the landscape of safe autonomous driving,” said Prith Banerjee, Chief Technology Officer at Ansys. “Using VRXperience, OEMs will validate the LiDAR’s software stack and have full access to a validated sensor model, while preserving Velodyne’s IP.”
Velodyne presented “How LiDAR Sensors, Software, and Simulation Advance Autonomous Applications” at Ansys’ April Simulation World 2021, with on-demand viewing still available.
