
Flash lidar achieves 200-meter detection
Sense Photonics has developed both single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) technology with 140,000 pixels and an emitter array composed of 15,000 vertical-cavity, surface emitter lasers (VCSELs).
The claim is that the two together form a long-range camera-like architecture and the first high-resolution, eye-safe, global shutter flash lidar that can detect 10 percent reflective targets at 200-meter range in full sunlight, outputting tens of millions of points per second.
The use of the global shutter removes the need for motion blur correction
“Our lidar systems will solve the shortcomings that OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and Robotaxi companies have been dealing with in competing LiDAR technologies,” said Hod Finkelstein, CTO of Sense Photonics, in a statement.
Sense’s flash architecture eliminates the need for fine alignment between emitter & receiver, maintaining sensor calibration and depth accuracy during shock and vibration. Additionally, the architecture is designed as a platform to allow for customer-specific product variations with a simple change in optics and the first to be able to provide both short- and long-range capabilities from the same architecture.
Shauna McIntyre, CEO of Sense Photonics, said that the company’s progress was because it had designed application-specific VCSELs and SPADs that take advantage of the economics of conventional IC manufacturing.
The flash lidar will be available as an evaluatin system in mid-2021 with volume production planned for late 2024, Sense Photonics said.
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