A new lidar scanning system for autonomous vehicles for a reduced calibration processing time

Tetsuharu Miwa

doi:10.1117/12.2518560

2 May 2019 A new lidar scanning system for autonomous vehicles for a reduced calibration processing time

Tetsuharu Miwa

Proceedings Volume 11005, Laser Radar Technology and Applications XXIV; 110050H (2019) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2518560
Event: SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing, 2019, Baltimore, MD, United States

Abstract

A new, lower-cost, and 10FPS-attainable lidar scanning system has been developed. The functions of the system include steering the incident laser, correcting the alignments and aberrations, outputting the signal of the misalignment, and laser incident timing. The system incorporates low-cost parts that include a Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCOS), a spherical mirror with a transparent layer (SMT), a spherical surface meniscus lens, and photosensors. The key component in this system is the SMT, which increases the LCOS scanning area, reduces the aberration, and creates a reference reflection for optical system correction. Beam steering by the optical phased array is accomplished by varying the refractive index of the liquid crystal in the LCOS. Scanning flash lidar is realized by the combination of the LCOS and SMT, which can emit an intensity distribution-corrected conical beam. The SMT reference reflection corrects three types of errors by adjusting the control parameters of the LCOS: misalignment upon lidar fabrication, long-term or temperature-dependent variation of the optical system, and installation error. In addition, the alignment process manhours and investments for a factory are reduced by eliminating the need for mechanical adjustments. The system can realize flash area-varying lidar, which can achieve a field of view of 1.8 rad in the horizontal direction and 0.3 rad in the vertical direction. An arbitrary irradiation area can be designed using optical phased array techniques.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Tetsuharu Miwa "A new lidar scanning system for autonomous vehicles for a reduced calibration processing time", Proc. SPIE 11005, Laser Radar Technology and Applications XXIV, 110050H (2 May 2019); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2518560

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