Longest Range Robust LiDAR Claimed by Quanergy

A new automotive LiDAR sensor is claiming the furthest range so far, able to detect objects of interest 250 meters (273 yards) away.

Quanergy Systems says its Optical Phased Array (OPA) has successfully achieved a range two-and-a-half times greater than that demonstrated just 15 months ago. The breakthrough, it claims, further advances the path towards commercial production of its S3 Series LiDAR, a solid state  sensor using a scalable CMOS silicon manufacturing process designed for cost effective, mass-market production.

This test was conducted with a solid-state LiDAR S3 test platform with a single OPA emitter module. Different from the scanning mode, this ranging mode test has the laser beam  shooting at the same direction on a target with 10% reflectivity to simulate difficult-to-detect  objects. The target positioned at long range was successfully detected under outdoor bright sunlight conditions.

The company says its OPA, with electronic beam steering and no moving parts, is ideal for heavy vibration transportation applications such as autonomous trucks, mining, construction and agriculture and is designed to provide more than 100,000 hours mean time between failure.

Dr Tianyue Yu, co-founder and chief development officer, Quanergy Systems, said: “Quanergy has set another milestone in LiDAR with the success of this 250-meter range test.  We’re proud of the advances we’ve made and of the low-cost yet highest-reliability LiDAR technology we’ve produced, and our team continues to innovate to deliver greater range, data rate and spatial coverage furthering our path towards productization.”

— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in Europe. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_