Next-Generation Vision Sensors for Autonomous Fleets

READ MORE: FMCW LiDAR Gives the Gift of Sight

SiLC Technologies, known for its deep expertise in LiDAR solutions, has announced a collaboration with AutoX, the frontrunner RoboTaxi company in China. The autonomous vehicles company will use SiLC’s Eyeonic Vision Sensor technology to help steer its robotic taxi fleet.

In this video, SiLC’s CEO, Mehdi Asghari, and vice president, Business Development and Marketing, Ralf Muenster, discuss what’s behind the acquisition and their FMCW LiDAR solution.

Frequency-Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) LiDAR enables robotic vehicles and machines to have the necessary data to perceive and classify their environment, explained Muenster. Manufacturers working on next-gen autonomous vehicles, security solutions and industrial robots will find the technology can be readily integrated, he said. The Eyeonic Vision Sensor’s components include as a sophisticated laser, high quantum efficiency detectors, powerful amplifier and meters of waveguides onto a single silicon chip.

According to Asghari, SiLC Technologies places an emphasis on being “bionic eyes” for machines. “We want to give machines [human] reaction capability—the same perception capability without having to put a million dollars’ worth of hardware in the trunk of the car,” said Asghari. “Our vision system works with a 10-watt computer, which happens to be the most powerful computer on the planet and the most efficient one. Unfortunately, the computer industry has not reached that stage yet, so we have to make up for that with far more superior vision.”

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Hover over the labeled video timestamps to jump to specific sections.

1. [00:50] What does machine vision lack today?
2. [05:50] How do Eyeonic Vision Sensors work?
3. [10:45] What drives smart sensor innovation?
4. [19.25] COVID-19’s implication on industry.
5. [22:26] Applications for Eyeonic Vision Sensors.