Laser radar sensor and vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to a laser radar sensor and a vehicle, the laser radar sensor comprises a sending unit, a receiving unit, a protection window, a housing and an analysis processing unit, the sending unit is used for generating laser pulses irradiated into the environment; the receiving unit is used for receiving components, reflected in the environment, of the laser pulses emitted to penetrate through the protection window by means of a detector and generating corresponding signals; the evaluation unit is placed in a first reception mode before receiving a partial reflection of the laser pulse caused by the protection window within the lidar sensor, and is placed in a second reception mode in a time interval in order to emit the laser pulse, the receiving unit has a lower light sensitivity in the first receiving mode than in the second receiving mode; the analysis processing unit is arranged to receive the signal generated by the receiving unit and to distinguish between a first signal component generated by a partial reflection on the protection window and a second signal component generated by a reflection on an object in the lidar sensor environment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a laser radar sensor and a vehicle having such a laser radar sensor. Background Art

[0002] Such lidar sensors are known from the prior art and are used, for example, in surroundings detection systems of vehicles in order to operate, for example, driver assistance systems and / or systems for automated driving operations based on the detected surrounding information.

[0003] Such a lidar sensor usually has a protective glass, which protects the internal space of the lidar sensor from moisture, dust, damage caused by environmental influences, etc., and the protective glass is the exit surface and entry surface for the measurement signal of the lidar sensor (i.e., for the laser pulse).

[0004] Although the protective window is substantially transparent to the laser light generated by the lidar sensor, deposits on the protective glass and / or defects in the outer surface of the protective glass (e.g., scratches) may cause unintended partial reflections of the laser light inside the lidar sensor.

[0005] Depending on the intensity of this partial reflection and the configuration of the lidar sensor's detector, saturation may occur within the pixels of the lidar sensor's photodetector due to this partial reflection, and the laser pulse echo generated by objects in the vehicle environment may be at least partially covered by this saturation, which may limit or prevent the detection of objects in the environment near the lidar sensor.

[0006] Therefore, various methods are used in the prior art to distinguish these undesired partial reflections from reflections from actual objects in the LiDAR sensor environment. These include, for example, variable threshold matching or echo separation algorithms, which work based on the superimposed signal components of the partial reflection from the protective window and the actual object echo.

[0007] WO2021258111A1 describes a lidar system that is configured to increase a bias voltage of one or more photodetectors after activating a light emitter of the lidar system, wherein the amount of increase in the bias voltage depends on the time that has passed since the light emitter was activated. Summary of the Invention

[0008] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a lidar sensor is proposed, in particular a lidar sensor for a vehicle, wherein the lidar sensor is preferably a "time of flight" lidar sensor, which is configured to determine the distance to objects in the environment of the lidar sensor based on a measurement of the propagation time of emitted laser light.

[0009] The lidar sensor comprises at least: a transmitting unit, a receiving unit, a protective window, a housing and an evaluation unit, wherein the transmitting unit comprises, for example, one or more laser diodes, wherein the protective window is constructed, for example, from glass and / or a transparent plastic material, and wherein the evaluation unit is configured, for example, as an ASIC, an FPGA, a processor, a digital signal processor, a microcontroller or the like.

[0010] The transmitting unit and the receiving unit are arranged inside the housing, and a protective window is integrated into an opening in the housing wall. The protective window thus forms an optical interface between the interior of the LiDAR sensor and its surroundings, protecting the components arranged in the interior of the LiDAR sensor from environmental influences such as moisture and dust.

[0011] The transmitting unit is configured to generate laser pulses that are emitted through the protective window into the environment for detecting the environment of the lidar sensor. It should be noted that the shape of the temporal profile of the laser pulses is not limited to a specific shape, and in particular not to the shape of a rectangular pulse, but can, in principle, have any desired shape. For example, the respective transmitting process for transmitting the corresponding laser pulses is initiated by an evaluation unit of the lidar sensor and / or a component separate from the evaluation unit (e.g., the transmitting unit itself).

[0012] The receiving unit is configured to receive, via a detector (specifically, a photodetector), components of a laser pulse emitted through the protective window that are reflected in the surroundings, and to generate a signal (particularly an electrical signal) corresponding to the components of the reflected laser pulse. For this purpose, the spectral sensitivity of the detector is advantageously adapted primarily to the wavelength of the emitted laser pulse. The surface of the detector preferably comprises a plurality of photosensitive pixels, wherein the number and arrangement of the pixels are generally not restricted and are advantageously determined by the respective configuration and / or respective intended use of the lidar sensor (e.g., as a one-dimensional pixel arrangement, as a two-dimensional pixel arrangement, etc.).

[0013] The evaluation unit is connected to the receiving unit by means of information technology and is configured to place the receiving unit in a first receiving mode before receiving partial reflections of corresponding laser pulses, which are caused by the protective window within the lidar sensor. Such partial reflections can have a disruptive effect on the environment detection of the lidar sensor, as they can lead to undesired saturation in the detector and, consequently, to the object echo (i.e., the component of the laser pulse reflected by an object in the environment of the lidar sensor) being masked, so that object detection is clearly unreliable or even impossible, especially in the vicinity of the lidar sensor. This vicinity corresponds to a distance of 20 meters, 10 meters, or even less from the lidar sensor.

[0014] Partial reflections are particularly likely to occur if the light transmission of the protective window is partially or completely restricted, for example due to deposits on the side of the protective window facing the environment of the LiDAR sensor, where such deposits may be, in particular, dust particles and / or water droplets. Alternatively or additionally, damage to the protective window may be caused by damage to its outer surface, which may appear, for example, in the form of scratches. Consequently, as the service life of the LiDAR sensor increases, the aforementioned partial reflections on the protective window may increase due to the expected increase in damage. Furthermore, the greater the angle between the transmit path of the LiDAR sensor and the protective window, or between the receive path of the LiDAR sensor and the protective window, the stronger these partial reflections may be.

[0015] The evaluation unit is further configured to place the receiving unit in a second receiving mode for emitting laser pulses during a time interval, which can be a predefined time interval and / or a dynamically adapted time interval, wherein the receiving unit has a lower light sensitivity in the first receiving mode than in the second receiving mode. By suitably determining the respective light sensitivities in the first receiving mode and the second receiving mode, the detrimental superposition of useful echoes (i.e., echoes generated by objects in the environment of the lidar sensor) with partially reflected echoes (i.e., echoes generated on the protective glass in the interior of the lidar sensor) can be reduced or completely avoided. This increases the probability of distinguishing useful echoes from partially reflected echoes.

[0016] Furthermore, the evaluation unit is configured to receive the signal generated by the receiving unit and to distinguish between a first signal component within the signal that is generated by partial reflection at the protective window and a second signal component that is generated by reflection at an object in the environment of the lidar sensor. For distinguishing the individual signal components, methods known from the prior art for identifying individual signal components (e.g., by comparison with suitable threshold values) and / or methods different from these methods can be used, for example.

[0017] The identified signal components generated by the useful echo can then be provided, for example, to a component that can determine the distance and / or size of objects in the environment of the lidar sensor based on these signal components. This provision can be performed, for example, by means of an evaluation unit of the lidar sensor and / or a component separate from the evaluation unit. Consequently, the lidar sensor according to the present invention has a particular advantage: it can reduce or avoid interfering effects caused by partially reflected echoes, thereby enabling object detection in the vicinity of the lidar sensor or improving the reliability of object detection in the vicinity.

[0018] It is noted that the switch between the first reception mode and the second reception mode can be implemented directly or, with one or more intermediate phases between the two reception modes, using a predefined time transition between the reception modes. Alternatively, such a time transition can also be performed continuously.

[0019] It is also pointed out that it is conceivable that, in addition to adapting the light sensitivity according to the presence of useful echoes or partially reflected echoes, the transmission power of the transmitting unit can be adapted by means of appropriate control, for example by an analysis and processing unit, in order to further reduce or avoid saturation or overload of the detector due to the reception of partially reflected echoes.

[0020] The following description provides preferred expansion solutions of the present invention.

[0021] In an advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the detector of the receiving unit is a SPAD (single photon avalanche diode)-based detector. This allows for particularly high sensitivity and / or range in environmental detection using this type of lidar sensor. Furthermore, a SPAD detector offers particularly high flexibility in determining the appropriate first and second light sensitivities. Alternatively or additionally, the lidar sensor can also be designed as a point scanner and / or line scanner and / or flash sensor.

[0022] In another advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the time interval of the time points of emitting the laser pulses is determined based on the propagation time of the laser pulses, which propagation time is obtained by the length of the optical path from the transmitting unit to the protective window and from the protective window to the receiving unit. Alternatively or additionally, the time interval is also determined based on the duration and / or variation process and / or amplitude of the laser pulses. By making the time points of emitting the laser pulses known to the analysis unit, the time points of switching from the first receiving mode to the second receiving mode can be determined accordingly by the analysis unit, and the switching process can be started at the determined time point or at a time point with a predefined time deviation from the determined time. The time points of emitting the laser pulses can be provided to the analysis unit via the transmitting unit and / or other components of the lidar sensor. Alternatively or additionally, the emission of the laser pulses can also be initiated by the analysis unit itself, so that the time points of emission can be determined based on this initiation. The above-mentioned predefined deviation amount can advantageously be matched to the duration and / or time variation of the laser pulse, so that, for example, the switching process between the sensitivity modes is only performed at a time point in the region of the falling edge of the laser pulse, to ensure that saturation is not reached in the detector due to premature switching.

[0023] The evaluation unit is advantageously configured to operate all or some of the detector's pixels in a first receiving mode in a non-enhanced mode, a linear mode, a Geiger mode (i.e., above the breakdown voltage of the detector's photodiodes, where Geiger mode stands for single-photon detection), or a mixed mode, and / or to operate these pixels in a second receiving mode in a mixed mode or a Geiger mode. A mixed mode is understood to be an operating mode in which a bias voltage (in particular, a reverse bias voltage) within the breakdown voltage range is applied to the detector's photodiodes, such that, statistically speaking, some of the photodiodes (i.e., receiving pixels) are in linear mode and some are in Geiger mode. Furthermore, individual detector pixels of the detector can be evaluated individually and / or predefined groups of detector pixels can be defined as macropixels, whose individual received signals cancel each other out and result in a single overall signal. In one exemplary embodiment, the detector is configured by means of the evaluation unit such that the detector operates in a linear mode in the first receiving mode and in a Geiger mode in the second receiving mode. Alternatively, it is also conceivable that the detector operates in a hybrid operating mode in the first receiving mode and in a Geiger operating mode in the second receiving mode. Furthermore, the photodiode can also be used in a non-enhanced operating mode in the first mode, so that partial reflections result in no or only low amplitudes in the corresponding signal components. Consequently, a particularly reliable separation of useful echoes from partially reflected echoes can be achieved accordingly. Furthermore, any other combination of operating states is possible in the first and second receiving modes, which are preferably set depending on the configuration of the lidar sensor and / or the current boundary conditions and / or the current use of the lidar sensor.

[0024] The evaluation unit is particularly advantageously configured to switch from the first reception mode to the second reception mode when the amplitude value of the falling edge of the first signal component of the laser pulse reflected by the protective window falls below a predefined threshold value. This offers the particular advantage of adapting the switching time to the current boundary conditions. In an exemplary case, the outer surface quality of the protective window deteriorates due to damage during the service life of the lidar sensor, so that the component of partial reflections from the protective window is expected to be higher, which could lead to higher saturation in the detector if the coverage of the useful echo by the partially reflected echo changes in time (e.g., is prolonged). By using threshold values ​​to determine the switching time between the reception modes, the switching time can advantageously be adapted to the changing boundary conditions, thereby ensuring a reliable distinction between useful echoes and partially reflected echoes regardless of whether the boundary conditions have changed.

[0025] The lidar sensor is further advantageously configured to maintain a corresponding predefined light sensitivity in the first reception mode and / or in the second reception mode by means of regulation, for example by adjusting the amplitude of the individual signal components by adapting the bias voltages of the individual photodiodes to corresponding target values ​​(e.g., maximum permissible amplitude values). This regulation is particularly advantageous because it allows the corresponding light sensitivity to be set or maintained particularly precisely. For example, even negligible temperature changes can cause the light sensitivity set by means of the corresponding bias voltage to change in an unintended manner. Furthermore, this regulation has the advantage that the degree of impairment of the light transmission of the protective window can be determined based on the degree of regulation. This information about the degree of impairment of the light transmission can be used, in particular, to assess the reliability of object recognition using the lidar sensor and / or to output informational messages to the user (e.g., cleaning and / or service recommendations, etc.), and / or to activate a limited-function operating mode, etc.

[0026] The lidar sensor is preferably configured to control the light sensitivity based on an evaluation of the amplitude and / or width and / or area and / or time profile of the respective received signal components. The light sensitivity can also be controlled at the pixel level and / or at the macropixel level and / or globally, i.e., for the entire detector surface.

[0027] In another advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the evaluation unit is configured to adapt the light sensitivity in the first reception mode and / or in the second reception mode, and / or the time of switching from the first reception mode to the second reception mode, as a function of the current rotation angle of a deflection unit of the lidar sensor, when the lidar sensor is configured as a scanning lidar sensor. The deflection unit is used, for example, to deflect a point-shaped or line-shaped laser beam generated by a stationary transmitting unit in the horizontal and / or vertical direction, thereby shifting the laser beam temporally over the entire field of view to be detected by the lidar sensor. Adapting the light sensitivity and / or the switching time as a function of the rotation angle offers the advantage that fluctuations in the intensity of the partial reflections caused by different angles of incidence on the protective glass during the scanning process of the lidar sensor can be at least partially compensated, thereby ensuring a high degree of reliability in distinguishing between usable echoes and partially reflected echoes, regardless of the respective rotation angle of the deflection unit. Alternatively or additionally, it is also advantageous to adapt the light sensitivity in the first reception mode and / or in the second reception mode, and / or the time of switching from the first reception mode to the second reception mode, depending on the position of the protective window and / or the degree of impairment of the light transmittance (e.g., caused by dust, scratches, heating wires integrated in the protective window, etc.). This also ensures the aforementioned advantage of substantially uniform distinguishability between the wanted echo and the partially reflected echo.

[0028] Furthermore, the evaluation unit is advantageously configured to perform a calibration of the light sensitivity of the detector for the first reception mode and / or the second reception mode. For example, this calibration is performed by one or more environmental detection processes with different bias voltages in order to set the optimal bias voltage in each case depending on the prevailing boundary conditions. For example, calibration can be considered complete if a maximum permissible threshold value for the amplitude of the signal generated in the detector is maintained and / or below, and / or if a distinguishability between the partially reflected echo and the echo of a nearby object is obtained, which distinguishability is determined, for example, based on compliance with a predefined minimum probability of detection for specific objects, in particular nearby objects. This calibration can also be performed before or during system startup of the lidar sensor and / or repeatedly during an operating mode of the lidar sensor.

[0029] According to a second aspect of the present invention, a vehicle having a lidar sensor according to the first aspect of the invention is provided. The vehicle is, for example, a road vehicle (e.g., a bus, a transport vehicle, a truck, a motorcycle, etc.) or a rail vehicle, an aircraft / aircraft, or a water vehicle. The lidar sensor is used, for example, in an environment detection system of the vehicle, which system can be used in particular for partially automated and / or fully automated driving operations, and / or for different driver assistance systems of the vehicle. These features, feature combinations, and the advantages derived therefrom correspond to those explained in conjunction with the first-mentioned aspect of the invention, so that, in order to avoid repetition, reference can be made to the above explanations. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] The embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an embodiment of a lidar sensor according to the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 A diagram showing an example temporal course of a laser pulse echo and the electrical signal corresponding thereto; and

[0033] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of an embodiment of a vehicle according to the present invention in combination with a lidar sensor according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] Figure 1 A schematic diagram shows an embodiment of a lidar sensor according to the present invention, which comprises a transmitting unit 10 , a receiving unit 20 , a protective window 30 , a housing 40 , an evaluation unit 50 and a deflection unit 90 .

[0035] Transmitting unit 10 , receiving unit 20 , evaluation unit 50 and deflection unit 90 are arranged inside housing 40 of the lidar sensor, while protective window 30 , here made of a transparent plastic material, is integrated into an opening in the wall of housing 40 .

[0036] Here, the lidar sensor is designed as a line scanner in that the transmitting unit 10 is configured to generate a linear laser pulse 60 by means of a laser diode arrangement and to transmit the linear laser pulse 60 via a rotational movement of the deflection unit 90 (see Figure 1 The laser pulse is deflected into the environment by the laser radar sensor.

[0037] The analysis unit 50, which is designed here as an ASIC, is connected to the transmitting unit 10 and the receiving unit 20 in an information technology manner and is configured in this way to control the transmitting unit 10 so as to generate corresponding laser pulses 60 with the aid of the transmitting unit 10 at predefined points in time, wherein the corresponding laser pulses 60 are irradiated through the protective window 30 into the environment via the deflection unit 90 for detecting the environment of the lidar sensor.

[0038] Receiving unit 20 is configured to receive, by means of detector 22 , here a detector of a SPAD, the portion of the emitted laser pulse 60 in the surroundings that is reflected by protective window 30 and to generate a signal corresponding to the portion of the reflected laser pulse 60 .

[0039] The evaluation unit 50 is further configured to place the receiving unit 20 in a first receiving mode before receiving the corresponding partial reflections 70 of the laser pulse 60, which are caused by the protective window 30 within the lidar sensor. The first receiving mode corresponds to a linear operating mode of the SPAD photodiodes of the detector 22, which is activated by the evaluation unit 50 by applying a corresponding first reverse bias voltage U1 (see Figure 2 ) to set.

[0040] Furthermore, the evaluation unit 50 is configured to place the receiving unit 20 in a second receiving mode within a time interval after the emission of the laser pulse 60, wherein the receiving unit 20 has a lower light sensitivity in the first receiving mode than in the second receiving mode. This is achieved in that the second receiving mode corresponds to the Geiger operating mode of the SPAD photodiodes of the detector 22, which is achieved by the evaluation unit 50 by applying a corresponding second reverse bias voltage U2 (see Figure 2 ) to set.

[0041] The time interval for transmitting the laser pulse 60 corresponds to the switching time from the first receiving mode to the second receiving mode, which is determined dynamically by the evaluation unit 50 and is determined whenever the amplitude value of the falling edge of the first signal component 80 of the laser pulse 60 reflected by the protective window 30 falls below a predefined threshold value S (see Figure 2 ), the switching time point will exist.

[0042] Furthermore, the evaluation unit 50 is further configured to receive the signal generated by the receiving unit 20 and to distinguish the first signal component 80 (see FIG. 1 ) generated by the partial reflection on the protective window 30. Figure 2 ) and a second signal component 85 resulting from reflections on objects in the environment of the lidar sensor (see Figure 2 ). The two signal components 80, 85 are here distinguished from one another based on a detection threshold for the amplitudes of the signal components 80, 85, wherein the detection threshold is advantageously a dynamically adaptable detection threshold that is adapted as a function of current boundary conditions (e.g., the maximum and / or average illumination intensity present at the detector 22) in order to permanently ensure optimal distinguishability of the signal components 80, 85.

[0043] The evaluation unit 50 is also particularly advantageously configured to maintain a corresponding predefined light sensitivity by means of control in the first reception mode and / or in the second reception mode, and to determine, based on the degree of this control, the degree of impairment of the light transmittance of the protective window 30. The control of the light sensitivity is performed here based on an evaluation of the area and time profile of the received signal components 80 and 85, respectively.

[0044] Figure 2 Graph showing an exemplary time course of laser pulse echoes which are caused by partial reflection 70 on the protective window 30 (see FIG. Figure 1 or Figure 3 ) and is derived by object reflection 75 on an object in the environment of the lidar sensor. In addition, electrical signals 80 and 85 are shown (see Figure 1 or Figure 3 ), which are generated by the receiving unit 20 and correspond respectively to the laser pulse echoes.

[0045] Figure 2 The upper figure shows the detector 22 in the receiving unit 20 (see Figure 1 ), which are generated by partial reflection 70 of laser pulse 60 and object reflection 75. Furthermore, this figure shows the change in the bias voltage applied to the individual photodiodes of detector 22. The bias voltage is switched from a first bias voltage U1 to a second bias voltage U2 at switching time Ts, so that the light sensitivity of detector 22 before switching time Ts is lower than after switching time Ts.

[0046] This results in a first signal component 80 (see FIG. 1 ) being generated by the detector 22 and corresponding to the reception of the partial reflection 70. Figure 2 ) and the second signal component 85 generated by the detector 22 (see Figure 2 ) at least partially compensate for one another with respect to their respective amplitudes A. This has the effect that the probability of first signal component 80 becoming saturated and, consequently, the probability of second signal component 80 being disadvantageously overlapped by first signal component 85 is reduced.

[0047] For comparison, an exemplary saturation signal 110 is shown by means of a dashed line, which could be caused by the partial reflection 70 at the switching time Ts without switching the light sensitivity in the detector 22, and which could lead to an unfavorable overlapping of the second signal component 85, resulting in no or only limited detection of objects in the vicinity due to this unfavorable overlapping.

[0048] Figure 3 A schematic diagram shows an embodiment of a vehicle 100 according to the present invention, which is constructed here as a passenger car and is combined with a lidar sensor according to the present invention, wherein the lidar sensor is represented by a housing 40, a protective window 30, a transmitting unit 10, a receiving unit 20 and an analysis unit 50, but is not limited to the above-mentioned components.

[0049] The lidar sensor according to the present invention is connected to a system 120 for automated driving operation of vehicle 100 by means of information technology, so that vehicle 100 is configured to receive the output signal generated by the lidar sensor and to automatically control vehicle 100 based on the output signal. Since the output signal of the lidar sensor according to the present invention contains particularly reliable information about objects in the vicinity of the lidar sensor, particularly safe automated driving operation of vehicle 100 is possible, which can involve, for example, traffic scenarios in the environment of vehicle 100 such as intervening vehicles and / or vehicles with overhanging loads, and / or traffic scenarios different from the aforementioned traffic scenarios.

Claims

1. A laser radar sensor comprising: a sending unit (10), a receiving unit (20), Protective window (30), a housing (40), and an analysis and processing unit (50), in, The transmitting unit (10) and the receiving unit (20) are arranged inside the housing (40), and the protective window (30) is integrated into an opening of a wall of the housing (40). The transmitting unit (10) is configured to generate laser pulses (60) which are emitted through the protective window (30) into the environment for detecting the environment of the laser radar sensor. The receiving unit (20) is configured to receive, by means of a detector (22), a component of the laser pulse (60) emitted through the protective window (30) and reflected in the environment, and to generate a signal corresponding to the reflected component of the laser pulse (60), and the analyzing unit (50) is configured to: placing the receiving unit (20) in a first receiving mode before receiving a partial reflection (70) of a corresponding laser pulse (60), the partial reflection being caused by the protective window (30) inside the lidar sensor, placing the receiving unit (20) in a second receiving mode for emitting the laser pulse (60) during a time interval, wherein the receiving unit (20) has a lower light sensitivity in the first receiving mode than in the second receiving mode, and A signal generated by the receiving unit (20) is received and a first signal component (80) generated by partial reflection on the protective window (30) and a second signal component (85) generated by reflection on an object in the environment of the lidar sensor are distinguished.

2. The laser radar sensor according to claim 1, wherein: The detector (22) of the receiving unit (20) is a SPAD detector, and / or The lidar sensor is designed as a point scanner and / or a line scanner and / or a flash sensor.

3. The lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The time interval for emitting the laser pulses (60) is a predefined time interval, which is based on: The propagation time of the laser pulse (60) is determined, the propagation time resulting from the length of the optical path from the transmitting unit (10) to the protective window (30) and from the protective window (30) to the receiving unit (20), and / or The duration and / or the time course and / or the amplitude of the laser pulse (60) are determined.

4. The lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The analysis and processing unit (50) is configured to switch from the first receiving mode to the second receiving mode when the amplitude (A) value of the falling edge of the first signal component (80) of the laser pulse (60) reflected by the protective window (30) is lower than a predefined threshold (S).

5. The lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The analysis and processing unit (50) is configured to: In a first receiving mode, all pixels of the detector (20) or part of the pixels of the detector (20) are operated in a non-intensified operating mode, a linear operating mode, a Geiger operating mode or a mixed operating mode, and / or In a second receiving mode, all pixels of the detector (20) or some of the pixels of the detector (20) are operated in a hybrid operating mode or a Geiger operating mode.

6. The lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The laser radar sensor is configured as follows: maintaining a corresponding predefined light sensitivity by means of regulation in the first receiving mode and / or in the second receiving mode, The degree of damage to the light transmittance of the protection window (30) is determined based on the degree of adjustment.

7. The laser radar sensor according to claim 6, wherein: The adjustment of the light sensitivity is performed based on an evaluation of the following characteristics of the respectively received signal components (80, 85): Amplitude (A), and / or width, and / or area, and / or Time change process.

8. The lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The evaluation unit (50) is configured, when the lidar sensor is designed as a scanning lidar sensor, to adapt the light sensitivity in the first reception mode and / or in the second reception mode and / or to adapt the time (Ts) of switching from the first reception mode to the second reception mode according to: The current rotation angle of the deflection unit (90) of the lidar sensor, and / or The position of the protection window (30) and / or the degree of damage to the light transmittance.

9. The lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The evaluation unit (50) is configured to perform a calibration of the light sensitivity of the detector (22) for the first reception mode and / or the second reception mode.

10. A vehicle (100) having a lidar sensor according to any one of the preceding claims.

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