Laser radar state detection device, laser radar and state detection method

Abstract

The present invention provides a state detection device that can be used for a laser radar, comprising: a fault diagnosis unit configured to perform fault diagnosis on a component of the laser radar, and output a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; a diagnosis management unit, the diagnosis management unit communicates with the fault diagnosis unit to receive the fault diagnosis signal, and is configured to determine the state of the laser radar according to the fault diagnosis signal. The present invention also provides a laser radar and a state detection method for the laser radar.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of optoelectronic technology, and in particular to a state detection device that can be used for a laser radar, a laser radar including the same, and a state detection method for a laser radar. Background Art

[0002] LiDAR is a general term for laser active detection sensor equipment. Its working principle is as follows: the transmitter of the laser radar emits a beam of laser. After the laser beam encounters an object, it is diffusely reflected and returns to the laser receiver. The radar module multiplies the time interval between sending and receiving signals by the speed of light and then divides it by 2 to calculate the distance between the transmitter and the object. According to the number of laser beams emitted by the laser radar, there are usually single-line laser radar, 4-line laser radar, 8 / 16 / 32 / 64-line laser radar, etc. One or more laser beams are emitted at different angles in the vertical direction and scanned in the horizontal direction to detect the three-dimensional contour of the target area. Multiple measurement channels (lines) correspond to scanning planes with multiple inclination angles. Therefore, the more laser beams emitted in the vertical field of view, the higher the angular resolution in the vertical direction and the greater the density of the laser point cloud.

[0003] The complete product of LiDAR includes optical, mechanical, and electronic components, as well as software algorithms. These may be the parts where the failure occurs. When a LiDAR fails, the cause of the failure is usually difficult to determine. There may be a failure in the device itself (such as an electrical component burning out under high voltage) or a mismatch between components (such as deformation of component a and component b under high temperature, which makes them no longer able to lock). In the prior art, LiDAR serves as the eyes of unmanned driving and a sensor for active real-time detection. If the failure of the LiDAR or whether it is working properly cannot be discovered and confirmed in time, the vehicle cannot be controlled to perform corresponding driving operations to deal with possible failures or abnormalities. In this way, there are many safety hazards. In addition, after discovering that the LiDAR has failed, the LiDAR needs to be disassembled or inspected to check the possible causes of the failure one by one. The detection process is cumbersome, time-consuming and labor-intensive.

[0004] The contents of the background technology section are merely the technologies known to the public and do not necessarily represent the existing technologies in the field. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of at least one problem in the prior art, the present invention provides a state detection device that can be used for a laser radar, a laser radar including the same, and a state detection method for a laser radar.

[0006] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a state detection device that can be used for a laser radar, comprising:

[0007] A fault diagnosis unit configured to perform fault diagnosis on components of the laser radar and output a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed;

[0008] A diagnosis management unit communicates with the fault diagnosis unit to receive the fault diagnosis signal and is configured to determine the state of the laser radar based on the fault diagnosis signal.

[0009] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, comprising: the state detection device as described above.

[0010] The present invention also relates to a state detection method of a laser radar, comprising:

[0011] Performing fault diagnosis on components of the laser radar through a fault diagnosis unit, and outputting a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; and

[0012] The fault diagnosis signal is received by a diagnosis management unit, and the state of the laser radar is determined according to the fault diagnosis signal. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The drawings constituting a part of the present disclosure are used to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure. The illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure and their descriptions are used to explain the present disclosure and do not constitute an improper limitation on the present disclosure. In the drawings:

[0014] Figure 1A A schematic diagram of a state detection device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0015] Figure 1B A schematic diagram of a state detection device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0016] Figure 1C A schematic diagram of a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which a Figure 1A The state detection device shown;

[0017] Figure 2A shows multiple states of a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 2B shows multiple states of a laser radar according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2C The working mode of the laser radar power supply when switching to shutdown according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0020] Figure 3 shows the initialization stage of a laser radar according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 4 The diagram shows the interaction between the upper and lower bin plates according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a laser radar according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0023] Figure 6 A state detection method according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0024] Figure 7 An example of a laser radar is shown;

[0025] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the structure inside the laser radar is shown;

[0026] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of a transmitting unit of a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0027] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of a detection circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0028] Fig.11 shows an arrangement of photodetectors according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Fig.12 A method for detecting a transmitting unit of a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0030] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of a laser radar transmitting end component according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0031] Fig.14 A schematic diagram showing a preferred circuit structure of the laser radar transmitting end component according to FIG1 is shown;

[0032] Fig.15 A fault diagnosis method according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0033] Figures 16A-16E The preset waveforms of various faults according to an embodiment of the present invention are respectively shown;

[0034] Fig.17 A laser radar transmitting end assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0035] Fig.18 A laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0036] Fig.19 An exploded view of a receiving unit of a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0037] Fig. 20 A schematic diagram of an LED light source according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0038] Fig.21 A test schematic diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; and

[0039] Fig. 22 A control method of a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0040] Fig.23 A schematic diagram of a laser radar receiving end component is shown;

[0041] Fig.24 A fault diagnosis method that can be used for a laser radar receiving end according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0042] Fig.25 A schematic diagram of performing a test according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0043] Fig.26 shows the waveform of a test signal and the waveform of an output signal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Fig. 27 An embodiment of a laser radar receiving end is shown;

[0045] Fig.28 A laser radar receiving end component according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; and

[0046] Fig.29 A laser radar receiving end component according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0047] Fig.30 A point cloud rationality diagnosis method applicable to laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; and

[0048] Fig.31 A laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0049] Fig.32 A power supply anomaly monitoring system for LIDAR according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0050] Fig.33 A LIDAR system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0051] Fig.34 A power supply anomaly monitoring method for LIDAR according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0052] Fig.35 A prior art encoding disc is shown;

[0053] Fig.36 A schematic diagram of an encoding disc according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0054] Fig.37 A pulse schematic diagram of a first zero degree position is shown;

[0055] Fig.38 A pulse schematic diagram showing a second zero degree position;

[0056] Fig.39 A schematic diagram of an encoding disk according to another embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0057] Fig.40 A schematic diagram of a photoelectric encoding device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0058] Fig.41 A schematic diagram of a photoelectric encoding device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0059] Fig.42 A schematic diagram showing a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

[0060] Fig.43 A method for angular orientation using the encoding disk of the present invention is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0061] In the following, only some exemplary embodiments are briefly described. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the described embodiments may be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the drawings and descriptions are considered to be exemplary and non-restrictive in nature.

[0062] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "clockwise", "counterclockwise" and the like indicate positions or positional relationships based on the positions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, which are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention. In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are only used for descriptive purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "multiple" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0063] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection, an electrical connection, or can communicate with each other; it can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0064] In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include that the first and second features are in direct contact, or may include that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact through another feature between them. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" and "above" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" and "below" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0065] The disclosure below provides many different embodiments or examples to realize different structures of the present invention. In order to simplify the disclosure of the present invention, the parts and settings of specific examples are described below. Of course, they are only examples, and the purpose is not to limit the present invention. In addition, the present invention can repeat reference numbers and / or reference letters in different examples, and this repetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity, which itself does not indicate the relationship between the various embodiments and / or settings discussed. In addition, the present invention provides various specific examples of processes and materials, but those of ordinary skill in the art can be aware of the application of other processes and / or the use of other materials.

[0066] The preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the preferred embodiments described herein are only used to illustrate and explain the present invention, and are not used to limit the present invention.

[0067] Figure 1AA state detection device 10 that can be used for a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, comprising a fault diagnosis unit and a diagnosis management unit. The fault diagnosis unit is configured to perform fault diagnosis on components of the laser radar, and output a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed. The diagnosis management unit communicates with the fault diagnosis unit to receive the fault diagnosis signal, and is configured to determine the state of the laser radar based on the fault diagnosis signal. The components of the laser radar include, but are not limited to, a transmitting unit, a receiving unit and a point cloud generation unit, a motor, a power supply, an encoder and a communication component of the laser radar. The fault diagnosis unit can monitor the state of one or more components, and when an abnormality is found, output a diagnostic signal S to the diagnosis management unit, and the diagnosis management unit determines the state of the laser radar based on the fault diagnosis signal.

[0068] The laser radar integrates multiple electronic, mechanical, and optical devices, which are functionally classified into power supply modules, control units (such as upper and lower warehouse boards), transmitting units, receiving units, storage units, communication units and other functional modules. A fault diagnosis unit and a diagnosis management unit are added in the present invention. Each functional module of the laser radar may include, for example, a controller (such as an integrated circuit board) and a controlled device, and the controlled device is enabled to perform a predetermined function through the controller. For one or more of the functional modules (or for each functional module), a corresponding fault diagnosis unit is respectively set to perform fault diagnosis of the functional module. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the fault diagnosis unit can be separate from the controller or integrated into the controller, as long as the preset diagnostic function can be completed. Through such an overall architecture, as the functional modules of the laser radar are expanded, corresponding fault diagnosis units can be added synchronously to achieve synchronous expansion.

[0069] The fault detection device of the present invention can operate independently of other functional modules of the laser radar, and its diagnosis timing and cycle are determined according to the specific situation of the object being diagnosed. When the laser radar is started, if the diagnostic system is not started normally, a corresponding indication signal can be output to the perception system in a timely manner. In addition, the state monitoring device of the present invention has universal applicability and can be added to an existing laser radar as an independent system.

[0070] Figure 1B and 1C A state detection device 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The state detection device 10 is installed in a laser radar 1, for example, and can be used to detect the working state of the laser radar 1. The following is a detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0071] The laser radar 1 includes an upper warehouse plate 11 and a lower warehouse plate 13. The upper warehouse plate 11 and the lower warehouse plate 13 can be circuit boards, for example. The upper warehouse plate 11 can be implemented by FPGA, and the lower warehouse plate 13 can be implemented by part of FPGA and part of CPU core (for example, microprocessor or microcontroller). Alternatively, the upper warehouse plate 11 and the lower warehouse plate 13 can also be implemented by DSP or FPGA with CPU. As the brain of the laser radar, the upper warehouse plate 11 and the lower warehouse plate 13 can be connected to multiple optical, electronic and mechanical components of the laser radar to provide corresponding circuit connection control and / or mechanical support. In the shell of the laser radar, relatively speaking, the upper warehouse plate 11 can be installed above the lower warehouse plate 13. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the transmitting unit, the receiving unit and the point cloud generation unit of the laser radar can be connected to the upper warehouse plate 11, for example, carried on the upper surface or the lower surface of the upper warehouse plate 11. The transmitting unit includes one or more lasers, laser driving circuits, and optical components such as lenses, configured to transmit a detection laser beam to the outside of the laser radar; the receiving unit includes photodetectors such as APD, SiPM, SPAD, etc., for receiving the echo of the detection laser beam after it is reflected on the target object and converting the echo into an electrical signal; the point cloud generation unit is configured to calculate the flight time of the detection laser beam according to the electrical signal, thereby obtaining relevant information such as the distance and reflectivity of the target object, and generating point cloud data of the laser radar, which will be described in detail below. The motor, power supply, encoder and communication components of the laser radar can be connected to the lower compartment plate 13 of the laser radar 1. Taking a mechanical laser radar as an example, it usually includes an optical rotor (the transmitting unit and the receiving unit are usually located in the optical rotor, which are used to transmit the detection laser beam in different directions and receive the echo). The motor provides the power required for the rotation of the optical rotor of the laser radar, so that the optical rotor can rotate at a preset speed, such as 10Hz or 20Hz. The laser radar usually does not have an independent power supply inside, but obtains power input from the outside, such as from a vehicle-mounted power supply. The power module of the laser radar usually includes a boost circuit and a power management module, wherein the boost circuit is used to boost the input voltage (usually 5V or 15V) to the working voltage required by the laser radar (for example, 60V), and the power management module is used to distribute electrical energy to various components on the laser radar that need power. Encoders and code disks are usually used to encode and measure the rotation of the laser radar's optical rotor, thereby obtaining the rotation speed and current angular position of the laser radar's optical rotor. The communication component is used for communication between the fixed component and the rotating component inside the laser radar and between the laser radar and the external perception system.

[0072] like Figure 1BAs shown, the state detection device 10 includes a first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 (Fault Diagnostic Unit), a second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131 and a diagnostic management unit DMU 132 (Diagnostic Management Unit). The first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 is configured to perform fault diagnosis on the components of the laser radar 1 installed or connected to the upper warehouse plate 11, and output a first fault diagnosis signal S1 when a fault is diagnosed; the second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131 is configured to perform fault diagnosis on the components of the laser radar installed or connected to the lower warehouse plate 13, and output a second fault diagnosis signal S2 when a fault is diagnosed. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the first fault diagnosis signal S1 and the second fault diagnosis signal S2 may include one or more of the fault type, the name or number of the faulty component, specific fault information, etc. The diagnostic management unit DMU 132 communicates with the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 and the second fault diagnosis unit 131 to receive the first fault diagnosis signal S1 and the second fault diagnosis signal S2, and is configured to determine the state of the laser radar according to the first fault diagnosis signal S1 and the second fault diagnosis signal S2. In a specific implementation, based on the consideration of engineering implementation, in order to preferentially transmit point cloud data, after the first fault diagnosis signal S1 is generated, it can be temporarily stored in a random access memory set on the upper warehouse board 11, and selected at a certain time to be transmitted to the random access memory of the lower warehouse board 13 through wireless communication, and the second fault diagnosis signal S2 can be stored in the memory after it is generated. Compared with the laser radar, the external perception system or diagnostic equipment can obtain all or part of the fault storage data by request, which will be described in detail below.

[0073] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diagnosis management unit DMU 132 is coupled to the point cloud generation unit PCO112, and is configured to receive the point cloud data (D_Cloud) corresponding to the first fault diagnosis signal S1 when the first fault diagnosis signal S1 is received, that is, the point cloud data at the time of the fault is transmitted to the diagnosis management unit. For example, when one or two lasers or detectors fail, the point cloud data corresponding to the laser or detector will be erroneous data, which can be discarded later according to requirements.

[0074] The diagnostic system of the present invention can perform corresponding detection on the radar system according to the working state of the radar. The content, method, parameters, and algorithm of the diagnosis can be adjusted accordingly according to the working state. According to one embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2AAs shown, the states of the laser radar include: initialization state, normal state, degraded state, and shutdown state. In the initialization state, the laser radar performs self-check operations and motor start-up operations. Usually, when the laser radar is just powered on and the motor has not yet reached the base speed (for example, one or more speeds of the light machine rotor when the laser radar is working normally, which can be expressed in frequency units, such as 10Hz or 20Hz), the laser radar is in the initialization stage; or during the normal operation of the laser radar, it can also actively trigger initialization again, or according to the external request received, the laser radar goes through the initialization state again, performs self-check operations and motor start-up operations. In addition, the self-test operation can be started or triggered in a variety of ways, such as triggering the self-test through an external (relative to the outside of the laser radar itself) perception system, specifically by sending an external signal to request the laser radar to self-test; in addition or alternatively, the self-test can also be triggered by the internal (laser radar itself) system, that is, the self-test is triggered when the LiDAR meets certain conditions (such as a certain period of time or the laser radar is in a certain working state); for example, maintenance self-test, that is, the self-test performed by using diagnostic tools (equipment / programs) during the laser radar after-sales process. The content of the self-test detection may include but is not limited to one or more combinations of the following diagnoses: transmitter fault diagnosis, receiver fault diagnosis, voltage status diagnosis (including high voltage and / or low voltage), communication status diagnosis (including communication between the internal upper and lower warehouse boards and / or communication between the laser radar and the external perception system), clock status diagnosis, point cloud rationality judgment, power supply anomaly detection, control chip diagnosis, motor or other rotating parts status diagnosis, optical / mechanical device fault diagnosis.

[0075] In addition, those skilled in the art understand that the self-check operation can also be independent of the initialization state and constitute a self-check state alone. In this case, the state of the laser radar will include: initialization state, self-check state, normal state, degraded state, and shutdown state.

[0076] The normal state indicates that the laser radar is in a normal working state, no fault of the laser radar components is detected, and it operates in the highest performance or preset performance mode. In the normal state, the first fault diagnosis unit FDU111 and the second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131 can perform periodic fault detection on the laser radar components. The periodic fault detection is a device status diagnosis operation performed at a fixed time interval. At this time, the laser radar is in a normal working state, and the execution process of the periodic fault detection operation will not affect the normal operation of the radar, such as the output of the radar point cloud and the rotation of the motor. Specifically, the content of the periodic fault detection may include but is not limited to one or more combinations of the following diagnoses: transmitter fault diagnosis, receiver fault diagnosis, voltage status diagnosis (including high voltage and / or low voltage), communication status diagnosis (including communication between the internal upper and lower warehouse boards and / or communication between the laser radar and the external perception system), clock status diagnosis, point cloud rationality judgment, power supply anomaly detection, use of an additional LED to detect whether the photodetector is working properly, use of an additional photodetector to detect whether the laser is working properly, control chip diagnosis, motor or other rotating component status diagnosis, optical / mechanical component fault diagnosis.

[0077] The degradation state usually indicates that the laser radar unit is still working, and some performance or parameters have decayed, but are still within an acceptable range. In the degradation state, the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 and the second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131 perform periodic fault detection on the laser radar, and record at least part of the data of the laser radar, for example, the status of the faulty component can be continuously monitored and recorded. In the shutdown state, the laser radar is powered off and stops working, and at least part of the data of the laser radar is recorded, for example, when it is shut down due to insufficient power supply or forced power off, the relevant information of the component with serious fault is recorded. In addition, preferably, if Figure 2B As shown in , a certain delay time is set before the laser radar is powered off and stops working, such as Figure 2B As shown in Delay-2 in the figure, the corresponding operation is performed during the delay time, for example, the vehicle can start other sensors such as cameras, or remind the operator that the laser radar will be powered off and shut down, requiring the operator to take over and control the vehicle in time. Similarly, before the laser radar enters the degraded state and operates with reduced performance or parameters, a certain delay time can also be set, such as Figure 2B As shown in Delay-1 in FIG, corresponding operations can be performed during this period of time. For example, the vehicle can start other sensors such as cameras, or remind the operator that the lidar is about to enter a degraded state. The operator can choose to take over and control the vehicle.

[0078] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic system can pre-classify common faults of the laser radar, and divide them into primary faults and secondary faults according to their severity and consequences, and can provide different processing options for different types of faults. For example, for some faults with a lower impact, when these faults occur, the laser radar can still work, and the performance / parameters are attenuated to a certain extent, but this attenuation is still within an acceptable range. These faults can be classified as primary faults, and correspondingly, the laser radar is in the above-mentioned degradation state. According to a non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, primary faults include but are not limited to the following types of faults. For a multi-beam laser radar (such as 64 lines), a small number of lasers and / or receivers cannot work properly, for example, 4 lasers and / or receivers cannot work properly. In this case, the remaining 60 lasers and receivers of the laser radar can still work properly, only the density and number of point clouds generated by them are reduced, but still within an acceptable range. For some faults with a higher impact, when these faults occur, the laser radar either cannot work, or the attenuation of the performance / parameters exceeds the acceptable range, and these faults can be classified as secondary faults, and correspondingly, the laser radar is in the above-mentioned shutdown state. When a secondary fault occurs, the laser radar needs to be powered off and shut down, and the relevant data when the laser radar fault occurs is recorded, including but not limited to the various technical parameters of the laser radar at that time. According to a non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, a secondary fault may be, for example, the failure of the laser radar motor to start during the initialization phase (for example, it does not start at all, or the speed after starting does not reach the base speed), or a considerable number of lasers and / or receivers (for example, 10, 20 or more lasers or receivers) in a multi-beam laser radar cannot work properly, etc.

[0079] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 can complete the following detection and diagnosis processes: transmitter fault diagnosis; receiver fault diagnosis; detection of photoelectric detectors by an additional LED; detection of light sources by an additional photoelectric detector. The second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131 can complete the following detection and diagnosis processes: point cloud rationality judgment; power supply anomaly detection; motor anomaly detection. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the transmitter unit and the receiver unit of the laser radar are carried by the upper warehouse board 11 or connected to the upper warehouse board 11, so the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 is configured to perform the transmitter fault diagnosis, the receiver fault diagnosis, the detector diagnosis by adding LEDs, and the light source diagnosis by adding photoelectric detectors; the power supply of the laser radar is carried by the lower warehouse board 13 or connected to the lower warehouse board 13, so the second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131 is configured to perform the power supply anomaly detection and point cloud rationality judgment. The specific process of each diagnostic process will be described in detail below.

[0080] like Figure 2A As shown, when the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 or the second fault diagnosis unit 131 detects a primary fault, the diagnosis management unit DMU 132 switches the state of the laser radar to a degraded state; when the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 or the second fault diagnosis unit 131 detects a secondary fault, the diagnosis management unit DMU132 switches the state of the laser radar to a shutdown state. According to an embodiment of the present invention, when switching to a shutdown state, the laser radar can turn off the communication function between its upper and lower compartments, or turn off the upper compartment power supply of the laser, or turn off both the communication function and the power supply of the upper compartment board. By cutting off the power supply of the upper compartment of the laser radar, it can be ensured that the laser stops emitting light to avoid causing eye safety problems. Among them, the upper compartment power supply can be directly from an external direct power supply or with the help of the driver chip of the lower compartment of the laser radar, because when the upper compartment power supply is cut off, the power supply link between the driver chip and the upper compartment board can be cut off, and the external power supply circuit can also be cut off. By turning off the communication function between the upper and lower compartments, the point cloud transmission can be stopped.

[0081] like Figure 2C As shown, according to an embodiment of the present invention, when switching to the shutdown state, the power supply to the communication driver chip is turned off, thereby turning off the communication function, and in addition, the power supply to the upper warehouse board is also turned off. The power supply to the upper warehouse board can come from the lower warehouse board, or can be directly from an external power supply. By turning off the power supply to the upper warehouse board, the power supply to the laser can be turned off, thereby ensuring that the laser does not emit light and cause eye safety problems.

[0082] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the degraded state, when the first fault diagnosis unit FDU111 and the second fault diagnosis unit 131 do not detect a fault, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 switches the state of the laser radar from the degraded state back to the normal state. In some cases, the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 and the second fault diagnosis unit 131 may mistakenly detect some faults, or some faults may be automatically eliminated after a period of time. Therefore, after a certain period of time, if no fault is detected, the state of the laser radar can be switched back to the normal state. For example, when one of the detectors of the laser radar is detected to be unable to output a normal electrical signal, the state of the laser radar may be switched to a degraded state. In practice, there is the possibility that the detector has not failed, but only failed to output a normal signal due to problems with ambient light. Then in the next cycle detection, the ambient light becomes normal, and the detector will show the ability to work normally, eliminating the fault state. In this case, the state of the laser radar can be switched back to the normal state.

[0083] like Figure 3As shown, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the self-test operation may include but is not limited to: self-test of the power supply and clock of the laser radar; self-test of the upper and lower warehouse boards; internal power supply self-test; self-test of the transmitting unit and the receiving unit; voltage diagnosis (including low voltage and high voltage); communication diagnosis (including internal and external); control chip diagnosis. The self-test of the power supply and clock, for example, includes detecting whether the power module of the laser radar can output the specified power supply and / or voltage and / or power, and whether the clock circuit can output a stable clock pulse; the self-test of the upper and lower warehouse boards, for example, includes self-test of the power supply of the upper and lower warehouse board circuit boards; the internal power supply self-test includes detecting whether the power module of the laser radar can supply power to various components inside the laser radar, including but not limited to lasers, detectors, motors, laser drive circuit modules, etc. The self-test of the transmitting unit and the receiving unit includes detecting whether the transmitting unit such as the laser and the receiving unit such as SiPM and Spad(s) can normally emit the detection laser beam and receive the radar echo. It will be described in detail below.

[0084] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the self-test operation can be performed in the following order: self-test of the power supply and clock of the laser radar (ST-1); self-test of the lower and upper warehouse boards (ST-2); internal power supply self-test (ST-3); self-test of the transmitting unit and the receiving unit (ST-4). Specifically, for the self-test operation, since the alignment of the power supply and the clock is the first element of orderly operation, the power supply / clock can be self-tested in the first step to confirm whether the power supply is short of power or insufficient, and whether the timing of the clock is consistent with expectations. For example, if the expected power supply voltage is 60V and the current power supply is 50V, it can be understood that the power supply voltage is low. If the power supply is 2V or even 0V, it can be understood as insufficient power supply. When the power supply / clock self-test in the first step confirms that there is no problem, the second step is to detect the upper and lower warehouse boards. In detail, since the lower warehouse board is generally a circuit board connected to an external power supply, the lower warehouse board will at least affect the work of the upper warehouse board to a certain extent. Therefore, the lower warehouse board can be tested first. After confirming that the work is normal, the upper warehouse board can be further tested. When the upper warehouse board is also confirmed to be correct, the third step can be performed. The third step: internal power supply self-test, that is, to detect whether the power supply from the upper and lower warehouse boards to other components inside the lidar is normal. The components include but are not limited to motors, light source drive circuits, echo processing circuits, etc. After confirming that the results of the third step self-test are normal, the fourth step can be performed. The fourth step: detection of the functions of the transmitter and receiver devices themselves. In order, the transmitter device can be tested first, and then the receiver device can be tested. The transmitter device includes but is not limited to the light source and the light source drive circuit. The receiver device includes but is not limited to photoelectric detection devices such as APD, SPAD, SiPM, etc. and echo electrical signal processing devices. Of course, the above sequence is only an example, but not a limitation. In actual operation, those skilled in the art may adjust the specific steps performed in the self-check operation as needed.

[0085] According to one embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 As shown, the upper and lower panels of the laser radar can interact in a bidirectional parallel manner or in a serial manner. Figure 4The left side of the figure shows that the upper and lower panels of the laser radar use a bidirectional and parallel interaction mode. The upper and lower panels perform self-tests independently. After receiving the light-emitting request from the lower panel, the upper panel starts the self-test, the laser emits light and performs detection. After the self-test is completed, there is no need to report the self-test results to the lower panel separately. If the self-test is successful, then the point cloud data (D_Cloud) subsequently sent by the upper panel to the lower panel will be accompanied by a handshake protocol or data indicating a successful handshake; conversely, if the self-test fails or a corresponding fault occurs, then the point cloud data subsequently sent by the upper panel to the lower panel will not be accompanied by a handshake protocol, or will be accompanied by data indicating a handshake failure. After the lower panel receives the point cloud data, if it does not contain a handshake protocol or contains data indicating a handshake failure, it can be determined that the point cloud data is incorrect.

[0086] Figure 4 The middle right side shows the serial interaction between the upper and lower panels of the laser radar. After the upper panel of the laser radar completes the self-test, it sends the self-test result information to the lower panel, including the information of success or failure of the self-test. Only when the self-test is successful will the lower panel send a light-emitting request to the upper panel, and the laser of the upper panel will emit light and detect.

[0087] like Figure 3 As shown, when the self-check operation is successful, the motor start operation can be performed. The motor start operation includes starting the motor drive circuit, starting the motor, and starting the encoder (and the code disk). During the startup of the encoder (and the code disk), fault diagnosis will be performed on the encoder and the code disk, for example, it can be performed by the second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a double zero point code disk is used in the laser radar (see the fifth aspect below). For the encoder and the code disk, diagnosis is performed according to the pulse information, for example, the code disk is rotated by a certain angle, the detection pulse of the encoder is output, and the detection pulse is compared with the preset template. If the two are consistent, it indicates that the encoder and the code disk are working normally; otherwise, it indicates that the encoder and the code disk are working abnormally. The detection of the encoder (and the code disk) can be performed during the self-check process of the laser radar and the periodic detection process.

[0088] After the motor starts and reaches the preset speed, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 switches the state of the laser radar 1 from the initialization state to the normal state. If the self-check operation and / or the motor start operation fails, so that the laser radar cannot work or the working performance is degraded to an unacceptable level (the specific situation will be related to the current use scenario. The unacceptable situation is that the current performance of the laser radar affects the realization of the function of the current use scenario. For example, if it is applied to an unmanned driving scenario, if the current performance of the laser radar cannot assist in safe unmanned driving, it is unacceptable; if it is applied to a logistics vehicle, if the current performance of the radar cannot support the correct delivery of goods to shoppers, it is unacceptable), the diagnostic management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the shutdown state; if the fault occurring in the self-check operation is a primary fault, the diagnostic management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the degraded state; if the fault occurring in the self-check operation is a secondary fault, the diagnostic management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the shutdown state.

[0089] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Figure 5 As shown, the state detection device 10 also includes a first buffer BUFF-1, a second buffer BUFF-2 and a fault memory MEM, wherein when the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 detects the existence of a fault, it triggers the caching of fault data to the first buffer BUFF-1; when the second fault diagnosis unit FDU131 detects the existence of a fault, it triggers the caching of fault data to the second buffer BUFF-2. The fault memory MEM is coupled to the first buffer BUFF-1 and can receive the fault data. The diagnosis management unit DMU 132 can receive the fault data stored in the second buffer BUFF-2 from the second fault diagnosis unit FDU 131, and optionally store the fault data in the fault memory MEM. Alternatively, the second buffer BUFF-2 can be coupled to the fault memory MEM, so that the fault data stored therein can be directly sent to the fault memory MEM. The first buffer BUFF-1 and the second buffer BUFF-2 can be volatile memories, which are only used to temporarily cache fault data during the operation of the laser radar. The fault memory MEM is a non-volatile memory, and the fault data inside it is still valid even if the power is off. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the first buffer BUFF-1 is arranged or connected to the upper compartment board 11, and the second buffer BUFF-2 and the fault memory MEM are arranged or connected to the lower compartment board 13. The fault memory MEM can be various types of memory, including but not limited to EMMC or EEPROM.

[0090] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 communicates with the fault memory MEM, and can output part or all of the fault data stored in the fault memory MEM according to the authority of the external request. For example, when the external perception system of the vehicle sends a request to the diagnostic management unit DMU 132, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 can retrieve part of the fault data and send it to the external perception system. For example, when the failure analyst of the radar sends a request to the diagnostic management unit DMU 132, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 can retrieve all the fault data and send it to the failure analyst.

[0091] In addition, when the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 learns that the laser radar has a fault, it can actively send the fault information to the perception system, for example, in the form of a fault message, or in the form of a fault. As described above, when a primary fault occurs, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 switches the state of the laser radar to a degraded state. When a secondary fault is detected, the diagnostic management unit DMU 132 switches the state of the laser radar to a shutdown state. Preferably, Figure 2B As shown, before the above state switching, a certain delay time can be set, such as Figure 2B As shown in Delay-1 and Delay-2 in the figure, this delay time is sent to the perception system and presented to the user of the vehicle so as to make processing as soon as possible to determine the next vehicle operation. For example, the vehicle can choose sensor transition (such as switching to camera, or millimeter wave radar, etc.), or the vehicle can choose to drive to a safe area. In a specific implementation, the information of the interaction between the laser radar and the external perception system may include but is not limited to: the working state of the laser radar and the jump between states, the fault type of the laser radar, and the health / confidence of each channel of the laser radar. The trigger cycle and presentation form of this information may be different. Among them, the health / confidence of each channel of the laser radar is information for evaluating the working state of each channel of the laser radar. For example, the laser radar has 32 lines in total, and the preset optical power of the laser of the second channel is 5w. According to the actual diagnosis result, the laser of the second channel can emit light, but the optical power is only 4w. If the full score of the health / confidence is 10 points, it can be scored as 7 points at this time, indicating that the laser of the second channel can work, but the confidence is not full. Alternatively, the health degree and confidence level may also be expressed as percentages, or the health degree and confidence level may only include two states, "normal" and "abnormal", all of which are within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0092] like Figure 2AAs shown, when the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 or the second fault diagnosis unit 131 detects a primary fault, the diagnosis management unit DMU 132 switches the state of the laser radar to a degraded state; when the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111 or the second fault diagnosis unit 131 detects a secondary fault, the diagnosis management unit DMU132 switches the state of the laser radar to a shutdown state.

[0093] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the state detection device further comprises a point cloud rationality diagnosis unit PCR 133, for example, arranged or connected to the lower warehouse plate 13, such as Figure 1C As shown. The point cloud rationality diagnosis unit PCR 133 is configured to receive the point cloud data (D_Cloud) and output the result information of whether the point cloud data is reasonable. The diagnosis management unit DMU 132 communicates with the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit PCR 133 and receives the result information of whether the point cloud data is reasonable from the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit PCR 133. The point cloud rationality diagnosis unit PCR 133 will be described in detail below.

[0094] The above description is based on a mechanical laser radar with an upper chamber plate and a lower chamber plate as an example. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the present invention is not limited thereto and can also be applied to other types of laser radars, such as solid-state laser radars.

[0095] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, comprising the state detection device as described above.

[0096] The laser radar also includes an upper warehouse plate and a lower warehouse plate, and components of the laser radar are respectively installed or connected on the upper warehouse plate and the lower warehouse plate, wherein the upper warehouse plate and the lower warehouse plate are implemented by FPGA and / or a microcontroller.

[0097] The present invention also provides a state detection method of a laser radar, comprising:

[0098] Performing fault diagnosis on components of the laser radar through a fault diagnosis unit, and outputting a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; and

[0099] The fault diagnosis signal is received by a diagnosis management unit, and the state of the laser radar is determined according to the fault diagnosis signal.

[0100] Figure 6 A state detection method 20 of a laser radar according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown, wherein the laser radar includes an upper warehouse plate and a lower warehouse plate, and the state detection method includes:

[0101] In step S21: a first fault diagnosis unit is used to diagnose a fault of a component of the laser radar installed or connected to the upper warehouse plate, and a first fault diagnosis signal is output when a fault is diagnosed;

[0102] In step S22: a second fault diagnosis unit is used to diagnose a fault of a component of the laser radar installed or connected to the lower warehouse plate, and a second fault diagnosis signal is output when a fault is diagnosed; and

[0103] In step S23: the first fault diagnosis signal and the second fault diagnosis signal are received by the diagnosis management unit, and the state of the laser radar is determined according to the first fault diagnosis signal and the second fault diagnosis signal.

[0104] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the laser radar includes a transmitting unit, a receiving unit and a point cloud generating unit arranged on the upper warehouse plate, wherein the transmitting unit is configured to transmit a detection laser beam to the outside of the laser radar, the receiving unit is configured to receive the echo of the detection laser beam after being reflected on the target object and convert it into an electrical signal, and the point cloud generating unit is configured to generate point cloud data of the laser radar according to the electrical signal, wherein the state detection method also includes: when the first fault diagnosis signal is received, receiving the point cloud data corresponding to the first fault diagnosis signal, that is, transmitting the point cloud data at the time of the fault to the diagnosis management unit.

[0105] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the laser radar includes a motor, a power supply, an encoder and a communication component arranged on the lower warehouse plate. The state of the laser radar includes: initialization state, normal state, degraded state, and shutdown state. The state detection method includes:

[0106] In the initialization state, performing a self-check operation and a motor start-up operation on the laser radar;

[0107] In the normal state, periodic detection is performed by the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit;

[0108] In the degraded state, periodic detection is performed by the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit, and at least part of the data of the laser radar is recorded;

[0109] In the shutdown state, the laser radar is powered off and at least part of the data of the laser radar is recorded.

[0110] As shown above, the faults of the laser radar include primary faults and secondary faults, and the state detection method also includes:

[0111] When the first fault diagnosis unit or the second fault diagnosis unit detects a primary fault, switching the state of the laser radar to a degraded state through the diagnosis management unit;

[0112] When the first fault diagnosis unit or the second fault diagnosis unit detects a secondary fault, the state of the laser radar is switched to a shutdown state through the diagnosis management unit.

[0113] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the state detection method 20 further includes: when the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit do not detect a fault in the degradation stage, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from a degraded state to a normal state.

[0114] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the self-test operation includes: self-test of the power supply and clock of the laser radar; self-test of the upper and lower warehouse plates; internal power supply self-test; self-test of the transmitting unit and the receiving unit, wherein the motor start operation is performed after the self-test operation is successful.

[0115] The state detection method further includes:

[0116] Wherein, when the self-test is successful in the initialization phase and the motor is started successfully, the state of the laser radar is switched from the initialization state to the normal state through the diagnosis management unit;

[0117] If the self-test of the power supply and the clock fails, or the self-test of the upper and lower panels fails, the state of the laser radar is switched from the initialization state to the shutdown state through the diagnosis management unit;

[0118] If the motor start-up operation fails, the state of the laser radar is switched from the initialization state to the shutdown state through the diagnosis management unit.

[0119] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the state detection method 20 further includes: when the first fault diagnosis unit determines that a fault exists, caching the fault data in a first cache;

[0120] When the second fault diagnosis unit determines that a fault exists, caching the fault data in a second cache;

[0121] The fault data is received from the first cache and the second cache via a fault memory.

[0122] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the state detection method 20 further includes: when an external request is received, outputting the fault data stored in the fault memory through the diagnosis management unit.

[0123] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the state detection method 20 further includes: judging whether the point cloud data is reasonable by a point cloud rationality diagnosis unit and outputting result information;

[0124] The diagnosis management unit receives result information on whether the point cloud data is reasonable from the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit.

[0125] It is easy for a person skilled in the art to understand that the above reference Figure 1B-Figure 6 The features described can also be combined and applied to Figure 1A The technical solution is not described here.

[0126] The first aspect: Transmitter fault diagnosis

[0127] The inventor of the present application has conceived that, in order to timely monitor the fault of the laser radar transmitter, one or more photoelectric sensors can be added to the laser radar transmitter unit, or the electrical signals of each node in the transmitter unit can be collected to determine whether the laser radar transmitter has a fault, and optionally determine what kind of fault exists. The following is a detailed description.

[0128] Example 1: PD (Photon Detection) board

[0129] The detection of the transmitting unit in this embodiment may constitute a part of the above-mentioned periodic fault detection and initialization self-test.

[0130] The inventors have conceived that a photoelectric sensor for detection can be set in the launch chamber of the laser radar to detect and determine whether each launch channel or laser of the laser radar is working properly. The following is a detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0131] The transmitting unit of the laser radar usually includes multiple lasers, which can be driven separately to emit detection beams, and each laser corresponds to a certain detection angle or detection field of view. The normal operation of the laser and related optoelectronic components is very necessary to ensure the high-precision detection of the laser radar. The inventor conceived that a photoelectric sensor for detection can be set in the transmitting chamber of the laser radar to detect and determine whether each transmitting channel or laser of the laser radar is working properly. The following is a detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0132] Figure 7 An embodiment of a laser radar 1 is shown. The laser radar 1 includes a transmitting unit and a receiving unit, wherein the transmitting unit is used to generate and emit a detection laser beam, the detection laser beam is diffusely reflected on an object outside the laser radar, and part of the reflected beam returns to the laser radar and is received and processed by the receiving unit. Figure 7A 16-line laser radar is schematically shown in the figure, that is, 16 laser beams L1, L2, ..., L15, L16 can be emitted along the vertical direction in the figure (each laser beam corresponds to a channel of the laser radar, a total of 16 channels) to detect the surrounding environment. During the detection process, the laser radar 100 can rotate along its vertical axis. During the rotation process, each channel of the laser radar sequentially emits laser beams and performs detection according to a certain time interval (for example, 1 microsecond) to complete a line scan on the vertical field of view, and then the next line scan of the vertical field of view is performed at a certain angle (for example, 0.1 degree or 0.2 degree) in the horizontal field of view direction, so that multiple detections are performed during the rotation process to form a point cloud, and the surrounding environment can be sensed.

[0133] like Figure 7 As shown, the laser radar 1 includes a housing 210 for accommodating or supporting mechanical, optical and electronic components of the laser radar 1. The housing has a transmitting chamber 211 and a receiving chamber 212. Figure 8 As shown, the launch chamber 211 is used to accommodate the launch unit 213 of the laser radar (see Fig. 9 ), such as laser assembly 2131, reflector, laser driving circuit, etc., the receiving chamber 212 is used to accommodate the receiving unit of the laser radar, such as reflector, detector array, signal processing circuit, etc. Usually, the transmitting chamber 211 and the receiving chamber 212 are isolated from each other to avoid mutual interference between the laser beam emitted by the laser and the echo received by the laser radar. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the transmitting chamber and the receiving chamber can be physically separated by one or more partitions, so as to better isolate the transmitting unit and the receiving unit and avoid crosstalk of light between the two. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the transmitting chamber and the receiving chamber do not have to be physically isolated, but can be roughly distinguished by the transmitting unit and the receiving unit contained therein, which are all within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0134] The present invention mainly relates to a transmitting chamber and a transmitting unit of a laser radar, so for the sake of simplicity, the receiving unit and the receiving chamber are not described in detail.

[0135] Fig. 9 FIG. 2 shows the arrangement of the transmitting unit 213 in the laser radar transmitting chamber 211. Fig. 9As shown, the transmitting unit 213 disposed in the transmitting chamber 211 of the laser radar includes a laser assembly 2131 and a transmitting lens 2132, and a reflector may be disposed between the laser assembly 2131 and the transmitting lens 2132 as required, so that the laser beam emitted by the transmitting assembly 2131 is incident on the transmitting lens 2132 after one or more reflections. The laser assembly 2131 includes a plurality of lasers, each of which can be driven individually and emits a laser beam. The laser assembly 2131 is located on the focal plane of the transmitting lens 2132, so that after the laser beam passes through the transmitting lens 2132, it will be modulated and shaped into a parallel beam and emitted into the three-dimensional space around the laser radar for detecting the target object.

[0136] like Fig. 9 As shown, a photoelectric detector 214 is provided in the launch chamber 211 of the laser radar and is mounted on the inner top wall of the launch chamber. Fig. 9 As shown, it is installed on a substrate 215, for example, the substrate 215 is a PCB circuit board, and the two together constitute a detection circuit. Fig. 9 In the figure, the substrate 215 is connected to the upper chamber plate of the laser radar through a flexible flat cable 216, which is used to provide voltage to the substrate 215 and the photodetector 214 and to transmit data signals unidirectionally or bidirectionally. The launch chamber 211 has an upper cover plate (the top wall of the launch chamber 211) 217, which has a positioning hole 2171. The substrate 215 also has a positioning hole, which corresponds to the position of the positioning hole 2171 of the upper cover plate 217, so that it can be fixedly connected to the upper cover plate 217 of the launch chamber through the positioning hole, so that the installation plane of the photodetector 215 and the light-emitting optical path of the laser assembly 2131 are basically parallel to each other, and the photosensitive surface of the photodetector 215 is parallel or slightly inclined to the light-emitting optical path of the laser assembly 2131. In addition, Fig. 9 In the embodiment, the photodetector 214 is disposed on the substrate 215, and further connected to the upper plate of the laser radar 1. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the present invention is not limited thereto, and the substrate 215 may not be disposed, and the photodetector 214 may be directly disposed on the upper plate of the laser radar 1, which is within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0137] like Fig. 9 As shown, when the laser on the laser assembly 2131 is driven to emit light, the direction of its main light path is roughly toward the direction of the emitting lens 2132, as shown in FIG. Fig. 9 As shown by the arrow of the main light path in the figure. However, in the actual light emission process of the laser, the laser does not have a strict directionality, so some stray light will be generated outside the main light path, such as Fig. 9The light spot shown as a circle in the figure has a large diffusion area, or its direction deviates greatly from the direction of the main light path. Therefore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the photodetector 214 is installed outside the main light path of the laser component 2131 and at a position where stray light can be irradiated, so as not to interfere with the normal light detection of the laser component 2131, and at the same time, the stray light of the laser component 2131 can be continuously measured, and the detector works. For example, when the laser emits light, the photodetector 214 on the substrate 215 can collect stray light outside the main light path emitted by the laser. For a laser, there is a certain corresponding relationship between the stray light and the light beam of the main light path. This preset relationship can be learned through experiments and is related to the type of laser, the driving voltage, and the specific position of the photodetector 214. When the laser is working normally, the stray light and the light beam of the main light path satisfy the corresponding relationship; when the laser or the driving circuit fails, the relationship between the stray light and the light beam of the main light path will deviate from the corresponding relationship under the normal working condition. At this time, the stray light waveform detected by the photodetector 214 will also be abnormal. Therefore, according to the stray light waveform detected by the photodetector 214, it is possible to identify whether the laser is faulty, and optionally, when a fault occurs, identify the specific fault type, such as the laser open circuit, the laser light intensity is too large or the light intensity is too small. For example, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the light intensity range of the stray light when the laser is working normally can be preset. During the operation of the laser radar, the light intensity of the stray light is continuously detected. When the detected light intensity is zero, it can be judged that the laser is open; when the detected light intensity is higher than the preset light intensity range, it can be judged that the laser light intensity is too large (for example, due to the driving voltage being too high); when the detected light intensity is lower than the preset light intensity range, it can be judged that the laser light intensity is too small (for example, due to the driving voltage being too low). Those skilled in the art will readily understand that detection based on intensity is only one embodiment of the present invention, and fault detection may also be performed based on other characteristic parameters of the waveform obtained by detecting stray light, all of which are within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0138] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the photodetector 214 is, for example, an avalanche diode APD, which is used to receive stray light of the transmitting system. Fig.10A schematic diagram of a detection circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. As shown in the figure, in addition to the substrate 215, the detection circuit also includes a data acquisition board, on which a high-voltage generating circuit is arranged to provide a bias voltage for the photodetector 214. The photodetector 214 senses the stray light of the laser and generates an electrical signal. The output electrical signal is usually weak, so an amplifier can also be arranged on the substrate 215 to amplify the electrical signal output by the photodetector 214, and then provide it to the detection control unit (or diagnostic unit) through the receiving circuit (or reading sampling circuit) arranged on the data acquisition board. The detection control unit can determine whether the signal sensed by the photodetector 214 is within the normal range according to a preset method, and if it is not within the normal range, what kind of fault may occur in the laser component 2131 of the laser radar. In addition, preferably, a temperature sensor can also be arranged on the substrate 215 to measure the temperature of the substrate 215. The temperature sensor is also coupled to the detection control unit, so as to send the temperature measurement value of the substrate 215 to the detection control unit. Take the avalanche diode APD as an example. Its photosensitivity as a photodetector (amplification factor of photocurrent) is affected by temperature and negative high voltage. By collecting the temperature of the environment where the APD is located and adjusting the negative high voltage, the amplification factor of the photocurrent of the APD can be kept basically consistent at different temperatures. In this way, the influence of the temperature itself on the photosensitivity waveform is eliminated during the diagnosis process. The change in the APD output waveform observed at this time is only the waveform abnormality caused by the fault. At the same time, when using a photodetector for transmitter diagnosis, you can first diagnose from the following two aspects: whether the connector is firm; the output voltage condition of the photodetector when no stray light is detected (such as when a 1.65V bias voltage is normally input to the photodetector, in the absence of light, the theoretical output is also about 1.65V) to check whether the photodetector itself has a fault and avoid potential faults.

[0139] When the laser in the laser assembly 2131 is driven to emit light, the detection control unit can read the electrical signal output by the photodetector 214 and analyze it to determine whether the operation of the transmitting unit is normal based on the analysis result. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the detection control unit can be integrated into the laser radar 1 or implemented as a separate device. These are all easy to implement under the teachings of the present invention and are within the protection scope of the present invention. For example, the detection control unit can be a part of the laser radar 1 or a unit module integrated on the upper or lower warehouse plate of the laser radar, or it can be a separate device arranged outside the laser radar, which can receive the output of the amplified and converted photodetector 214 and perform diagnostic operations.

[0140] During the judgment process, for example, the entire link of the transmitting unit can be diagnosed. Corresponding to multiple lasers, the transmitting unit includes multiple transmitting channels, and each receiving channel includes the corresponding laser and driving circuit. According to one embodiment, by diagnosing whether each channel has output, it can be determined whether the channel is working properly. For example, when the photodetector 214 receives stray light, the laser of the corresponding channel emits a detection laser beam. Then, if one of the channels has no output, it can be concluded that the receiving channel has a fault.

[0141] In addition, one or more of the parameters such as the pulse width, amplitude and phase of the electrical signal of the photoelectric detector 214 can be compared with the pulse width, amplitude and phase of the normal output signal to identify the abnormal pulse width, amplitude and phase of the output signal of the transmitting end laser caused by the fault. In addition, the waveform of the pulse emitted by the laser can be preset or known. After the photoelectric detector detects the stray light, the detection control unit compares the waveform after signal acquisition and processing with the waveform of the pulse emitted by the laser. If the two are the same or roughly consistent, it is judged that the receiving unit is working normally; otherwise, it is judged that the receiving unit is working abnormally and an alarm is issued.

[0142] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, during normal operation of the laser radar, the photodetector 214 continuously or periodically measures parameters of stray light, and the detection control unit continuously or periodically performs fault detection and diagnosis based on the output of the detector 214.

[0143] Fig.11 Another preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown, wherein the photodetectors are arranged at different positions, as shown below. Fig.11 Detailed description.

[0144] like Fig.11 As shown, the substrate 215 is fixed to the inner side wall 219 above the emitting lens 2132 through the corner connector 218, the side surface of the corner connector 218 is flush with the side surface of the inner side wall 219 above the emitting lens 2132, and the top surface of the corner connector 218 is flush with the top surface of the inner side wall 219. Fig.11As shown, there is an opening 2181 on the side surface of the corner connector 218, and there is also an opening on the substrate 215, and the positions of the two correspond, so that the substrate 215 and the corner connector 218 can be fixed to the inner side wall 219 by screws. There is an opening 2182 on the upper surface of the corner connector 218, and there is a corresponding opening on the top surface of the inner side wall 219, so that the corner connector 218 can be fixed to the top surface of the inner side part 219 by screws. Therefore, by fixing the top surface and side surface of the corner connector 218, the photodetector 214 can be firmly fixed to the inner side wall 219, and the photosensitive surface of the photodetector 214 and the light emitting optical path of the laser assembly 2131 are basically in a mutually perpendicular state, so it is more convenient to collect and measure the stray light emitted by the laser assembly 2131.

[0145] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, at the inner side wall position above the emitting lens 2132, the photodetector 214 can be made to face the laser assembly 2131 as much as possible, for example, the longitudinal center axis of the photodetector 214 is roughly aligned with the longitudinal bisector of the laser assembly.

[0146] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the laser radar includes an upper warehouse plate (not shown), on which a power interface may be provided. A slot is provided on the upper warehouse plate near the outer edge of the receiving warehouse, and the substrate 215 is connected to the upper warehouse plate via a flexible flat cable 216. One end of the flexible flat cable 216 is connected to the substrate 215, and the other end is connected to the slot of the upper warehouse plate via a connector, that is, connected to the power interface on the upper warehouse plate for transmitting power and signals. Compared with other connection methods, the flexible flat cable and the PCB board can be processed as one piece, and the connection is reliable; the flexible flat cable is flat, occupies a small space, and is convenient for sealing at the receiving warehouse; and is easy to install.

[0147] The present invention also relates to a detection method for a laser radar transmitting unit, which can be implemented on the laser radar as described above, as shown below. Fig.12 Detailed description.

[0148] like Fig.12 As shown, the detection method 200 of the transmitting unit includes:

[0149] Step S201: receiving stray light emitted from a laser component of the laser radar through a photoelectric detector located inside the laser radar;

[0150] Step S202: judging whether the laser assembly is working normally according to the electrical signal output by the photoelectric detector.

[0151] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, step S202 includes: when the intensity of the stray light detected by the photodetector is zero, judging that the laser is open-circuited; when the intensity of the detected stray light is higher than a preset intensity range, judging that the laser light intensity is too high; when the intensity of the detected stray light is lower than a preset intensity range, judging that the laser light intensity is too low.

[0152] According to one aspect of the present invention, the photodetector is configured to receive stray light from the laser each time the laser is driven to emit light.

[0153] According to one aspect of the present invention, the step of judging whether the laser assembly is working normally includes: if the waveform of the electrical signal corresponds to a preset waveform, judging that the laser assembly is working normally; otherwise, judging that the laser assembly is not working normally. For example, the pulse width, amplitude and phase of the preset normal output signal can be compared to judge whether the laser assembly is working normally.

[0154] This embodiment also provides a control method of the laser radar as described above, including:

[0155] Receiving stray light emitted from a laser component of the laser radar through a photodetector located inside the laser radar; and

[0156] Whether the laser assembly is working normally is determined based on the electrical signal output by the photoelectric detector.

[0157] According to one aspect of this embodiment, the step of judging whether the laser component is operating normally includes: judging that the laser is open-circuited when the intensity of the stray light detected by the photodetector is zero; judging that the laser light intensity is too high when the intensity of the detected stray light is higher than a preset intensity range; judging that the laser light intensity is too low when the intensity of the detected stray light is lower than a preset intensity range.

[0158] This embodiment also provides a transmitting unit of a laser radar, including:

[0159] A laser assembly is disposed in a launch chamber of the laser radar, wherein the laser assembly includes a plurality of lasers configured to emit a detection laser beam;

[0160] a photodetector, disposed in the transmitting chamber, configured to receive stray light from the laser and convert it into an electrical signal; and

[0161] A detection control unit is coupled to the photodetector and configured to collect and analyze the electrical signal of the photodetector, and determine whether the laser assembly works normally according to the analysis result.

[0162] Example 2: Transmitter fault diagnosis

[0163] Embodiment 2 relates to the detection of the transmitting unit of the laser radar, which may be performed by the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111, for example, as described in detail below. The detection of the transmitting unit of this embodiment may be a part of the above periodic fault detection or self-checking operation.

[0164] Fig.13 An embodiment of a laser radar transmitting end assembly 300 is shown. Fig.13 As shown, the laser radar transmitting end component 300 includes a power supply unit 301, an energy storage unit 302, a laser 303 and a switch device 304. The power supply unit 301 can generally receive a lower voltage input, such as 12V, and then boost the output voltage through a boost circuit to provide a high voltage HV, for example, to 60V. The energy storage unit 302 is used to receive the high voltage HV output by the power supply unit 301, and store and accumulate electrical energy. The laser 303 is, for example, a laser diode LD, one end of which is coupled to the switch device 304, and the other end is coupled to the energy storage unit 302. According to an implementation of the present invention, the power supply unit 301 supplies power to the energy storage unit 302, and the energy storage unit 302 accumulates electrical energy. When the switch device 304 is controlled to be closed, the energy storage unit 302 drives the laser 303, discharges through the loop formed by the switch device 304, and the current flows through the laser 303, and the laser 303 emits a laser beam. The switch device 304 can be, for example, a GaN switch.

[0165] In addition, Fig.13 As shown, the laser radar transmitting end component 300 also includes a driving unit 305, which is coupled to the control end of the switch device 304, so that a control signal can be output to control the on and off of the switch device 304 and the duration of the on and off, for example, 30ns, so as to affect the pulse width of the laser beam emitted by the laser 303. When the driving unit 305 controls the switch device 304 to be in the on state, the switch device 304 provides a discharge circuit for the laser 303, so that the energy storage unit 302 drives the laser 303, the current flows through the laser 303, and the laser 303 emits a laser beam. When the driving unit 305 controls the switch device 304 to be in the off state, the discharge circuit is disconnected and the laser 303 stops emitting light. Therefore, by controlling the duration of the on and off of the switch device 304, the emitting duration of the laser 303 can be controlled.

[0166] Fig.14 Shown according to Fig.13 A schematic diagram of a preferred circuit structure of the laser radar transmitting end component 300 is shown below. Fig.14 and Fig.13 Detailed description.

[0167] Fig.14 It is shown in Fig.13 The specific structure of the power supply unit 301. Fig.14 As shown, the power supply unit 301 includes a charging inductor 3011, a diode 3012 and a switch 3013 (for example, a field effect transistor). One end of the charging inductor 3011 is connected to an input voltage PSV, for example, an input voltage of 12V, and the other end is connected to the drain of the switch 3013 and the diode 3012 respectively. The gate of the switch 3013 receives a control voltage pulse Vpulse, and the source of the switch 3013 is grounded. The power supply unit 301 is coupled to the capacitor 302 (energy storage unit), so that a high voltage HV can be established thereon, and is coupled to the laser 303. The other end of the laser 303 is coupled to the drain of the switch device 304 (shown as a field effect transistor, or a GaN switch), the source of the switch device 304 is grounded, and the gate is coupled to the FPGA as the driving unit 305. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that in addition to using FPGA to implement the driving unit 305, DSP and ASIC can also be used to implement the driving unit, which are all within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0168] The working principle is as follows: The circuit works as follows: the energy storage unit 302 is charged and stores energy, and when the switch device 304 is turned on, the laser is driven by the high voltage HV to emit light and discharge, and the cycle continues throughout the laser detection process.

[0169] When charging, an input voltage PSV (e.g., 12V or 5V) is provided, and the control voltage pulse Vpulse controls whether the switch 3013 is turned on and the on-time. When the switch 3013 is turned on, its source is grounded to form a loop, so that the charging inductor 3011 is charged under the drive of the input voltage PSV; when the switch 3013 is disconnected, the inductor 3011 will discharge to maintain the current on it, and the diode 3012 is turned on, so as to charge the capacitor 302. After the capacitor 302 is charged, the voltage at both ends is the high voltage HV. The FPGA as the driving unit 305 provides the switch device 304 with a drive signal VDRV to turn it on, so that the light-emitting path is turned on, and the current flows through the laser 303, and the laser emits a measuring light. By using a pulse signal Vpulse with different duty cycles to control the on-time of the switch 3013, the control of the high voltage HV level is achieved. By controlling the duty cycle of the drive signal VDRV output by the FPGA 305, the light-emitting time of the laser 303 can be controlled. In addition, FPGA 305 can also collect electrical signals from one or more nodes in the laser radar transmitting end, and compare the waveform of the electrical signal with a preset waveform to determine whether there is a fault in the laser radar transmitting end and the possible fault type, such as whether the specific fault is a laser short circuit, a laser open circuit, a power supply unit open circuit, or an energy storage element open circuit.

[0170] Fig.15 A fault diagnosis method 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, for example, Fig.13 and Fig.14 The fault diagnosis of the laser radar transmitting end component 300 is shown below. Fig.15 Detailed description.

[0171] like Fig.15 As shown, in step S31, the electrical signals of one or more nodes in the laser radar transmitting end are collected.

[0172] The inventor of the present application has found that the electrical signal (i.e., high voltage HV) at the output end of the power supply unit 301, i.e., the voltage waveform at the output end of the power supply unit (or the voltage waveform on the energy storage unit) can be collected, because the voltage waveform at the output end of the power supply unit can characterize and identify a variety of faults. In addition, preferably, the node also includes the output end of the drive unit 305, and the collected electrical signal includes the voltage waveform at the output end of the drive unit 305.

[0173] In step S32, it is determined whether there is a fault in the laser radar transmitting end based on the electrical signal.

[0174] Based on the amplitude and / or waveform of the collected electrical signal, after certain processing, it can be determined whether there is a fault in the laser radar transmitting end component 300.

[0175] The failure of the laser radar transmitter component may include one or more of the following failures: laser short circuit, laser open circuit, power supply unit open circuit, energy storage element open circuit. Each failure will be reflected in the electrical signal of one or more nodes. Therefore, a preset fault waveform or judgment condition can be stored in the memory, and the electrical signal can be compared with the preset waveform or judgment condition to determine whether the laser radar transmitter has a fault and the type of fault.

[0176] Figures 16A-16E 3 shows preset waveforms of various faults, corresponding to the electrical signals at the output end of the power supply unit 301. Fig.16A As shown, waveform Q1 represents the waveform of the laser short circuit. Fig.13 When the laser 303 is short-circuited, the output voltage waveform of the power supply unit 301 will quickly drop to zero, so it is possible to determine whether a laser short-circuit fault has occurred by the slope of the electrical signal at the output end of the power supply unit 301.

[0177] like Fig. 16B As shown, waveform Q2 represents the waveform when the laser is open circuit. Fig.13 When the laser 303 in the circuit is open, the electric energy stored in the energy storage unit 302 cannot be discharged through the laser 303, so the voltage signal at the output end of the power supply unit 301 will be relatively stable, or decrease at a very small speed, which is reflected in the waveform diagram, and the slope of the decrease is small.

[0178] like Fig. 16C As shown, waveform Q3 represents the waveform when the power supply unit is open circuit. Fig.13 When the power supply unit 301 in the circuit is open or disconnected, the output of the power supply unit 301 will always be maintained at a low level, as shown in the waveform Q3.

[0179] The power supply unit includes a charging inductor, and the fault further includes an open circuit of the charging inductor. Fig.16E As shown, waveform Q5 represents the waveform of the charging inductor being open-circuited. A pulse to establish a high voltage is completely missing in waveform Q5, indicating that the charging inductor may be open-circuited.

[0180] According to an embodiment of the present invention, calculations can be performed based on the output of the power supply unit 301, such as calculating its amplitude, falling slope, etc., and then comparing with a preset threshold value, so as to determine whether there is a fault and the specific fault type. Alternatively, the voltage waveform output by the power supply unit 301 can be compared with a preset waveform, for example, by using an image classification algorithm, to obtain one of the preset waveforms that is closest to the voltage waveform, so as to determine whether there is a fault and the specific fault type.

[0181] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the energy storage unit includes a charging capacitor or a charging capacitor group, and waveform Q4 represents the waveform of the charging capacitor being open-circuited. When the charging capacitor is open-circuited, the high voltage HV will always remain high, unable to drive the laser and discharge the charge thereon, and the waveform is as follows Fig.16D As shown in waveform Q4.

[0182] In addition, those skilled in the art will readily understand that the waveforms corresponding to the various faults shown in FIG16 are only illustrative and do not constitute a limitation on the protection scope of the present invention. Those skilled in the art may set other types of fault waveforms under the guidance of the present invention, which are all within the scope of the present invention.

[0183] Fig.17 FIG. 3 shows a laser radar transmitting end assembly 300 ′ according to an embodiment of the present invention, which also includes a power supply unit 301, an energy storage unit 302, a laser 303, a switch device 304 and a drive unit 305. Fig.13 The laser radar transmitting end assembly 300 shown is basically the same and will not be described again here. Fig.14 The various components and their connection relationships in the embodiments shown in the figure can also be combined with Fig.17 In the process, no creative work is required. The following focuses on describing its Fig.13 The difference between the laser radar transmitting end component 300.

[0184] like Fig.17 As shown, the laser radar transmitter component 300' also includes a fault diagnosis unit 106, which is configured to collect electrical signals from one or more nodes in the laser radar transmitter 300' and determine whether the laser radar transmitter has a fault based on the electrical signals.

[0185] As reference Fig.13 and Fig.14 As described above, the one or more nodes may include an output terminal of the power supply unit 301, and the electrical signal includes a voltage waveform at the output terminal of the power supply unit.

[0186] The fault diagnosis unit 106 can be used to implement the following Fig.15 The fault diagnosis method 30 shown, for example, compares the waveform of the electrical signal with a preset waveform to determine whether there is a fault at the laser radar transmitter and the type of the fault. The faults include, for example: laser short circuit, laser open circuit, power supply unit open circuit, energy storage element open circuit.

[0187] The energy storage element 302 includes, for example, a charging capacitor or a charging capacitor group, the power supply unit includes a charging inductor, and the fault further includes an open circuit of the charging inductor.

[0188] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, comprising: a laser radar transmitting end component 300 or 300' and a receiving end component as described above. The laser radar transmitting end component 300 or 300' is configured to emit a detection beam. The detection beam will be diffusely reflected on an obstacle outside the laser radar, and part of the reflected beam will be incident on the receiving end component as a radar echo. The receiving end component includes, for example, an optical lens and a photoelectric sensor. The optical lens converges the radar echo so that it is incident on the photoelectric sensor. The photoelectric sensor can be an avalanche photodiode APD or SiPM, which generates an electrical signal according to the received light intensity or the number of photons. The electrical signal is amplified and filtered through subsequent circuit and signal processing to generate point cloud data of the laser radar, which can characterize the distance, direction, reflectivity and other information of the obstacle.

[0189] According to the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, the coverage rate of fault diagnosis is high, which can meet the detection and diagnosis of failures of multiple devices at the laser receiving end. In addition, the implementation complexity is low. In the design scheme of the embodiment of the present invention, signal acquisition can be performed at the output end of the power supply unit. Taking the 64-line laser radar as an example, usually only 5 points need to be collected (depending on the architecture, but the number of pins for multi-line laser radars can be reduced by more than 30%), and the implementation complexity is relatively low compared to traditional solutions. The implementation cost of the scheme is low. The real-time requirements of the circuit acquisition logic are very high, even at the nanosecond level, but the high-speed ADC of the laser receiving end can be reused for acquisition, and no additional ADC chip will be added. In addition, the diagnostic logic circuit does not affect the normal working circuit. Even if the diagnostic circuit is damaged, it can be identified by the FPGA logic, and it has high robustness.

[0190] A fault diagnosis method for a laser radar transmitter is provided, wherein the laser radar transmitter comprises a laser and a switch device coupled to one end of the laser, an energy storage unit coupled to the other end of the laser, and a power supply unit for supplying power to the energy storage unit, and wherein the fault diagnosis method comprises:

[0191] Collecting electrical signals from one or more nodes in the laser radar transmitting end;

[0192] It is determined whether there is a fault at the laser radar transmitting end according to the electrical signal.

[0193] The present invention also provides a laser radar, comprising:

[0194] The laser radar transmitting end assembly as described above is configured to emit a detection beam; and

[0195] The receiving end component is configured to receive the radar echo formed after the detection light beam is reflected on the obstacle.

[0196] In the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, the coverage rate of fault diagnosis is high, which can cover all failure scenarios of the laser radar receiving end circuit, and the implementation complexity is low. The traditional diagnosis scheme needs to separately detect the front-end demultiplexer and transimpedance amplifier unit and the back-end two-stage multiplexer, the driver of the analog-to-digital converter, etc., and the circuit is complicated. In the present invention, by providing a test signal to the transimpedance amplifier unit, it is possible to detect whether each channel of the laser radar receiving end is working normally, and through the output of the analog-to-digital converter, the device and location where the fault may occur can be diagnosed. No dedicated detection chip and complex circuit are added to the solution of the present invention, so the cost is low. At the same time, the diagnostic logic circuit does not affect the normal working circuit, and even if the diagnostic circuit is damaged, it can be identified by the controller (such as FPGA, DSP, or ASIC) logic, and the robustness is high.

[0197] Second aspect: receiving end fault diagnosis

[0198] The embodiments of the second aspect may constitute a part of the above periodic detection or self-test.

[0199] The inventor of the present application has conceived that, in order to timely monitor the fault of the laser radar receiving end, a detection light source can be added to the receiving unit of the laser radar, or the electrical signals of each node in the receiving unit can be collected to determine whether the laser radar receiving end has a fault, and optionally determine what kind of fault exists. The following is a detailed description.

[0200] Example 1: Installing LED detection light source

[0201] Embodiment 1 involves detection of a receiving unit of a laser radar, which may be performed by, for example, a first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111, as described in detail below. The detection of the receiving unit of this embodiment may be a part of the above periodic fault detection.

[0202] Fig.18 A laser radar 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Fig.18 Detailed description. The laser radar 1 mainly includes a transmitting unit 4200 and a receiving unit 4300, wherein the transmitting unit 4200 is used to generate and emit a detection laser beam, and the detection laser beam is diffusely reflected on an object outside the laser radar, and part of the reflected light beam returns to the laser radar 1, which is received and processed by the receiving unit 4300, converting the optical signal of the radar echo into an electrical signal, and performing further signal processing operations such as amplification, analog-to-digital conversion, and filtering, and finally forming a point cloud of the laser radar, which can identify and characterize the distance, direction and other parameters of the external object.

[0203] The laser radar 1 includes a housing (not shown) for accommodating or supporting mechanical, optical and electronic components of the laser radar 1. The housing has a transmitting compartment and a receiving compartment for receiving a transmitting unit 4200 and a receiving unit 4300 of the laser radar 1, respectively. Fig.18 Although the transmitting chamber and the receiving chamber are not shown, it is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the transmitting chamber and the receiving chamber can be physically separated by one or more partitions, so as to better isolate the transmitting unit and the receiving unit and avoid crosstalk of light between the two. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the transmitting chamber and the receiving chamber do not need to be separated, but can be roughly distinguished by the transmitting unit 4200 and the receiving unit 4300 contained therein, which are all within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0204] Reference below Fig.18 A transmitting unit 4200 and a receiving unit 4300 are described.

[0205] The transmitting unit 4200 includes a laser driving circuit 4201, a laser assembly 4203, a transmitting end reflector assembly 4208 and a transmitting lens 4209. The laser assembly 4203 includes one or more lasers, each of which can be individually controlled to emit a detection pulse. The laser assembly 4203 is coupled to the laser driving circuit 4201, and the laser driving circuit 4201 provides it with a driving voltage and a transmitting pulse signal. When the transmitting pulse signal is received, a laser in the laser assembly 4203 will be driven to emit a detection beam. The transmitting end reflector assembly 4208 and the transmitting lens 4209 are sequentially arranged downstream of the optical path of the laser assembly 4203, wherein the transmitting end reflector assembly 4208 is used to change the direction of the detection beam through one or more reflections, and reflect the detection beam onto the transmitting lens 4209. Fig.18 It is shown in the figure that the transmitting end reflector assembly 4208 includes two reflectors, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and one or more reflectors may also be provided, which is within the scope of the present invention. The transmitting lens 4209 is usually located on the surface of the housing of the laser radar 1, and is configured to collimate or otherwise shape the detection beam incident thereon, and transmit it to the outside of the laser radar for detecting surrounding obstacles. This is easy to understand for those skilled in the art, and will not be described in detail here.

[0206] In the receiving unit 4300, a receiving lens 4301, a receiving end reflector assembly 4302, and a detection assembly 4303 are sequentially arranged along the direction of the optical path. The receiving lens 4301 is usually located on the surface of the shell of the laser radar 1, for example, juxtaposed with the transmitting lens 4209 in the horizontal direction, and is used to receive the reflected light beam (or radar echo) from the external obstacle and converge the reflected light beam. The converged light beam changes its direction through the receiving end reflector assembly 4302, and after one or more reflections, it is incident on the detection assembly 4303. The detection assembly may include a photoelectric sensor 43031 (such as Fig.21 As shown), an amplifier circuit, an analog-to-digital converter and some other signal processing circuits. The photoelectric sensor may include, for example, a photodiode, an avalanche photodiode APD, a SiPM, etc., which may output an electrical signal (such as a current signal) according to the intensity of the light beam or the number of photons incident thereon. The electrical signal is usually relatively weak, so an amplifier circuit is required to amplify it before subsequent signal processing operations can be performed. The amplifier circuit may be, for example, a transimpedance amplifier TIA, which is coupled to the output end of the photoelectric sensor 43031, receives the current signal output by the photoelectric sensor 43031, amplifies it and converts it into an output voltage signal. The analog-to-digital converter is connected to the amplifier circuit, and is used to sample and convert the amplified analog signal and output a digital signal to facilitate subsequent operations such as filtering and storage. It will not be repeated here.

[0207] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the detection assembly 4303 includes a substrate and an APD array detector, and the APD array detector is arranged on a side of the substrate, roughly facing the receiving lens 4301 or the receiving end reflector assembly 4302. The APD array detector is an APD array detector, which is composed of an N×N array of avalanche photodiodes, where M≥2, N≥2. Such as 4×4, 4×8, 8×8, etc. Specifically, the N×N arrangement depends on the laser arrangement of the laser radar.

[0208] In addition, Fig.18 As shown, the transmitting lens 4209 and the receiving lens 4301 are located on the surface of the shell of the laser radar 1, and a light isolation plate 4127 can be set between the two to further isolate the transmitting lens 4209 and the receiving lens 4301 and reduce the light crosstalk between the two.

[0209] like Fig.19 As shown, the laser radar 1 also includes a detection light source 416 and a control unit 43032 (such as Fig.21As shown, or referred to as a diagnostic unit). The detection light source 416 is disposed in the receiving bin and is configured to emit a detection light beam, and the detection light beam can be received by the photodetector 43031. It is easy for a person skilled in the art to understand that the detection light beam emitted by the detection light source 416 can be directly incident on the photodetector 43031, or can be incident on the photodetector 43031 after being reflected by the receiving end reflector assembly 4302, which are all within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0210] like Fig.21 As shown, the laser radar 1 also includes a control unit 43032, and the control unit 43032 is coupled to the photodetector 43031, and is configured to collect the electrical signal of the photodetector 43031 and analyze it when the detection light source 416 emits a detection beam, so as to determine whether the receiving unit 4300 is working normally according to the analysis result. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the control unit 43032 can be integrated into the detection component 4303 of the laser radar 1, or it can be implemented as a separate device. These are all easy to implement under the teachings of the present invention and are within the protection scope of the present invention. For example, the control unit 43032 can be a part of the processing circuit of the detection component 4303 or a unit module, which can receive the output of the amplified and converted photodetector 43031 and perform diagnostic operations.

[0211] During the judgment process, for example, the entire link of the receiving end can be diagnosed. The receiving unit, for example, includes a plurality of receiving channels, each receiving channel including the corresponding photodetector. According to one embodiment, by diagnosing whether each channel has an output, it is possible to determine whether the channel is operating normally. For example, when the detection beam emitted by the detection light source 416 should theoretically be received by all photodetectors, each receiving channel should have a corresponding output. If one of the channels has no output, it can be determined that the receiving channel has a fault.

[0212] In addition, one or more of the parameters such as the pulse width, amplitude and phase of the output signal of the receiving end can be compared with the pulse width, amplitude and phase of the normal output signal to identify the abnormality of the pulse width, amplitude and phase of the output signal of the receiving end caused by the fault. In addition, the waveform of the pulse emitted by the detection light source 416 can be preset or known. After the photoelectric detector detects the light beam emitted by the detection light source 416, the control unit 43032 compares the waveform after signal acquisition and processing with the waveform of the pulse emitted by the detection light source 416. If the two are the same or roughly consistent, it is judged that the receiving unit is working normally; otherwise, it is judged that the receiving unit is working abnormally and an alarm is issued.

[0213] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 43032 is coupled with the detection light source 416, and is configured to control the detection light source 416 to emit light when the laser radar is turned on, perform a self-check of the laser radar, and collect electrical signals of one or more nodes in the receiving unit to determine whether the receiving unit is working normally. When one or more receiving channels fail, an alarm is issued to the user.

[0214] The receiving unit includes a plurality of receiving channels, and each receiving channel includes the corresponding photodetector. The detection light source may be one or more. In the case of setting a detection light source, the detection light source is set at a preset position, and at the preset position, the detection light beam of the detection light source can be detected by the photodetector corresponding to each receiving channel. In this case, the detection light beam emitted by a detection light source can cover the photodetectors of all receiving channels, so the light emitted by a detection light source can be received by all photoelectric sensors, thus achieving the effect of simulating multiple lasers emitting light at the same time. The receiving end has multiple sampling channels, each sampling channel can work at the same time, and each sampling channel is responsible for a certain number of photoelectric sensors respectively. Therefore, the detection light source can be driven continuously at a certain period, and the photoelectric sensors on each sampling channel can be switched at a certain period to realize the recognition of the outputs of all sampling channels.

[0215] In the case of setting multiple detection light sources, the detection light beams emitted by the multiple detection light sources can cover the photoelectric detectors of all receiving channels. The number of the detection light sources should be determined according to the layout of the photoelectric detectors, the intensity of the detection light sources and the relative position relationship between the two. The detection light beams emitted by the multiple detection light sources can cover the photoelectric detectors of all receiving channels.

[0216] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the receiving unit includes a plurality of receiving channels, each receiving channel includes a corresponding photoelectric detector, and the control unit is configured to determine in turn whether each receiving channel works normally.

[0217] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Fig.19 As shown, the detection light source 416 is disposed at a relatively upper portion of the inner side wall 412 of the receiving bin. Fig.19 and Fig. 20 As shown, the detection light source 416 includes an LED light source 4162 and a PCB driving board 4161, and the PCB driving board 4161 is connected to the LED light source 4162 to provide driving voltage and current for the LED light source 4162. Fig.19As shown, the detection light source 416 can be arranged on the side surface of the inner side wall 412 above the receiving lens 301. Alternatively, the detection light source 416 includes a light emitting device that can make the photodetector 43031 feel sufficient light radiation within the operating temperature range of the laser radar. The LED light source is small in size, low in power consumption, and generates less heat, thereby having little effect on the temperature of the receiving bin. At the same time, the driving voltage is low, and the driving circuit is simple and reliable, so it is a preferred implementation method.

[0218] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the detection light source 416 is located on the inner side wall above the receiving lens 4301, and the receiving lens is located on the surface of the shell for converging the radar echo.

[0219] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Fig.19 As shown, the detection light source 416 is fixed to the inner side wall 412 above the receiving lens 4301 through a corner connector 417, the side surface of the corner connector 417 is flush with the side surface of the inner side wall 412 above the receiving lens 4301, and the top surface of the corner connector 417 is flush with the top surface of the inner side wall 412. Fig.19 and 20 As shown, there is an opening 4172 on the side surface of the corner connector 417, and there is a through hole 41611 on the PCB driver board 4161 of the light source 416, and the positions of the two correspond to each other, so that the PCB driver board 4161 and the corner connector 417 can be fixed to the inner side wall 412 by screws. There is an opening 4171 on the upper surface of the corner connector 417, and there is a corresponding opening on the top surface of the inner side wall 412, so that the corner connector 417 can be fixed to the top surface of the inner side part 412 by screws. Therefore, by fixing the top surface and the side surface of the corner connector 417, the light source 416 can be firmly fixed to the inner side wall 412.

[0220] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, at the inner side wall position above the receiving lens, the LED and the photodetector can be made to face each other as much as possible, so that the position with the maximum radiation energy of the light emitted by the LED is irradiated on the photodetector. Fig. 20 As shown, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the longitudinal center axis of the LED is substantially aligned with the longitudinal bisector of the photodetector array.

[0221] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the laser radar includes an upper warehouse plate (not shown), on which a power interface may be provided. A slot is provided on the upper warehouse plate near the outer edge of the receiving warehouse, and the PCB driver board 4161 is connected to the upper warehouse plate via a flexible flat cable 418. One end of the flexible flat cable 418 is connected to the PCB driver board 4161, and the other end is connected to the slot of the upper warehouse plate via a connector 419, that is, connected to the power interface on the upper warehouse plate for transmitting power and signals. Compared with other connection methods, the flexible flat cable and the PCB board can be processed as one piece, and the connection is reliable; the flexible flat cable is flat, occupies a small space, and is convenient for sealing at the receiving warehouse; it is easy to install.

[0222] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the LED can also be placed on the upper cover of the receiving bin, which is convenient for installation.

[0223] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the control unit is configured to determine whether the receiving unit works normally in the following manner:

[0224] If the waveform of the electrical signal corresponds to the waveform of the detection light beam, it is determined that the receiving unit is working normally;

[0225] Otherwise, it is determined that the receiving unit is not working properly.

[0226] The present invention also relates to a control method 4100 of the laser radar as described above, which can be implemented on the laser radar 1 as described above, for example. Fig. 22 As shown, the control method 4100 includes:

[0227] Step S4101: when the photoelectric detection unit does not receive the radar echo for ranging, emitting a detection beam to the photoelectric detector of the laser radar through the detection light source of the laser radar;

[0228] Step S4102: Collect electrical signals of one or more nodes in the receiving unit of the laser radar to determine whether the receiving unit is working properly. The multiple nodes can be located at multiple positions in the receiving unit, such as the output end of the photodetector, the output end of the amplifier, the output end of the analog-to-digital converter, etc. The present invention is not limited to specific positions.

[0229] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, step S4101 includes: controlling the detection light source to emit a detection light beam at every preset time interval.

[0230] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the step S4101 includes: controlling the detection light source to emit a detection light beam when the laser radar is turned on.

[0231] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the receiving unit includes a plurality of receiving channels, each receiving channel includes a corresponding photodetector, and the control method includes: executing step S4101 and step S4102 for each receiving channel respectively.

[0232] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the step of determining whether the receiving unit works normally comprises:

[0233] If the waveform of the electrical signal corresponds to the waveform of the detection light beam, it is determined that the receiving unit is working normally;

[0234] Otherwise, it is determined that the receiving unit is not working properly.

[0235] The technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention has a high diagnostic coverage rate and can cover all failures of the laser radar receiving end circuit. Its implementation complexity is low and the solution cost is low: the solution does not add special detection chips and complex circuits, so the cost is low. The solution is reasonable and the diagnostic logic circuit does not affect the normal working circuit. Even if the diagnostic circuit is damaged, it can be identified by FPGA logic, and it has high robustness.

[0236] According to one aspect of the present invention, the control unit is coupled to the detection light source and is configured to control the detection light source to emit light when the laser radar is turned on, and to collect electrical signals from one or more nodes in the receiving unit to determine whether the receiving unit is operating normally.

[0237] According to one aspect of the present invention, the receiving unit includes a plurality of receiving channels, each receiving channel includes a corresponding photoelectric detector, and the control unit is configured to determine in turn whether each receiving channel works normally.

[0238] According to one aspect of the present invention, the photodetector is an avalanche photodiode, and the detection light source is arranged on the upper part of the side wall of the receiving bin.

[0239] According to one aspect of the present invention, the detection light source includes an LED located on the surface of the side wall and a PCB driving board located inside the side wall, and the PCB driving board is connected to the LED.

[0240] According to one aspect of the present invention, the laser radar further includes a receiving lens located on the surface of the shell for converging the radar echo, wherein the detection light source is located above the receiving lens.

[0241] According to one aspect of the present invention, the detection light source is fixed to the receiving bin via a corner connector, the side surface of the corner connector is flush with the side surface of the receiving bin, and the top surface of the corner connector is flush with the top surface of the side wall.

[0242] According to one aspect of the present invention, the control unit is configured to determine whether the receiving unit works normally in the following manner:

[0243] If the waveform of the electrical signal corresponds to the waveform of the detection light beam, it is determined that the receiving unit is working normally;

[0244] Otherwise, it is determined that the receiving unit is not working properly.

[0245] The present invention also relates to a control method of the laser radar as described above, comprising:

[0246] Step S101: emitting a detection light beam to a photoelectric detector of the laser radar through a detection light source of the laser radar;

[0247] Step S102: Collect electrical signals from one or more nodes in the receiving unit of the laser radar to determine whether the receiving unit is working normally.

[0248] According to one aspect of the present invention, the step S101 includes: controlling the detection light source to emit a detection light beam when the laser radar is turned on.

[0249] According to one aspect of the present invention, the receiving unit includes a plurality of receiving channels, each receiving channel includes a corresponding photodetector, and the control method includes: executing step S101 and step S102 for each receiving channel respectively.

[0250] According to one aspect of the present invention, the step of determining whether the receiving unit works normally comprises:

[0251] If the waveform of the electrical signal corresponds to the waveform of the detection light beam, it is determined that the receiving unit is working normally;

[0252] Otherwise, it is determined that the receiving unit is not working properly.

[0253] The technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention has a high diagnostic coverage rate and can cover all failures of the laser radar receiving end circuit. Its implementation complexity is low and the solution cost is low: the solution does not add special detection chips and complex circuits, so the cost is low. The solution is reasonable and the diagnostic logic circuit does not affect the normal working circuit. Even if the diagnostic circuit is damaged, it can be identified by FPGA logic, and it has high robustness.

[0254] Example 2: Receiving end fault diagnosis

[0255] Embodiment 2 relates to the detection of the receiving unit of the laser radar, which may be performed by the first fault diagnosis unit FDU 111, for example, as described in detail below. The detection of the receiving unit of this embodiment may be a part of the periodic fault detection described above.

[0256] Fig.23 A schematic diagram of a laser radar receiving end component is shown. As shown in the figure, the laser radar receiving end component includes a photoelectric sensor (such as an avalanche photodiode APD), a transimpedance amplifier unit TIA, and an analog-to-digital converter ADC. Among them, the photoelectric sensor receives the echo signal of the laser radar and converts the optical signal into an electrical signal. Usually the electrical signal is a current signal and is relatively weak, so the signal can be amplified and converted into a voltage signal through the transimpedance amplifier unit TIA. Then, analog-to-digital conversion is performed through the analog-to-digital converter ADC to generate a digital signal for subsequent signal processing of the laser radar, such as generating point cloud data to characterize one or more parameters such as the distance, angle, and reflectivity of the obstacle.

[0257] Fig.24 A fault diagnosis method 50 that can be used for a laser radar receiving end according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown and will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0258] like Fig.24 As shown, the fault diagnosis method 50 includes:

[0259] In step S51, a test signal is input to the transimpedance amplification unit.

[0260] Fig.23 In the laser radar working process, the input signal of the transimpedance amplifier unit TIA comes from the photoelectric sensor. Fig.25 As shown, in order to detect whether the receiving end is working properly before the laser radar starts working or during the operation interval, a test signal is input to the transimpedance amplifier unit separately instead of the electrical signal output of the photoelectric sensor to test whether the link of the laser radar receiving end can work properly. According to one embodiment of the present invention, when the test signal is input, the photoelectric sensor is shielded so that it does not generate a signal output, or the signal generated on the photoelectric sensor cannot be provided to the transimpedance amplifier unit TIA, so that the test signal and the signal of the photoelectric sensor do not interfere with each other.

[0261] In step S52, it is determined whether there is a fault in the laser radar receiving end based on the output of the analog-to-digital converter.

[0262] After the test signal is input in step S51, the transimpedance amplifier unit amplifies it as an input signal, and then performs analog-to-digital conversion and output through the analog-to-digital converter ADC. By collecting and analyzing the output of the analog-to-digital converter, it can be determined whether the link of the laser radar receiving end is working normally.

[0263] For example, the output of the analog-to-digital converter ADC can be compared with a preset waveform to determine whether the laser radar receiving end has a fault and the type of fault. Common faults of the laser radar receiving end include: open circuit of the transimpedance amplifier unit, short circuit of the power supply, abnormal ratio amplification of the transimpedance amplifier unit, etc.

[0264] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the test signal comprises a high-low alternating pulse signal. Fig.26 The PWM waveform in shows the waveform of the test signal according to this embodiment. The test signal includes a plurality of continuous square wave pulses, and the amplitudes of adjacent pulses are different, so that the pulses can be distinguished by odd and even values, which can further improve the accuracy of fault diagnosis.

[0265] Fig.26 The Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4 waveforms in the figure respectively show the waveforms output by the analog-to-digital converter ADC when various possible faults occur.

[0266] As described in waveform Q1, corresponding to one or more pulses in the test signal, the lack of corresponding output pulses in waveform Q1 indicates that there is a fault at the receiving end of the laser radar, and a possible fault may be an open circuit in the transimpedance amplifier unit.

[0267] As shown in waveform Q2, the amplitude of the first pulse is too high, and the amplitude of the third pulse is clamped to be basically equal to the second pulse, which also indicates that there is a fault in the receiving end of the lidar. Possible faults include bias voltage faults (such as unstable APD bias voltage), which causes output offset.

[0268] As shown in waveform Q3, although the ratios between the pulses are normal, each pulse is abnormally amplified compared to the test signal PWM. For example, assuming that the normal amplitudes of the high and low pulses output by the analog-to-digital converter ADC are 1 and 0.8 respectively, but the amplitudes of the high and low pulses currently output are 2 and 1.6 respectively, which are amplified by 2 times on the basis of the normal amplitudes, which also indicates that there is a fault at the receiving end of the laser radar, and a possible fault is that the transimpedance amplifier unit may be faulty.

[0269] As shown in waveform Q4, if there is one stage of operational amplifier, the pulse will change proportionally, so there is a maximum value Max and a minimum value Min.

[0270] Fig. 27An embodiment of a laser radar receiving end is shown, which includes a demultiplexer De-Mux, a plurality of photoelectric sensors APD 1, APD 2, ..., APD N, a plurality of transimpedance amplifier units TIA 1, TIA 2, ..., TIA N corresponding to and coupled to the plurality of photoelectric sensors, a multiplexer Mux, and an analog-to-digital converter ADC, wherein the demultiplexer De-Mux is coupled to the plurality of transimpedance amplifier units and can selectively select one of the transimpedance amplifier units, and the plurality of transimpedance amplifier units are coupled to the analog-to-digital converter through the multiplexer. Each photoelectric sensor and the transimpedance amplifier unit connected thereto constitute a channel.

[0271] The demultiplexer De-Mux can, for example, output an enable signal to each transimpedance amplifier unit in sequence, thereby activating each transimpedance amplifier unit in sequence. When one of the transimpedance amplifier units is activated, a test signal is provided to the activated transimpedance amplifier unit to test whether the channel and the downstream analog-to-digital converter are working properly.

[0272] Fig.28 A laser radar receiving end component 500 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown below. Fig.28 Detailed description.

[0273] like Fig.28 As shown, the laser radar receiving end component 500 includes a photoelectric sensor 501, a transimpedance amplifier unit 502, an analog-to-digital converter 503, a test signal generating unit 504, and a fault diagnosis unit 505. The photoelectric sensor 501 can convert an incident light signal into an electrical signal, and the transimpedance amplifier unit 502 is coupled to the photoelectric sensor 501 and configured to amplify the electrical signal output by the photoelectric sensor 501. The analog-to-digital converter 503 is coupled to the transimpedance amplifier unit 502, and can receive the output of the transimpedance amplifier unit and perform analog-to-digital conversion. The test signal generating unit 504 is used to generate a test signal, which is coupled to the transimpedance amplifier unit 502 and configured to provide a test signal to the transimpedance amplifier unit. As shown in FIG. Fig.28 As shown, the photoelectric sensor 501 and the test signal generating unit 504 can be coupled to the transimpedance amplifying unit 502 through the selection switch 506. The selection switch 506 can, for example, have a first position and a second position. When in the first position, it can couple the output signal of the photoelectric sensor 501 to the transimpedance amplifying unit 502; when in the second position, it can couple the test signal generated by the test signal generating unit 504 to the transimpedance amplifying unit 502. The selection switch 506 only allows the output signal of one of the test signal generating unit 504 and the photoelectric sensor 501 to be coupled to the transimpedance amplifying unit at the same time. Thereby, interference between the test signal and the output signal of the photoelectric sensor 501 is avoided.

[0274] The fault diagnosis unit 505 is coupled to the output end of the analog-to-digital converter and is configured to respond to the test signal and determine whether the laser radar receiving end has a fault according to the output of the analog-to-digital converter. The fault diagnosis unit 505 can, for example, execute the fault diagnosis method 50 described above to determine whether there is a fault and the location and type of the specific fault. Figure 23-27 The features described can be combined with Fig.28 The technical solutions can be used without creative labor, which falls within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0275] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the fault diagnosis unit 505 is configured to compare the output of the analog-to-digital converter 503 with a preset waveform to determine whether there is a fault at the laser radar receiving end and the type of the fault, such as the above reference Fig.25 The detailed description will not be repeated here.

[0276] Common faults may include one or more of the following: open circuit of the transimpedance amplifier unit, short circuit of the power supply, abnormal ratio amplification of the transimpedance amplifier unit. In addition, the test signal may include a high-low alternating pulse signal, so as to more accurately diagnose the fault of the laser radar receiving end link.

[0277] In addition, the laser radar receiving end component may include multiple channels, each channel includes a photoelectric sensor and a transimpedance amplifier unit corresponding to and coupled thereto, and the laser radar receiving end component includes a demultiplexer and a multiplexer, the demultiplexer is coupled to the multiple transimpedance amplifier units and can selectively select one of the transimpedance amplifier units, and the multiple transimpedance amplifier units are coupled to the analog-to-digital converter through the multiplexer, and its structural schematic diagram is shown as follows Fig. 27 In this case, the test signal generating unit 504 may input the test signal to the plurality of transimpedance amplifying units in sequence.

[0278] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the test signal generating unit 504 and the fault diagnosis unit 505 are integrated together to form an integrated controller, for example, implemented by FPGA, DSP or ASIC. Fig.29 As shown, the test signal generating unit 504 may be integrated with a fault diagnosis module, which may be implemented by software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The output of the analog-to-digital converter 503 is directly coupled to the test signal generating unit 504, and fault diagnosis is performed through the fault diagnosis module integrated therein. This method is conducive to making the entire laser radar receiving end component more compact and less power consuming.

[0279] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, comprising a transmitting end component and the laser radar receiving end component as described above, wherein the transmitting end component can emit a detection beam, and the laser radar receiving end component can receive a radar echo after the detection beam is reflected on an obstacle.

[0280] The present invention provides a fault diagnosis method that can be used for a laser radar receiving end, wherein the laser radar receiving end includes a photoelectric sensor, a transimpedance amplifier unit, and an analog-to-digital converter, wherein the transimpedance amplifier unit can amplify the output of the photoelectric sensor, and the analog-to-digital converter can perform analog-to-digital conversion on the output of the transimpedance amplifier unit, wherein the fault diagnosis method includes:

[0281] Inputting a test signal to the transimpedance amplification unit;

[0282] According to the output of the analog-to-digital converter, it is determined whether there is a fault in the laser radar receiving end.

[0283] The present invention also relates to a laser radar receiving end component, comprising:

[0284] A photoelectric sensor configured to convert an incident light signal into an electrical signal;

[0285] a transimpedance amplification unit, coupled to the photoelectric sensor and configured to amplify the electrical signal output by the photoelectric sensor;

[0286] an analog-to-digital converter, coupled to the transimpedance amplification unit, capable of receiving an output of the transimpedance amplification unit and performing analog-to-digital conversion;

[0287] a test signal generating unit, coupled to the transimpedance amplifying unit and configured to provide a test signal to the transimpedance amplifying unit;

[0288] A fault diagnosis unit is configured to: in response to the test signal, determine whether there is a fault in the laser radar receiving end according to the output of the analog-to-digital converter.

[0289] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, comprising:

[0290] a transmitter assembly configured to transmit a probe beam; and

[0291] The laser radar receiving end component as described above is configured to receive the radar echo after the detection light beam is reflected on the obstacle.

[0292] In the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, the coverage rate of fault diagnosis is high, which can cover all failure scenarios of the laser radar receiving end circuit, and the implementation complexity is low. The traditional diagnosis scheme requires the front-end demultiplexer and transimpedance amplifier unit and the back-end two-stage multiplexer, the driver of the analog-to-digital converter, etc. to be detected separately, and the circuit is complicated. In the present invention, by providing a test signal to the transimpedance amplifier unit, it is possible to detect whether each channel of the laser radar receiving end is working normally, and through the output of the analog-to-digital converter, the device and location where the fault may occur can be diagnosed. The solution of the present invention does not add dedicated detection chips and complex circuits, so the cost is low. At the same time, the diagnostic logic circuit does not affect the normal working circuit, and even if the diagnostic circuit is damaged, it can be identified by the FPGA logic, and it has high robustness.

[0293] The third aspect: point cloud rationality judgment

[0294] This embodiment relates to the detection of point cloud data of a laser radar, for example, Figure 1B The point cloud rationality diagnosis unit PCR 133 shown in FIG. 1 is executed, and is described in detail below. The point cloud rationality diagnosis of this embodiment may be a part of the above periodic fault detection or self-check.

[0295] Fig.30 A point cloud rationality diagnosis method 60 applicable to a laser radar according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown and will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0296] In step S61, the point cloud data of the laser radar and the corresponding working parameters of the laser radar when generating the point cloud data are received.

[0297] Laser radar can generally rotate around the vertical axis to collect point cloud data within a 360-degree range in the horizontal plane. Taking a 16-line laser radar as an example, it can emit 16 laser beams in the vertical direction, namely L1, L2, ..., L15, and L16 (each laser beam corresponds to a channel of the laser radar, for a total of 16 channels), to detect the surrounding environment.

[0298] During the detection process, the laser radar can rotate along its vertical axis. During the rotation process, each channel of the laser radar emits laser beams and performs detection in sequence according to a certain time interval (for example, 1 microsecond), thereby completing a line scan on the vertical field of view, and then performing the next line scan of the vertical field of view at a certain angle (for example, 0.1 degree or 0.2 degree) in the horizontal field of view direction. In this way, multiple detections are performed during the rotation process to form a point cloud, which can sense the conditions of the surrounding environment.

[0299] When the laser radar is working, many working parameters can be adjusted. For example, if you only want to detect obstacles at a relatively close distance (such as 100m), you can relatively reduce (compared to the expected detection distance of 200m) the power or pulse intensity of the transmitter. For another example, if the detection resolution of the laser radar is expected to be higher, the laser radar can be controlled to rotate 360 ​​degrees at 20HZ, and if the detection resolution requirement is not very high, the laser can be controlled to scan the horizontal field of view at 10HZ. For another example, most of the current laser radars are multi-line laser radars (the so-called multi-line, that is, a device with multiple transmitters or a single beam of outgoing light divided into multiple beams in the vertical field of view). If the laser radar itself has 64 lines, it can achieve a point cloud of 64 lines in the vertical field of view at most, but according to the detection requirements, the laser radar can also be controlled to scan only 32 of them. In addition, the laser radar can achieve a 360-degree all-round scan of surrounding obstacles through a 360-degree rotation. However, in some application scenarios, such as when the laser radar is used as a forward-looking radar, the user may only expect the laser radar to provide a forward (vehicle travel direction) scan within the range of ±70 degrees. In this case, the laser radar can be controlled to detect obstacles only within the range of ±70 degrees.

[0300] In step S62, the point cloud data and the working parameters are input into a neural network, and the neural network is configured to output a judgment result of whether the point cloud data is reasonable based on at least the point cloud data and the working parameters of the laser radar.

[0301] It should be noted that the unreasonable point cloud or abnormal point cloud here means that the point cloud data generated after the laser radar detection does not correspond to the current working parameters, indicating that the point cloud data has a certain unreasonable state. Correspondingly, the laser radar may not work properly or has a fault. Therefore, the neural network can also judge whether the laser radar has a fault or abnormal operation based on the judgment result of whether the point cloud data is reasonable.

[0302] The neural network is, for example, a pre-trained neural network or a deep learning module, whose input end receives the point cloud data and working parameters of the laser radar and can at least identify whether the point cloud data is reasonable or normal.

[0303] And preferably, after identifying the abnormality of the point cloud data, the specific abnormality of the point cloud data and the corresponding laser radar failure can be determined. The neural network includes one or more of a BP network, a multi-layer neural network, a fuzzy neural network, and a wavelet neural network, and the present invention is not limited to a specific type of neural network.

[0304] In another embodiment of the present invention, the point cloud data obtained by laser radar detection can be pre-processed and then input into the neural network for subsequent recognition processing.

[0305] In step S63, whether the point cloud data is reasonable is determined based on the output of the neural network.

[0306] After training, the neural network or deep learning module can output an indication of whether the point cloud data is reasonable based on the point cloud data and working parameters of the laser radar. For example, the laser radar itself is a 64-line radar, but its working parameters are 40 lines. When the neural network receives the 40-line point cloud data obtained by the laser radar, it determines that the point cloud data is reasonable; but if the neural network receives 38 lines of point cloud data at this time, it can be determined that the point cloud data is unreasonable or abnormal, or at least there is a certain unreasonable situation.

[0307] For example, LiDAR can perform a 360-degree scan of surrounding obstacles, but within a certain period of time, the operating parameters of the LiDAR are controlled to only provide scanning within the forward ±50-degree range. At this time, if the LiDAR detects and inputs point cloud data into the neural network, regardless of whether the point cloud data is obtained by scanning within the forward ±90, forward ±30, or backward (opposite to the direction of vehicle travel) ±50 degrees, it indicates to some extent that the point cloud of the LiDAR is not reasonable, and the entire LiDAR may be faulty or malfunctioning.

[0308] According to the output of the neural network, it can be determined whether the point cloud data is reasonable, and preferably, after determining that the point cloud data is unreasonable, the fault type and specific location of the laser radar can also be determined. The fault includes one or more of an optical component fault, a mechanical structure fault, and a circuit fault. After determining whether the laser radar has a fault, and optionally determining the fault type and specific location of the laser radar, an alarm or prompt can be issued to the user of the laser radar.

[0309] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the point cloud rationality diagnosis method 100 also includes training the neural network to identify abnormal point cloud data, specifically including: inputting the abnormal point cloud data and the corresponding working parameters of the laser radar when generating the abnormal point cloud data into the neural network to train the neural network to identify the abnormal point cloud data.

[0310] For example, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the parameters of the laser radar include, for example, the number of effective lines of the laser radar at a certain moment. A 64-line laser radar is used as an example for illustration. Under normal working conditions, 64 lines need to work simultaneously for obstacle detection. Therefore, in the generated point cloud, if the number of lines is less than 64, it indicates that the point cloud is abnormal or some kind of failure has occurred in the laser radar.

[0311] In some working conditions, there is no need to perform very detailed detection of distant obstacles. In this case, only half of the lines (32 lines) need to be used for detection. Therefore, the generated point cloud data only includes 32 lines. In this case, 32 lines of point cloud data are normal, while more or less than 32 lines of point cloud data are abnormal or unreasonable.

[0312] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the neural network provides a certain margin for judging the rationality of the point cloud data. For example, when a 64-line laser radar is working in a 64-line state, but one of the lasers fails, only 63 lines of data exist in the point cloud. Although this is also a laser radar failure, since the deviation between the current state and the normal state is small, the point cloud of the laser radar is still credible and can be used as an anomaly, and can also be used as a reliable sensor for unmanned driving.

[0313] In addition, the neural network is configured to determine whether the point cloud data of one or more frames after is reasonable based on the point cloud data of one or more frames before. For example, if the point cloud of the 20th frame shows that there is an object at a certain place, and the point cloud of the 21st frame also shows the object, the movement speed and direction of the object can be deduced based on the time interval between the 20th frame and the 21st frame, so it can be predicted that the object should be at a certain place in the 22nd or 23rd frame, but the point cloud detected in the 22nd or 23rd frame is very different from the prediction, which means that the point cloud is abnormal.

[0314] When training the neural network, the fault corresponding to the abnormal point cloud data can be input into the neural network to train the neural network to identify the corresponding fault. For example, various faults of the laser radar and the abnormal state of the corresponding point cloud can be statistically obtained in advance, and when the abnormal point cloud data and the parameters of the laser radar corresponding to the generation of the abnormal point cloud data are input into the neural network, the corresponding fault is input into the neural network for the neural network to learn and judge the fault condition of the laser radar. The fault includes, for example, one or more of an optical component fault, a mechanical structure fault, and a circuit fault.

[0315] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the output of the neural network includes whether the point cloud is abnormal, one or more of the possible fault names and probabilities of the laser radar. In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the neural network is configured to output multiple faults and corresponding probabilities. For example, the neural network model is first trained so that it can recognize the point cloud map forms corresponding to different faults 1, fault 2...fault n (establishing a mapping relationship diagram between an abnormal point cloud map and the cause of the fault, etc.), and then the neural network is reused in actual scenarios. By analyzing the point cloud output by a lidar, the possible fault type, faulty component or fault cause of the lidar can be inferred. For example, in the current point cloud data, the probability of fault 1 is 90%, the probability of fault 2 is 40%, and the probability of fault 3 is 10%. All faults with probabilities higher than the preset value are output for user reference.

[0316] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a laser radar is installed on a vehicle, and a control unit of the laser radar is coupled to an electronic control unit ECU of the vehicle, so when it is determined that the laser radar has a fault or is working abnormally, the control unit of the laser radar can send information about the fault to the electronic control unit of the vehicle on which the laser radar is installed. The fault information may include an indication that the laser radar has failed, and / or a specific fault type and fault location. After receiving the fault information, the electronic control unit can make a decision based on the fault information, such as issuing an audible and visual prompt to the vehicle driver, or stopping the vehicle's automatic driving state, prompting the vehicle driver to take over the driving operation of the vehicle. It should be noted that the fault information mentioned above may include whether the point cloud is abnormal, whether the radar is working abnormally, whether the radar has failed, possible fault types, and approximate probabilities.

[0317] According to one embodiment of the present invention, when the electronic control unit receives fault information, it can decide whether to continue to trust the laser radar and continue the automatic driving state according to the severity of the fault. For example, as mentioned above, when a 64-line laser radar is operating in a 64-line state, but one of the lasers fails, only 63 lines of data exist in the point cloud. Although this is also a laser radar failure, since the deviation between the current state and the normal state is small, the point cloud of the laser radar is still credible and can also be used as a reliable sensor for unmanned driving. The electronic control unit can continue the automatic driving state, but can prompt the operator of the current state.

[0318] Fig.31 FIG. 6 shows a laser radar 600 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.24 Detailed description.

[0319] like Fig.31As shown, the laser radar 600 includes a transmitting unit 601, a receiving unit 602, a signal processing unit 603, and a point cloud rationality diagnosis unit 604. Among them, the transmitting unit 601 generally includes a plurality of lasers and a transmitting lens, wherein the laser is configured to emit a laser beam, the laser beam is incident on the transmitting lens, and after being shaped, a detection beam is formed and emitted into the three-dimensional space around the laser radar. The receiving unit 602 generally includes a receiving lens and a detector, wherein the receiving lens receives a reflected light beam (or laser radar echo) from the outside of the laser radar and converges it onto the detector, and the detector may include, for example, an APD or SiPM, which can convert the optical signal incident thereon into an electrical signal. The signal processing unit 603 is coupled to the receiving unit 602 and is configured to generate the point cloud data of the laser radar according to the electrical signal. The signal processing unit 603 generally includes signal processing circuits of various levels, including but not limited to amplification circuits (such as transimpedance amplifiers), filtering circuits, and analog-to-digital conversion circuits, etc., and can calculate the distance, orientation and other parameters of the obstacle according to the optical signal and other related information, and produce point cloud data.

[0320] The point cloud rationality diagnosis unit 604 is coupled to the signal processing unit 603, can receive the point cloud data, and is configured to execute the point cloud rationality diagnosis method 60 as described above, and output result information on whether the point cloud data is reasonable.

[0321] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit 604 is further configured to output fault information of the laser radar. On the basis of determining that the point cloud data is unreasonable, the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit 604 can also determine specific fault information of the laser radar based on the point cloud data.

[0322] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the signal processing unit 603 and the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit 604 can be integrated together, for example, a diagnostic module is integrated inside the FPGA or ASIC of the signal processing unit 603, so that in addition to signal processing, it can also determine whether there is a problem with the laser radar hardware. If there is a problem, an error message is output. If there is no problem, the point cloud is input into the neural network through the neural network, and the output is whether there is a fault. According to one embodiment, the signal processing unit 603 and the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit 604 are both integrated on the lower warehouse plate of the laser radar.

[0323] The present invention also relates to a vehicle on which the laser radar as described above is installed.

[0324] The electronic control unit ECU of the vehicle can be coupled to the laser radar and can receive the fault information output by the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit of the laser radar. In addition, a reminder unit, such as a sound reminder unit or a light reminder unit, can be installed on the vehicle. The reminder unit is coupled to the electronic control unit ECU and can be triggered by the electronic control unit ECU. When the electronic control unit receives the fault information output by the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit, the reminder unit is triggered to issue a warning to the driver.

[0325] In the embodiment of the present invention, a neural network is used to analyze the point cloud output by a laser radar to infer possible failures of the laser radar. The technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention can assist laser radar technicians to quickly locate the root cause of the laser radar failure; in addition, the neural network module can be integrated into the laser radar. After the user purchases the laser radar, the laser radar is connected to the ECU on the vehicle. When the laser radar is used, the neural network module inside the laser radar can detect the point cloud output by the laser radar at any time, and when the point cloud is found to be abnormal, the customer is reminded.

[0326] The present invention provides a point cloud rationality diagnosis method that can be used for laser radar, comprising:

[0327] Receiving the point cloud data of the laser radar and the working parameters of the laser radar corresponding to the point cloud data;

[0328] The point cloud data and the working parameters of the laser radar are input into a neural network, wherein the neural network is configured to output whether the point cloud data is reasonable based on at least the point cloud data and the working parameters of the laser radar;

[0329] Whether the point cloud data is reasonable is determined based on the output of the neural network.

[0330] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, comprising:

[0331] A transmitting unit, wherein the transmitting unit is configured to transmit a detection beam to the outside of the laser radar;

[0332] A receiving unit, wherein the receiving unit is configured to receive a reflected light beam from outside the laser radar and convert the reflected light beam into an electrical signal;

[0333] a signal processing unit, the signal processing unit being coupled to the receiving unit and configured to generate point cloud data of the laser radar according to the electrical signal; and

[0334] A point cloud rationality diagnosis unit, wherein the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit is configured to execute the point cloud rationality diagnosis method as described above, and is configured to receive the point cloud data and output result information on whether the point cloud data is reasonable.

[0335] The present invention also relates to a vehicle, comprising a laser radar as described above.

[0336] In the embodiment of the present invention, a neural network is used to analyze the point cloud output by a laser radar to infer possible failures of the laser radar. The technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention can assist laser radar technicians to quickly locate the root cause of the laser radar failure; in addition, the neural network module can be integrated into the laser radar. After the customer purchases the laser radar, the laser radar is connected to the ECU on the vehicle. When the laser radar is used, the neural network module inside the laser radar can detect the point cloud output by the laser radar at any time. When the point cloud is found to be abnormal, the customer is reminded, and the vehicle can be controlled to perform corresponding driving operations to deal with possible failures or abnormalities, thereby improving the safety performance of the laser radar.

[0337] The fourth aspect: power supply anomaly detection

[0338] This embodiment relates to the detection of power supply anomalies of the laser radar, which may be performed by the second fault diagnosis unit, for example, as described in detail below. The detection of power supply anomalies in this embodiment may be a part of the above periodic fault detection or self-test.

[0339] With the continuous improvement of vehicle safety standards and autonomous driving technology, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are rapidly becoming popular, and the industry is also entering the L3 autonomous driving stage (i.e. conditional autonomous driving). Whether it is ADAS or autonomous driving, in order to achieve accurate perception of the 360° environment around the vehicle, the vehicle will be equipped with a variety of sensors, including millimeter wave radar (RADAR), laser radar (LIDAR), camera (Camera), inertial measurement unit (IMU) and global navigation satellite system (GNSS).

[0340] LIDAR emits laser pulses quickly (usually up to 150,000 pulses per second), and the laser signal reaches the obstacle and reflects back to the LIDAR sensor. LIDAR accurately calculates the distance between the sensor and the obstacle by measuring the time interval from the emission to the return of the laser signal. It can also detect the exact size of the target object. In addition, LIDAR can also be used to draw high-resolution maps.

[0341] In applications such as the advanced driver assistance system described above, the LIDAR is usually powered by the vehicle (e.g., the on-board power supply). In such on-board LIDAR applications, the vehicle as an external power supply to power the LIDAR often experiences power supply anomalies, resulting in a poor user experience. In addition, in the event of a power supply anomaly, users generally believe that the LIDAR is faulty rather than the external power supply anomaly.

[0342] Therefore, a solution is needed that can determine whether the abnormal operation of the LIDAR is caused by abnormal external power supply, and record the information related to the abnormal external power supply to help verify the reason why the LIDAR stops working.

[0343] Fig.32 A power supply anomaly monitoring system 700 for LIDAR according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The power supply anomaly monitoring system 700 for LIDAR according to the embodiment of the present invention can be integrated with the LIDAR system or constructed as an independent system, which is within the scope of the present invention.

[0344] like Fig.32 As shown, the power supply abnormality monitoring system 700 includes a storage unit 710, a power supply monitoring unit 720 and a control unit 730. The power supply monitoring unit 720 is coupled to the power supply input of the LIDAR and monitors whether the power supply input is normal.

[0345] In particular, the power input of the LIDAR comes from an external power supply source of the LIDAR, which can provide power for functions such as the operation of the LIDAR and communication with external devices. Typically, the power input of the LIDAR provides a voltage of 12V or 48V. In some applications of the present invention (for example, the LIDAR is applied to a vehicle, for example, as a functional unit / module for implementing an advanced driver assistance system), the power input of the LIDAR comes from an on-board power supply, for example, the vehicle provides a 5V or 12V power input for the LIDAR. Alternatively, the LIDAR itself has a battery to provide power input for components on the LIDAR. In this case, the power supply monitoring unit 720 can detect whether the power input from the battery is normal.

[0346] The power supply monitoring unit 720 in the present invention is coupled to the power supply input of the LIDAR and monitors whether the power supply input is normal, wherein "monitoring whether the power supply input is normal" refers to monitoring / judging / determining whether a certain physical characteristic of the power supply input meets (or does not meet) a predetermined requirement. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the physical characteristic refers to voltage. In this case, "monitoring whether the power supply input is normal" refers to monitoring / judging / determining whether the voltage of the power supply input meets (or does not meet) a predetermined requirement. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, "monitoring whether the power supply input is normal" refers to monitoring whether the voltage of the power supply input is lower than a predetermined threshold. In this case, the power supply monitoring unit 710 can be implemented as or implemented to include a voltage comparator to monitor / judgment / determine whether the voltage of the power supply input is lower than a predetermined threshold.

[0347] In other embodiments, embodiments of the present invention may monitor other physical characteristics of the power input (e.g., current) to determine whether the power input is normal. In particular, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, if a certain physical characteristic of the power input (voltage, current, etc.) is less than a predetermined threshold, it is determined that the power input is abnormal (or an abnormal event of the power input is monitored). In other embodiments of the present invention, if a certain physical characteristic of the power input (voltage, current, etc.) is greater than a predetermined threshold, the power input is monitored to be abnormal (or an abnormal event of the power input is monitored). It should be noted that a certain physical characteristic of the power input includes not only voltage, current, etc., but also derivative characteristics that characterize these physical characteristics, such as voltage jitter, frequency fluctuation, etc. For example, when the fluctuation amplitude of the voltage or current of the power input exceeds a certain threshold, it is determined that the power input is abnormal. The present invention covers monitoring any physical characteristics of the power input and characterizing the physical specific derivative characteristics. Accordingly, the present invention covers the provision of other devices / mechanisms / modules for monitoring / comparing corresponding characteristics in the power monitoring unit 720.

[0348] The power supply monitoring unit 720 is coupled to the control unit 730 . The control unit 730 is configured to record information related to the abnormal event into the storage unit 710 in response to the power supply monitoring unit 720 detecting an abnormal event of the power supply input.

[0349] In some embodiments, the control unit 730 is implemented as part of a LIDAR module (e.g., an FPGA). In other embodiments, the control unit 730 is implemented as a separate unit / module. In general, the control unit 730 can be implemented as any control unit that performs a control function, such as a processor, a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, a logic device (e.g., a programmable logic device, such as an FPGA), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.

[0350] As described above, an "abnormal event" of the power supply input may refer to a certain / or certain physical characteristics of the power supply input satisfying / not satisfying a predetermined requirement. The control unit 730 is configured to record information related to the abnormal event to the storage unit 710 in response to the power supply monitoring unit 720 monitoring the abnormal event of the power supply input. The information related to the abnormal event may include one or more of information indicating the occurrence of an abnormal event (e.g., an abnormal event flag), information on what kind of abnormal event occurred (e.g., the category of the abnormal event), attributes of the abnormal event (e.g., the value of a physical quantity (voltage, current)), and the time when the abnormal event occurred (e.g., a timestamp). The storage unit 710 may include any non-volatile memory / device (e.g., various types of memory and flash memory, etc.) that records / stores information related to abnormal events.

[0351] Fig.33 A LIDAR system 70 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, which includes the aforementioned power supply abnormality monitoring system 700 (such as Fig.33 The following is a reference Fig.33 Detailed description.

[0352] like Fig.33 As shown, the LIDAR system 70 includes a boost circuit 71, a LIDAR power management module 72 and an FPGA, wherein the boost circuit 71 can be connected to an external power source, such as an on-board power supply of a vehicle, and the external is external to the lidar itself. When the vehicle is started, the on-board power supply automatically provides a power input, such as a 5V voltage input, to the boost circuit 71. The boost circuit 71, for example, includes an LTO booster, which receives the power input and converts it into a high voltage required to drive the laser radar, such as a 60V voltage. The LIDAR power management module 72 is coupled to the boost circuit 71 and receives the high voltage to provide electrical power to components in the LIDAR system 70 that require electrical energy, such as Fig.33 As shown in , electric power is supplied to each unit component in the power supply abnormality detection system 700 and to an external network / external device 73 (described below).

[0353] The LIDAR system 70 may further include an Ethernet / peripheral 73, such as an Ethernet interface / peripheral interface, for sending the point cloud data of the LIDAR to an external controller (not shown), or receiving a control signal input from an external controller.

[0354] like Fig.33As shown, the LIDAR system 70 includes a central controller, for example, implemented by FPGA, which integrates the power supply monitoring unit 720 and the control unit 730 in the aforementioned power supply anomaly monitoring system 700. In addition to being coupled to the storage unit 710 for writing information related to abnormal events therein, the FPGA is also coupled to one side of the power supply input, that is, coupled to the input end of the boost circuit 71, so that it can monitor whether the power supply input is normal (for example, whether it is equal to 12V or whether it is lower than 12V, in particular, lower than 12V indicates undervoltage, and more particularly, when the power supply input voltage is 0V, it indicates power failure / power outage). When the power supply monitoring unit 720 integrated in the FPGA detects an abnormal event of the power supply input (for example, lower than 12V), the control unit 730 integrated in the FPGA records the information related to the abnormal event to the storage unit 710. In addition, Fig.33 The central controller shown may also be implemented by other types of electronic devices, such as a digital signal processor DSP or an application specific integrated circuit ASIC, which are all within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0355] In addition, if Fig.33 As shown, the power supply anomaly monitoring system 700 may also include an energy storage device 740 (or auxiliary power supply unit), which is coupled to the FPGA and the LIDAR power management module 72 and can be controlled by the FPGA. The FPGA can enable the energy storage device 740 to power the LIDAR in response to an abnormal event of the power supply input being detected. For example, when the FPGA detects an abnormal event of the power supply input, the FPGA will issue a startup instruction to the energy storage device 740, start the energy storage device 740, and provide backup power to the LIDAR power management module 72.

[0356] In some embodiments, the FPGA also controls the power management module of the LIDAR to stop supplying power to the Ethernet / peripheral 73 of the LIDAR system in response to the abnormal event of the power input being detected by the FPGA. That is, in this case, the control unit 730 also controls the power management module (not shown) of the LIDAR to only supply power to the core module / unit of the LIDAR to ensure its basic functions in response to the abnormal event of the power input being detected by the power monitoring unit 720, while stopping supplying power to the non-core modules / units of the LIDAR (e.g., network communication module and / or peripherals). Fig.33 It is also shown that an inertial measurement unit IMU is connected to the FPGA of the LIDAR system 70 to assist in realizing the functions of the advanced driver assistance system.

[0357] Those skilled in the art will understand that Fig.32 and Fig.33The power supply anomaly monitoring system 700 for LIDAR and the schematic diagram of the LIDAR system shown in the figure are merely block diagrams of partial structures related to the scheme of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the devices / units / modules to which the scheme of the present application is applied. The devices / units / modules of the specific system may include more or fewer devices / units / modules than those shown in the figure, or combine certain devices / units / modules, or have different arrangements of devices / units / modules.

[0358] Fig.33 The energy storage device shown in can be any type of energy storage device, such as a capacitor, a battery (such as a button battery), a battery pack, etc. In other embodiments, the auxiliary power supply unit can be another external power supply source. "Enabling the auxiliary power supply unit to power the LIDAR" can include disabling the power supply input of the LIDAR and using the auxiliary power supply unit to power the LIDAR, or not disabling the power supply input of the LIDAR and using the auxiliary power supply unit as an auxiliary to power the LIDAR. Regarding the auxiliary power supply unit / energy storage device, it can be located outside the LIDAR, for example, using the energy storage device (for example, a button battery) of the vehicle itself or the driving assistance device set in the vehicle. For example, a button battery is generally provided in a driving recorder, and the button battery can be connected to the LIDAR (replacing the external power supply or assisting the external power supply). Or the energy storage device can be a capacitor, and a capacitor is added as an energy storage device to provide electrical power to the LIDAR system when an abnormality occurs in the power supply input.

[0359] In some embodiments of the present invention, the power supply anomaly monitoring system 700 for LIDAR further includes a diagnostic unit (not shown). The diagnostic unit may be configured to provide a diagnostic report based on the information related to the abnormal event recorded by the storage unit 710. The diagnostic unit may be provided as an independent unit or as part of the control unit 730. In particular, the diagnostic unit may export a diagnostic report including the recorded information related to the abnormal event in response to a user request, so that the user may review the diagnostic report to eliminate / determine the cause of the fault.

[0360] According to another aspect of the present invention, Fig.34 As shown, the present invention also provides a power supply anomaly monitoring method 800 for LIDAR. The power supply anomaly monitoring method 800 includes:

[0361] S810: monitoring whether the power supply input of the LIDAR is normal; and

[0362] S820: In response to detecting an abnormal event of the power input, record information related to the abnormal event.

[0363] The power supply abnormality monitoring method 800 can be implemented, for example, by the power supply abnormality monitoring system 700 as described above. The abnormal event of the power supply input may include an undervoltage or power failure of the power supply input voltage. The method may also include: setting an auxiliary power supply unit, and enabling the auxiliary power supply unit to power the LIDAR in response to the abnormal event of the power supply input being monitored. The method may also include controlling the power management module of the LIDAR to stop supplying power to the network communication module and / or peripherals of the LIDAR in response to the abnormal event of the power supply input being monitored. The auxiliary power supply unit may be arranged inside and / or outside the LIDAR. The auxiliary power supply unit may include a battery and / or a capacitor. The method may also include: providing a diagnostic report based on the information related to the abnormal event recorded by the storage unit. The diagnostic system of the present invention can store and record all data related to faults or abnormal events, so that each data (such as continuous detection data of the same component) can be statistically analyzed, and the result of the statistical analysis can be used to adjust the threshold or predict the failure time of a component or the failure time of the system through the change trend of the test data.

[0364] Another aspect of the present invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein the computer program implements any of the methods described above when executed by a processor. For example, when executed by a processor, the computer program can instruct the processor and / or corresponding components to implement the following steps: monitoring whether the power supply input of the LIDAR is normal; and in response to abnormal events detected in the power supply input, recording information related to the abnormal event. In addition, it should be understood that the various units in the above-mentioned power supply anomaly monitoring system 700 for LIDAR can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, and a combination thereof. The above-mentioned units can be embedded in or independent of the processor in the computer device in the form of hardware, or can be stored in the memory in the computer device in the form of software, so that the processor can call and execute the operations corresponding to the above-mentioned units.

[0365] In one embodiment, a computer device is provided, including a memory and a processor, wherein a computer program that can be run on the processor is stored on the memory, and the steps of the method in any of the above embodiments are implemented when the processor executes the computer program. The computer device can be a server or a vehicle-mounted terminal. The computer device includes a processor, a memory, a network interface and a database connected via a system bus. Among them, the processor of the computer device is used to provide computing and control capabilities. The memory of the computer device includes a non-volatile storage medium and an internal memory. The non-volatile storage medium stores an operating system, a computer program and a database. The internal memory provides an environment for the operation of the operating system and the computer program in the non-volatile storage medium. The network interface of the computer device is used to communicate with an external terminal through a network connection. When the computer program is executed by the processor, the vehicle driving assistance method of the present invention is implemented.

[0366] Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that all or part of the steps in the method according to the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention can be implemented by instructing the relevant hardware to complete through a computer program, and the computer program can be stored in a non-volatile computer-readable storage medium. When the computer program is executed, it can include the steps of the embodiments of the above-mentioned methods. Among them, any reference to memory, storage, database or other media used in the embodiments provided in this application may include non-volatile and / or volatile memory. Non-volatile memory may include read-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM) or flash memory. Volatile memory may include random access memory (RAM) or external cache memory.

[0367] According to a first aspect, the present invention proposes a power supply anomaly monitoring system for LIDAR, the power supply anomaly monitoring system comprising: a storage unit; a power supply monitoring unit, the power supply monitoring unit is coupled to the power supply input of the LIDAR and is configured to monitor whether the power supply input is normal; and a control unit, the control unit records information related to the abnormal event to the storage unit in response to the power supply monitoring unit detecting an abnormal event of the power supply input.

[0368] According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a LIDAR system including the power supply anomaly monitoring system according to the first aspect of the present invention.

[0369] According to a third aspect, the present invention proposes a power supply anomaly monitoring method for LIDAR, the power supply anomaly monitoring method comprising: monitoring whether the power supply input of the LIDAR is normal; and in response to an abnormal event of the power supply input being monitored, recording information related to the abnormal event.

[0370] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein the computer program implements the method according to the third aspect of the present invention when executed by a processor.

[0371] By using the solution of the present invention, it is possible to monitor abnormal events of the power supply input of the LIDAR and record information related to the abnormal events, thereby providing an objective basis for subsequent fault finding. In addition, according to some preferred embodiments of the present invention, in response to monitoring abnormal events of the power supply input, countermeasures are also initiated to ensure that the LIDAR works normally (or performs basic functions). The present invention provides objective reference information for finding system faults, which helps to quickly determine the source of the fault; and the present invention also improves the user experience.

[0372] Fifth aspect: code disk detection

[0373] Photoelectric encoders are widely used in various angle measurement and control schemes. Photoelectric encoders usually include a light source (such as a light emitting diode), a coding disc, and a photoelectric sensor. The coding disc usually has evenly arranged small holes. The light beam emitted by the light source passes through the small holes on the coding disc and shines on the photoelectric sensor, generating an electrical pulse signal. The data processing device can determine the rotation speed and current angle orientation of the coding disc based on the pulse signal of the photoelectric sensor. The coding disc usually has a zero-degree position, such as Fig.35 As shown, it is used as a reference for the angle orientation of the encoder disk. However, if the zero-degree position is oily or worn out, it will not serve as a marker, which will lead to inaccurate angle measurement.

[0374] Lidar systems are currently widely used in the field of unmanned driving, including laser emission systems and detection and receiving systems. The emitted laser is reflected after encountering the target and received by the detection system. The distance to the corresponding target point can be measured by measuring the time it takes for the laser to travel back and forth (such as the time-of-flight method). After scanning and detecting the entire target area, three-dimensional imaging can be achieved. Mechanical lidar refers to products with motors or other components that can drive rotation. It can detect surrounding objects by rotating 360 degrees. In order to locate the rotation angle of the lidar in real time, an encoder disk is required to measure the angle to determine the emission and reception directions of the laser. Fig.35 A coding disk is shown, which usually has a zero-degree position for determining the angular orientation of the coding disk. However, in actual operation, after the zero-degree position of the coding disk is greasy or worn, the quality of the point cloud of the lidar will drop sharply, and the safety performance of the lidar will be reduced.

[0375] Relative to Fig.35The present invention provides an improved encoding disk, which has a first zero-degree mark and a second zero-degree mark separated by a preset angle, and the appearance of the first zero-degree mark is different from that of the second zero-degree mark, so that the first zero-degree mark can be supplemented or replaced to read the rotation angle of the encoding disk for positioning. The following is a detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0376] like Fig.36 As shown, the encoding disk 91 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a substantially circular disk body 911, and a plurality of encoding holes 912 are evenly distributed on the edge of the disk body 911. The number, interval, and width of the encoding holes 912 can be set according to actual conditions, for example, according to the diameter of the encoding disk, the required measurement accuracy and other parameters, and are not used to limit the protection scope of the present invention. The disk body 911 also has a first zero-degree mark 913 and a second zero-degree mark 914, which are separated by a preset angle, and the preset angle is known. The first zero-degree mark 913 is used as a starting point or reference point for measurement in angle measurement, and is used to measure the angles of other encoding holes and the current angular orientation of the encoding disk 91. The appearance of the first zero-degree mark 913 is different from the appearance of the second zero-degree mark 914, so that when the first zero-degree mark 913 is, for example, stained or worn, the position of the first zero-degree mark 913 can be obtained according to the second zero-degree mark 914, and / or can be directly used to obtain the angular orientation of the encoding disk 91.

[0377] It is easy for a person skilled in the art to understand that the coding hole 912 can be used to allow a light beam to pass through, while the portion between adjacent coding holes 912 does not allow the light beam to pass through. The light source and the photoelectric sensor are, for example, respectively placed on both sides of the coding disk 91, located on the circumference of the coding hole 912. When light is incident on the photoelectric sensor, the photoelectric sensor will generate a pulse. Therefore, when the coding disk 91 rotates around the axis of its center of circle, the light beam emitted by the light source will be continuously blocked, transmitted, blocked, and transmitted by the coding disk, thereby generating a pulse sequence on the photoelectric sensor. Based on the pulse sequence, the data processing device can obtain parameters such as the rotation speed of the coding disk 91 and the current angular positioning, which will not be repeated here.

[0378] like Fig.36 As shown, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first zero-degree mark 913 includes, for example, a wide shielding area between two coding holes 912. In the present invention, the "wide shielding area" means that the width of the unperforated area exceeds the normal interval between the coding holes 912, so that the area can be used to mark the zero-degree position. Fig.36In the embodiment, the first zero-degree mark 913 is located between two coding holes 912. Compared with the interval area between coding holes 912 at other positions, the wide shielding area of ​​the first zero-degree mark 913 is significantly wider. Therefore, when the first zero-degree mark 913 passes through the light source and the photoelectric sensor, it will block the light beam for a significantly longer period of time, and thus a pulse cannot be generated on the photoelectric sensor during this period of time. Fig.37 Take this as an example to illustrate. Fig.37 In FIG. 1 , P1, P2, P3, P4, and P5 represent the pulse sequence generated by the coding hole 912. The period of the pulse sequence is T, which depends on the rotation speed of the coding disk 91 and the distribution density of the coding holes 912 and can be predetermined. When no pulse generated on the photoelectric sensor is detected during the time t1-t2, and the length of t1-t2 is greater than the period T, it can be determined that the first zero-degree mark 913 is detected, and the position of the coding disk is the zero-degree position, that is, its initial position.

[0379] However, if the first zero-degree mark 913 is stained or due to other reasons, a "false" pulse is also generated at time t1-t2, and the position of the first zero-degree mark 913 cannot be distinguished at this time, and thus the zero-degree position of the encoder disk 91 cannot be located. According to the present invention, in this case, the second zero-degree mark 914 can be used for positioning.

[0380] like Fig.36 As shown, the second identifier 914 includes a first point a and a second point b, wherein there are wide occlusion areas at the first point a and the second point b, respectively, and the two wide occlusion areas may be separated by a coding hole 912. The wide occlusion areas at the first point a and the second point b are, for example, the same as the wide occlusion areas of the first zero-degree identifier. However, the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and may also be different.

[0381] like Fig.38 As shown, during the rotation of the encoder disk 91, when a special pulse pattern is detected, it can be determined that the encoder disk 91 has currently rotated to the second zero-degree position 914. Fig.38 As shown in , P1, P2 and P4, P5 are all pulse sequences generated by normal coding holes 912. Pulse P3 has a significantly longer time period (t1-t2 and t3-t4) on both sides thereof, during which no pulse generated on the photoelectric sensor is detected, and the time period is greater than the period T. At this time, it can be determined that the current position of the coding disk 91 is the second zero-degree position. Or more precisely, the position of the coding disk corresponding to the pulse P3 is regarded as the second zero-degree position.

[0382] Since the first zero-degree mark 913 and the second zero-degree mark 914 are separated by a preset angle, the position of the first zero-degree mark 913 can be obtained by identifying the second zero-degree mark 914, or the encoder disk 91 can be directly positioned by the second zero-degree mark 914. All of these are within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0383] Fig.36 There is one coding hole 912 between the first point a and the second point b shown in the figure, but the present invention is not limited thereto. There may be 1-5 coding holes 912 between the two points, which is within the protection scope of the present invention. Fig.35 For the solution, this embodiment further adds a second zero-degree position, specifically including point a and point b, the angle between point a and point b is α, which is generally a relatively small value. Point a and point b together constitute the zero-degree position 2, which serves as another identification position.

[0384] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second zero-degree mark 914 and the first zero-degree mark 913 may be spaced 90 degrees apart. For example, the second point b and the first zero-degree mark 913 are spaced 90 degrees apart, that is, the angle formed by the second point b and the first zero-degree mark and the line connecting the center of the circle is 90 degrees.

[0385] Fig.36 In the embodiment, a wide shielding area is provided between the coded holes 912, thereby changing the normal pulse sequence pattern so that the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark can be identified. Fig.39 Another embodiment of the present invention is shown, wherein the first zero-degree mark 913 includes a first zero-degree opening, the width of which is different from the width of the coding hole 912; the second zero-degree mark 914 includes a second zero-degree opening, the width of which is different from the width of the coding hole 912 and the width of the first zero-degree opening. Therefore, during the rotation of the encoding disk 91, in addition to the normal pulse generated by the coding hole 912, two different pulses are generated, which are generated by the first zero-degree opening and the second zero-degree opening, respectively, and the width of the pulse depends on the width of the first zero-degree opening and the second zero-degree opening, respectively. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the width of the first zero-degree opening is greater than the width of the second zero-degree opening, and the width of the second zero-degree opening is greater than the width of the coding hole 13. Therefore, when the maximum pulse width is detected during the rotation of the encoding disk 91, it can be determined that the encoding disk 91 is currently rotated to the zero-degree position. If the first zero degree mark cannot be identified for any reason, the position of the first zero degree mark 913 can be obtained by identifying the second zero degree opening of the second zero degree mark 914 and / or the angular orientation of the encoding disk 91 can be directly obtained.

[0386] Fig.39In the embodiment, openings of different widths are respectively provided at the positions of the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark. Alternatively, the first zero-degree mark 913 and the second zero-degree mark 914 may each include a wide shielding area between two coded holes, wherein the width of the wide shielding area of ​​the second zero-degree mark is different from the width of the wide shielding area of ​​the first zero-degree mark. Thus, the positions of the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark can be identified according to the length of the time period in which no pulse is generated.

[0387] Under the guidance and inspiration of the present invention, those skilled in the art can conceive of multiple ways to realize the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark. In the above embodiment, the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark are arranged on the same circumference as the coding hole, and those skilled in the art can also conceive of arranging the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark on a different circumference from the coding hole.

[0388] Another aspect of the present invention also relates to a photoelectric encoder, such as Fig.40 As shown below. Fig.40 Detailed description.

[0389] Fig.40 A transmission type photoelectric encoding device 920 is shown, wherein the photoelectric encoding device 920 includes a code disk 91 and an encoder, wherein the encoder includes a light source 922 and a photoelectric code reader 923, which are respectively arranged on both sides of the code disk 91 as described above. The light source 922 emits a light beam toward the code disk 91, for example, a light beam with high collimation and directionality. The code disk 91 rotates around the axis of its center, and the light source 922 is located on the circumference of the code hole 912 of the code disk 91, so that as the code disk 91 rotates, the light beam emitted by the light source 922 periodically passes through the code hole 912 and is blocked by the area between the code holes 912. The photoelectric code reader 923 is located on the side of the code disk 91 opposite to the light source 922, and includes a photoelectric sensor, such as a photodiode or an avalanche photodiode. When the light beam from the light source 922 passes through the coding hole 912 of the coding disk 91, the light beam is irradiated onto the photoelectric sensor of the photoelectric code reader 923, generating a pulse; when the light beam of the light source 922 is blocked by the coding disk 91, the photoelectric sensor does not generate a pulse. In addition, the photoelectric code reader 923 may also include a signal processing circuit, which receives the pulse of the photoelectric sensor to determine the angular orientation of the coding disk 91. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the signal processing circuit and the photoelectric sensor can be integrated together or can be separate circuit components, which are all within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0390] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the photoelectric code reader 923 is configured to: when the first zero-degree mark is detected, determine that the encoding disk is at the zero-degree position; when the first zero-degree mark cannot be detected, detect the second zero-degree mark, and determine the position of the first zero-degree mark and / or determine the angular orientation of the encoding disk based on a preset angle between the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark.

[0391] in addition, Fig.40 FIG. 9 shows that the light source 922 and the photoelectric code reader 923 are respectively located on both sides of the encoding disk 91, but the present invention is not limited thereto. A person skilled in the art may also conceive to place the light source 922 and the photoelectric code reader 923 on the same side of the encoding disk 91. Fig.41 As shown, a reflective photoelectric encoding device 930 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The photoelectric encoding device 930 includes an encoding disk 91 and a first encoder and a second encoder. The first encoder and the second encoder are both reflective encoders. Taking the first encoder as an example, it includes a light source 932 and a photoelectric code reader 933, which are respectively arranged on the same side of the encoding disk 91 as described above, for example Fig.41 The lower side of the encoding disk 91 shown in FIG. Fig.41 As shown, when the light beam emitted by the light source 932 passes through the coding hole 912 of the coding disk 91, the photoelectric code reader 933 cannot receive the irradiation of the light beam, so no pulse is generated; and when the pulse emitted by the light source 932 is partially reflected by the coding holes 912, the reflected light beam can be irradiated onto the photoelectric code reader 933, thereby generating a pulse. In addition to the first encoder, the photoelectric encoding device also includes a second encoder. The second encoder is structurally the same as the first encoder, and also includes a similar light source 932' and a photoelectric code reader 933', but the second encoder is arranged at a different position of the code disk. Preferably, the first encoder and the second encoder can be opposite to each other along the diameter of the code disk. In addition, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the second encoder can also be arranged on the other side of the coding disk, that is, Fig.35 Alternatively, the first encoder and the second encoder may be encoders of different types, for example, one of them is a transmissive encoder and the other is a reflective encoder, all of which are within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0392] The present invention also relates to a laser radar, including the encoder disk photoelectric encoding device 920 or 930 as described above. By including the photoelectric encoder of the present invention in the laser radar, it can be ensured that during the rotation of the laser radar, even if its first zero-degree position is oily or worn and cannot be recognized, it can still be replaced by the second zero-degree position, which will basically not affect the point cloud quality of the laser radar, thereby improving the safety of the lidar. The laser radar can be, for example, a rotary mechanical radar, whose rotor rotates around the axis of the laser radar, and the axis of the center of the encoder disk coincides with the axis of the laser radar. The photoelectric encoder is arranged at the bottom of the laser radar and rotates with the rotor of the laser radar to detect the rotation angle of the laser radar.

[0393] Fig.42 The laser radar 910 is shown to include Fig.41 The photoelectric encoding device 930 shown includes a coding disk 91, a first encoder and a second encoder. In addition, the laser radar also includes a control unit 92, which is coupled to the first encoder and the second encoder, so as to receive a first coded signal output by the first encoder and a second coded signal output by the second encoder, and then perform various diagnoses and operations according to the first coded signal and the second coded signal.

[0394] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 92 can determine whether the first encoder and the second encoder are faulty according to the first coding signal and the second coding signal, respectively. For example, when the coding disk 91 of the present invention including two zero-degree marks is used, the first coding signal and the second coding signal should both include signals corresponding to the two zero-degree marks. If the control unit finds signals corresponding to the two zero-degree marks in the first coding signal, but does not find signals corresponding to the two zero-degree marks in the second coding signal, it can be determined that a fault has occurred in the second encoder. Vice versa.

[0395] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 92 may perform a diagnosis of the code disk. For example, as described above, the code disk 91 of the present invention includes two zero-degree marks. If the control unit does not find signals corresponding to the two zero-degree marks in the first coding signal and the second coding signal, or only finds a signal corresponding to one zero-degree mark, it indicates that the code disk 91 may be faulty.

[0396] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 92 can perform rotation speed diagnosis. The control unit 92 can calculate the rotation speed of the encoder disk based on the first encoding signal or the second encoding signal. The encoder disk usually has a preset rotation speed, and the preset rotation speed is compared with the calculated rotation speed to determine whether the encoder disk has rotated at the preset rotation speed. When there is a deviation between the two, or the deviation is higher than a certain amplitude, an alarm is issued.

[0397] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 92 may perform fault detection on the code disk after diagnosing and confirming that the encoder has no faults, and may perform speed diagnosis on the motor after confirming that the code disk has no faults.

[0398] pass Fig.42 It can be seen from the embodiment shown that the lidar in the embodiment of the present invention uses a code disk with a double zero-degree position and a double encoder. From the perspective of a single device, when a certain abnormality occurs in either the code disk or the encoder, an alternative device can be provided. In addition, the control unit is used to detect faults based on the output signals of the double encoder and the code disk, so that the lidar in the present application can provide a safe and reliable angle test and speed measurement solution.

[0399] The present invention also relates to a method 940 for angular orientation using a code disc as described above, such as Fig.43 As shown, method 940 includes:

[0400] In step S941: detecting the first zero-degree mark to determine the zero-degree position of the encoder disk;

[0401] In step S942: when the first zero-degree mark cannot be detected, detecting the second zero-degree mark; and

[0402] In step S943: according to a preset angle between the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark, the position of the first zero-degree mark is determined, and / or the angular orientation of the encoding disk is determined.

[0403] Through the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, even after problems such as oil stains or wear occur at the zero-degree position of the code disk, the code disk can still be used to accurately measure the angle; zero-degree dirt does not affect the startup work; when non-zero-degree dirt causes interference signals, the rotor signal measurement system can still continue to work, so it has strong robustness.

[0404] The present invention provides a coding disk, comprising a roughly circular disk body, wherein a plurality of evenly distributed coding holes are arranged on the edge of the disk body, and the disk body further has a first zero-degree mark and a second zero-degree mark separated by a preset angle, wherein the appearance of the first zero-degree mark is different from the appearance of the second zero-degree mark.

[0405] The present invention also provides a photoelectric encoding device, comprising:

[0406] The encoding disk as described above is rotatable around an axis of its center;

[0407] A first encoder, the first encoder comprising:

[0408] a first light source, wherein the light beam emitted by the first light source can pass through the coding holes on the coding disk, or be blocked by a portion between the coding holes;

[0409] A first photoelectric code reader is configured to receive the light beam from the first light source to determine the angular orientation of the encoder disk.

[0410] The present invention also provides a method for angular orientation using the encoding disk as described above, comprising:

[0411] Detecting the first zero-degree mark to determine the zero-degree position of the encoding disk;

[0412] When the first zero-degree mark cannot be detected, detecting the second zero-degree mark; and

[0413] According to a preset angle between the first zero-degree mark and the second zero-degree mark, the position of the first zero-degree mark is determined, and / or the encoding disk is angularly positioned.

[0414] The present invention also provides a laser radar, comprising the photoelectric encoding device as described above, wherein the axis of the center of the encoding disk coincides with the axis of the laser radar, and the photoelectric encoding device is arranged at the bottom of the laser radar and rotates with the rotor of the laser radar to detect the rotation angle of the laser radar.

[0415] Through the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, even after problems such as oil stains or wear occur at the zero-degree position of the code disk, the code disk can still be used to accurately measure the angle; zero-degree dirt does not affect the startup work; when non-zero-degree dirt causes interference signals, the rotor signal measurement system can still continue to work, so it has strong robustness.

[0416] The above describes the overall architecture of the laser radar diagnostic system, the diagnostic unit according to various aspects of the present invention, and various specific embodiments. It is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the technical solutions in the above aspects and embodiments can be freely combined without creative labor, and these are all within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0417] Finally, it should be noted that the above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments or replace some of the technical features therein by equivalents. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A state detection device that can be used for a laser radar, comprising: A fault diagnosis unit configured to perform fault diagnosis on components of the laser radar and output a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; a diagnostic management unit, the diagnostic management unit communicating with the fault diagnosis unit to receive the fault diagnosis signal, and configured to determine the state of the laser radar according to the fault diagnosis signal, Wherein, the diagnosis management unit is further configured to receive point cloud data at the time when the fault occurs.

2. The state detection device according to claim 1, wherein the laser radar comprises an upper compartment plate and a lower compartment plate, and the fault diagnosis unit comprises: a first fault diagnosis unit configured to perform fault diagnosis on a component installed on or connected to the upper warehouse plate of the laser radar, and output a first fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; and a second fault diagnosis unit configured to perform fault diagnosis on a component of the laser radar installed or connected to the lower warehouse plate, and output a second fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; The diagnostic management unit communicates with the first fault diagnostic unit and the second fault diagnostic unit to receive the first fault diagnostic signal and the second fault diagnostic signal, and is configured to determine the state of the laser radar based on the first fault diagnostic signal and the second fault diagnostic signal.

3. The state detection device as described in claim 2, wherein the laser radar includes a transmitting unit, a receiving unit and a point cloud generation unit arranged on the upper warehouse plate, wherein the transmitting unit is configured to transmit a detection laser beam to the outside of the laser radar, the receiving unit is configured to receive the echo of the detection laser beam after being reflected on the target object and convert it into an electrical signal, the point cloud generation unit is configured to generate point cloud data of the laser radar according to the electrical signal, wherein the diagnosis management unit is coupled to the point cloud generation unit and is configured to receive point cloud data corresponding to the first fault diagnosis signal when the first fault diagnosis signal is received.

4. The state detection device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the laser radar comprises a motor, a power supply, an encoder and a communication component arranged on the lower warehouse plate, and the state of the laser radar comprises: Initialization state, normal state, degraded state, shutdown state, Wherein, in the initialization state, the laser radar performs a self-check operation and a motor start-up operation; In the normal state, the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit perform periodic detection; In the degraded state, the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit perform periodic detection and record at least part of the data of the laser radar; In the shutdown state, the laser radar is powered off and at least part of the data of the laser radar is recorded.

5. The state detection device as described in claim 4, wherein the fault of the laser radar includes preset primary faults and secondary faults; wherein when the first fault diagnosis unit or the second fault diagnosis unit detects a primary fault, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar to a degraded state; when the first fault diagnosis unit or the second fault diagnosis unit detects a secondary fault, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar to a shutdown state.

6. The state detection device as claimed in claim 5, wherein when the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit do not detect a fault in the degraded state, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the degraded state to the normal state.

7. The state detection device according to claim 4, wherein the self-checking operation comprises: Self-test of the power supply and clock of the laser radar; Self-inspection of the upper and lower warehouse plates; Internal power supply self-test; Transmitter unit and receiving unit self-test, When the self-check operation is successful, the motor start operation is performed. wherein when the self-check in the initialization state succeeds and the motor starts successfully, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the normal state; If the self-test of the power supply and the clock fails, or the self-test of the upper and lower panels fails, the diagnostic management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the shutdown state; If the motor start-up operation fails, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the shutdown state.

8. The state detection device according to claim 5, further comprising a first cache, a second cache and a fault memory, wherein the first fault diagnosis unit triggers caching of fault data into the first cache when determining that a fault exists; The second fault diagnosis unit triggers caching of at least fault data into the second cache when determining that a fault exists; The fault memory is coupled to the first cache and the second cache and is configured to receive the fault data.

9. The state detection device according to claim 8, wherein the diagnosis management unit communicates with the fault memory and can output the fault data stored in the fault memory according to an external request.

10. The state detection device as described in claim 3 further includes a point cloud rationality diagnosis unit, which is configured to receive the point cloud data and output result information on whether the point cloud data is reasonable, and the diagnosis management unit communicates with the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit and receives result information on whether the point cloud data is reasonable from the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit.

11. A laser radar, comprising: A state detection device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 10.

12. The laser radar as described in claim 11 further includes an upper warehouse plate and a lower warehouse plate, on which components of the laser radar are respectively installed or connected, wherein the upper warehouse plate and the lower warehouse plate are implemented by FPGA and / or a microcontroller.

13. A method for detecting a state of a laser radar, comprising: The fault diagnosis unit performs fault diagnosis on the components of the laser radar, and outputs a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; The diagnostic management unit receives the fault diagnostic signal and determines the state of the laser radar according to the fault diagnostic signal; as well as The diagnosis management unit receives the point cloud data at the time when the fault occurs.

14. The state detection method according to claim 13, wherein the laser radar comprises an upper compartment plate and a lower compartment plate, the fault diagnosis unit comprises a first fault diagnosis unit and a second fault diagnosis unit, wherein the step of the fault diagnosis unit diagnosing a component of the laser radar and outputting a fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed comprises: The first fault diagnosis unit performs fault diagnosis on the components installed on or connected to the upper warehouse plate of the laser radar, and outputs a first fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; and The second fault diagnosis unit performs fault diagnosis on the components installed on or connected to the lower warehouse plate of the laser radar, and outputs a second fault diagnosis signal when a fault is diagnosed; The step of receiving the fault diagnosis signal by the diagnosis management unit and determining the state of the laser radar based on the fault diagnosis signal includes: receiving the first fault diagnosis signal and the second fault diagnosis signal by the diagnosis management unit, and determining the state of the laser radar based on the first fault diagnosis signal and the second fault diagnosis signal.

15. The state detection method according to claim 14, wherein the laser radar comprises a transmitting unit, a receiving unit and a point cloud generating unit arranged on the upper warehouse plate, wherein the transmitting unit is configured to transmit a detection laser beam to the outside of the laser radar, the receiving unit is configured to receive an echo of the detection laser beam after being reflected on a target object and convert it into an electrical signal, and the point cloud generating unit is configured to generate point cloud data of the laser radar according to the electrical signal, wherein the state detection method further comprises: When the first fault diagnosis signal is received, point cloud data corresponding to the first fault diagnosis signal is received.

16. The state detection method according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the laser radar comprises a motor, a power supply, an encoder and a communication component arranged on the lower warehouse plate, and the state of the laser radar comprises: Initialization state, normal state, degraded state, shutdown state, the state detection method includes: In the initialization state, performing a self-check operation and a motor start-up operation on the laser radar; In the normal state, the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit perform periodic detection; In the degraded state, the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit perform periodic detection and record at least part of the data of the laser radar; In the shutdown state, the laser radar is powered off and at least part of the data of the laser radar is recorded.

17. The state detection method according to claim 16, wherein the fault of the laser radar includes a primary fault and a secondary fault; wherein the state detection method further comprises: When the first fault diagnosis unit or the second fault diagnosis unit detects a primary fault, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar to a degraded state; When the first fault diagnosis unit or the second fault diagnosis unit detects a secondary fault, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar to a shutdown state.

18. The state detection method according to claim 17, further comprising: When the first fault diagnosis unit and the second fault diagnosis unit do not detect a fault in the degraded state, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the degraded state to the normal state.

19. The state detection method according to claim 16, wherein the self-checking operation comprises: Self-test of the power supply and clock of the laser radar; Self-inspection of the upper and lower warehouse plates; Internal power supply self-test; The transmitting unit and the receiving unit perform self-test, wherein the motor starting operation is performed after the self-test operation is successful, The state detection method further includes: When the self-check in the initialization state is successful and the motor is started successfully, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the normal state; If the self-test of the power supply and the clock fails, or the self-test of the upper and lower panels fails, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the shutdown state; If the motor start-up operation fails, the diagnosis management unit switches the state of the laser radar from the initialization state to the shutdown state.

20. The state detection method according to claim 17, further comprising: When the first fault diagnosis unit determines that a fault exists, caching the fault data in a first cache; When the second fault diagnosis unit determines that a fault exists, caching the fault data in a second cache; The fault data is received by a fault memory from the first cache and the second cache.

21. The state detection method according to claim 20, further comprising: When an external request is received, the diagnosis management unit outputs the fault data stored in the fault memory.

22. The state detection method according to any one of claims 13 to 15, further comprising: The point cloud rationality diagnosis unit determines whether the point cloud data is reasonable and outputs result information; The diagnosis management unit receives result information on whether the point cloud data is reasonable from the point cloud rationality diagnosis unit.

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