Communication circuit, laser radar and carrier

Abstract

A communication circuit, a lidar, and a vehicle are disclosed. The communication circuit is used for communication between the laser radar and a control platform of a carrier, and comprises a controller and a processor which are connected through a first type interface; the first interface circuit is connected with the processor through a second-type interface; a connector configured to connect the first interface circuit and the control platform; wherein the processor comprises a data processing circuit and a protocol processing circuit, the data processing circuit is configured to process the echo data into point cloud data, and the protocol processing circuit is configured to perform media access control layer processing on the point cloud data to obtain a first data packet; the first interface circuit is configured to obtain a first data packet through a second type of interface and perform physical layer processing on the first data packet to obtain a second data packet; and the connector is configured to send the second data packet to the control platform. According to the communication circuit, the cost of the laser radar can be reduced, and the communication efficiency is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of optical detection, and in particular to a communication circuit, a laser radar and a vehicle. BACKGROUND

[0002] Optical detection technology detects objects by using light as a medium. Laser has the characteristics of monochromaticity and good directionality compared with ordinary light sources, and object detection by using laser as a medium has been widely applied. For example, laser radar (light detection and ranging, LiDAR) detects objects by using laser as a medium, and has been applied in the fields of intelligent driving, unmanned aerial vehicles, robot recognition, geographic mapping, and environmental monitoring.

[0003] In some application scenarios, the communication efficiency of the laser radar is required to be high. For example, when the laser radar is applied in the field of intelligent driving, the communication efficiency of the laser radar is related to whether the vehicle can timely receive the sensing data of the laser radar, so as to make timely decisions and control by using the sensing data, and improve the safety of driving. In addition, the cost reduction of the laser radar is a problem concerned by the application promotion of the laser radar. UTILITY MODEL CONTENT

[0004] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication circuit, a laser radar and a vehicle to reduce the cost of the laser radar and improve the communication efficiency.

[0005] In a first aspect, a communication circuit is provided for communication between a laser radar and a control platform of a vehicle. The communication circuit includes a controller and a processor connected through a first type of interface, a first interface circuit connected with the processor through a second type of interface, and a connector configured to connect the first interface circuit and the control platform. The processor includes a data processing circuit and a protocol processing circuit. The data processing circuit is configured to process echo data into point cloud data. The protocol processing circuit is configured to perform media access control layer processing on the point cloud data to obtain a first data packet. The first interface circuit is configured to obtain the first data packet through the second type of interface and perform physical layer processing on the first data packet to obtain a second data packet. The connector is configured to send the second data packet to the control platform.

[0006] Through the design of the above communication circuit, after obtaining the point cloud data, the processor can perform media access control layer processing on the point cloud data locally, encapsulate the media access control layer data packet (i.e., the first data packet), and does not need to forward it to the controller for encapsulation; and the processor and the first interface circuit are directly connected, so that the processor directly transmits the encapsulated data packet to the first interface circuit without forwarding through the controller. Through the architecture design, the forwarding delay can be saved, the processing efficiency of the point cloud data is improved, and the transmission efficiency of the point cloud data is further improved. In addition, the processor processes the perception data, and therefore has strong computing power. When the media access control layer encapsulation function is integrated in the processor, the performance requirement of the processor will not have too much impact, and the cost will not increase too much. However, when the media access control layer encapsulation function is designed in the controller, the performance requirement of the controller is relatively high, and the overall cost of the lidar will be greatly increased. The above communication circuit of the present disclosure can reduce the performance requirement of the controller, and even save the interface design of the controller. For example, when the lidar transmits the point cloud data to the control platform of the vehicle through the Ethernet, the above communication circuit can save the design of the Ethernet interface on the controller, and further reduce the cost of the controller. The above communication circuit can reduce the overall cost of the lidar, and improve the transmission efficiency of the point cloud data of the lidar.

[0007] Optionally, the communication circuit further comprises a second interface circuit connected between the controller and the connector and connected with the controller through a third type of interface.

[0008] Optionally, the second type of interface comprises an Ethernet interface, and the third type of interface comprises a controller area network interface.

[0009] Optionally, the lidar comprises a first sending path and a second sending path, the first sending path comprises a path from the processor to the first interface circuit and a path from the first interface circuit to the connector, and the first sending path is configured to send the point cloud data of the lidar to the control platform; the second sending path comprises a path from the controller to the second interface circuit and a path from the second interface circuit to the connector, and the second sending path is configured to send additional information of the lidar to the control platform.

[0010] Optionally, the lidar further comprises a first receiving path, the first receiving path comprises a path from the connector to the second interface circuit and a path from the second interface circuit to the controller, and the first receiving path is configured to receive data from the control platform.

[0011] Optionally, the data interface between the processor and the first interface circuit is a unidirectional interface.

[0012] Optionally, the lidar further comprises a second receiving path, the second receiving path comprising a path from the connector to the first interface circuit and a path from the first interface circuit to the controller, and the second receiving path is configured to receive data from the control platform.

[0013] Optionally, the data interface between the processor and the first interface circuit is a unidirectional interface, and the data interface between the controller and the first interface circuit is a unidirectional interface.

[0014] Optionally, the lidar further comprises a third sending path; the third sending path comprising a path from the controller to the processor, a path from the processor to the first interface circuit, and a path from the first interface circuit to the connector, and the third sending path is configured to send additional information of the lidar to the control platform.

[0015] Optionally, the first interface circuit is further connected with the controller through a second type of interface; the lidar comprises a first sending path, a second sending path, and a receiving path; the first sending path comprising a path from the processor to the first interface circuit and a path from the first interface circuit to the connector, and the first sending path is configured to send point cloud data of the lidar to the control platform; the second sending path comprising a path from the controller to the processor, a path from the processor to the first interface circuit, and a path from the first interface circuit to the connector, and the second sending path is configured to send additional information of the lidar to the control platform; the receiving path comprising a path from the connector to the first interface circuit and a path from the first interface circuit to the controller, and the receiving path is configured to receive data from the control platform.

[0016] Optionally, the data interface between the processor and the first interface circuit is a unidirectional interface, and the data interface between the controller and the first interface circuit is a unidirectional interface.

[0017] In a second aspect, a lidar is provided, comprising: a laser configured to emit laser light; a detector configured to receive a return of the laser light, and convert the return into an electrical signal; a pre-processing circuit connected with the detector, and configured to convert the electrical signal into return data; and a communication circuit as provided in the first aspect above, connected with the pre-processing circuit.

[0018] In a third aspect, a vehicle is provided, comprising: a lidar and a control platform, the lidar comprising a communication circuit as provided in the first aspect above, for communicating with the control platform. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the drawings used in the embodiments description will be exemplarily introduced below, and the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present disclosure, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained without creative labor on the basis of the provided drawings. The drawings are used to provide further understanding of the present disclosure, and constitute a part of the specification, and together with the embodiments of the present disclosure, are used to explain the present disclosure, and do not constitute a limitation on the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 1 An application scenario example diagram of a laser radar provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0021] Figure 2 A structural example diagram of a laser radar provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0022] Figure 3 A structural example diagram of a communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0023] Figure 4 A structural example diagram of another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0024] Figure 5 A structural example diagram of still another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0025] Figure 6 A structural example diagram of still another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0026] Figure 7 A structural example diagram of still another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the specific implementation of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present disclosure, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained without creative labor on the basis of these drawings, and other embodiments can be obtained without departing from the concept of the present disclosure, and adjustments and improvements made without departing from the concept of the present disclosure are within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0028] In order to make the drawing simple and clear, each drawing only shows the part related to the corresponding embodiment, and it does not represent the actual structure of the product. In addition, in order to make the drawing simple and easy to understand, only some structures or components are shown, and there may be more or less similar structures or components.

[0029] The laser radar uses laser as a medium to detect objects, and can be applied to intelligent driving, unmanned aerial vehicles, robot identification, geographic mapping, or environmental monitoring, etc. Intelligent driving can also be referred to as automatic driving or assisted driving, including any level of automatic driving, such as L1-L5 or any other level of automatic driving. In applications, the laser radar can be installed on a vehicle to provide the vehicle with perception data, such as point cloud data, so that the vehicle uses the perception data to realize analysis, decision-making, or control, etc. The vehicle includes a vehicle, a ship, an aircraft (such as a flying vehicle or a drone, etc.), a robot (such as an industrial robot or a household robot, etc.), a mapping device, etc.

[0030] Figure 1 An application scenario diagram of a laser radar provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. As shown in the diagram, a vehicle 200 is provided, and a laser radar 100 is installed on the vehicle 200. As the vehicle 200 travels, the laser radar 100 can detect objects around the vehicle 200 to obtain perception data, which is provided to a control platform on the vehicle 200, so that the control platform makes decisions or controls according to the perception data. Figure 1

[0031] Figure 1 In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the laser radar 100 is installed on the front side of the roof of the vehicle 200, but this is only an example. The dashed box in the diagram also shows other possible installation positions, such as the installation position of the laser radar 100 on the vehicle 200, including but not limited to: the roof of the vehicle (such as the front side of the roof, the rear side, or other positions on the roof), the vicinity of the front headlamp, hidden in the front headlamp, the sides of the vehicle body, the front bumper, the grille, above the front windshield, above the rear window, the side wing, the front wheel arch, the front cover, the trunk lid, below the trunk, or a position in the cabin that can detect outward through the front windshield, etc. The vehicle 200 can be installed with one or more laser radars 100. The embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the number and position of the laser radars installed on the vehicle.

[0032] The laser radar can include a mechanical laser radar, a semi-solid laser radar, or a solid laser radar. The semi-solid laser radar can include a micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) laser radar, a rotating mirror laser radar, a swinging mirror laser radar, or a prism laser radar, etc. The solid laser radar can include an optical phase array (OPA) laser radar or a flash laser radar, etc. When the vehicle is installed with multiple laser radars, the types of the laser radars can be the same or different.

[0033] Figure 2 A structural diagram of a laser radar provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Please refer to Figure 2 ​The laser radar 100 includes a laser emitting system 110, a laser receiving system 120, and a control and processing system 130. Optionally, the laser radar 100 further includes a scanning system 140. The scanning system 140 can be included in a mechanical laser radar or a semi-solid laser radar. The scanning system 140 can include a rotating platform, a rotating mirror, a swinging mirror, a vibrating mirror, or other devices that can direct laser beams to different directions in the environment.

[0034] The laser emitting system 110 is configured to emit laser beams. After the laser beams encounter an object, the laser beams are reflected by the surface of the object and return to the laser radar 100 as a return light. The laser receiving system 120 receives the return light and converts the return light into an electrical signal. The electrical signal is processed by a pre-processing circuit to obtain return light data, which is provided to the control and processing system 130. The control and processing system 130 processes the return light data to obtain perception data, such as point cloud data. The control and processing system 130 sends the perception data to the control platform 210, which uses the perception data to perform analysis, decision-making, or control.

[0035] The laser emitting system 110 mainly includes a driving circuit, a laser, and an emitting optical element. The laser emits laser beams under the driving of the driving circuit, and the laser beams exit through the emitting optical element. The laser can include a semiconductor laser, a fiber laser, or other types of lasers. The semiconductor laser can include a laser emitting circuit, a vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL), an edge emitting laser (EEL), a distributed feedback laser (DFB), or similar devices. The above are only examples, and the embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the type of laser.

[0036] The laser receiving system 120 mainly includes a receiving optical element and a detector. The receiving optical element collects the return light reflected by the object and converges the return light onto the light-sensitive surface of the detector. The detector converts the optical signal into an electrical signal using the photoelectric effect. The detector can include a photoelectric detection circuit, a PIN photo diode (PIN PD), an avalanche photo diode (APD), a single photon avalanche diode (SPAD), a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM), or similar devices. The above are only examples, and the embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the type of detector.

[0037] The transmitting optical element is on the transmitting path of the laser, for shaping the laser emitted by the laser and adjusting the outgoing path of the laser. The receiving optical element is on the receiving path of the laser, for collecting the echo reflected by the object and converging the echo to the light-sensitive surface of the detector. The transmitting optical element and the receiving optical element can be independent, partially multiplexed, or fully multiplexed. For example, the transmitting optical element includes one or more optical elements such as a transmitting lens, a homogenizer, a beam splitter, etc. For example, the receiving optical element includes one or more optical elements such as a receiving lens, a filter, etc.

[0038] The preprocessing can also be referred to as analog front-end processing, for example, including one or more of amplification, filtering, digitization, etc. The preprocessing circuit can also be referred to as an analog front-end circuit, for example, including one or more of an amplification circuit, a filtering circuit, a digitization circuit. The amplification circuit, for example, includes an amplifier, which can amplify the electrical signal converted by the detector; which can improve the signal-to-noise ratio. The filtering circuit, for example, includes a filter, which is used to filter out noise or interference. The digitization circuit, for example, includes one or more of an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) or a time-to-digital converter (TDC), etc. For example, the ADC converts the analog electrical signal into a digital signal embodying the waveform of the echo by periodically sampling the output signal of the detector, obtaining echo data. For another example, the electrical signal converted by the detector can be converted (for example, converted into voltage and compared with a reference voltage to generate a threshold crossing signal) to provide the TDC, and the TDC measures the arrival time of the echo based on the received electrical signal, obtaining echo data. The echo data can include data embodying the echo time and / or echo intensity.

[0039] The control and processing system 130 is configured to process the echo data to obtain perception data. The control and processing system 130 is also configured to send control signaling to the driving circuit to control the driving circuit to drive the laser to emit light, so as to realize the emission of the laser. When the laser radar 100 comprises the scanning system 140, the control and processing system 130 is also configured to control the scanning system 140. In some embodiments, the control and processing system 130 can comprise one or more processors. The processor(s) can comprise, but are not limited to, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD) implemented hardware circuit, a microcontroller unit (MCU), a microprocessor unit (MPU), or a digital signal processor (DSP), a central processing unit (CPU), etc. The PLD implemented hardware circuit can comprise, for example, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), etc. When the control and processing system 130 comprises multiple processors, the types of the processors can be the same or different. For example, the control and processing system 130 can comprise an MCU and an FPGA; or, the control and processing system 130 can comprise an MCU, an FPGA and a CPU; or, the control and processing system 130 can comprise a CPU and an FPGA, etc. When the control and processing system 130 comprises multiple processors, the processors can be separately arranged, or partially integrated together, or can be all integrated together. For example, the control and processing system 130 can be implemented in the form of a system on chip (SOC) or an ASIC.

[0040] The control platform 210, which is configured to implement specific functions of the vehicle, can include one or more processors. Taking the vehicle as an example, the control platform 210 can be configured to implement intelligent driving functions. The control platform 210 can include, for example but not limited to, a domain control unit (DCU), an electronic control unit (ECU), a vehicle central computer (VCC), a zonal / zone ECU (or zone control unit, ZCU), or a vehicle control unit (VCU), etc. The domain control unit can include, for example but not limited to, a vehicle domain controller (VDC), a cockpit domain controller (CDC), or a domain controller for advanced driving assistance system / autonomous driving, etc.

[0041] The control and processing system 130 and the control platform 210 can communicate through wired or wireless means. The wired communication means can include, for example but not limited to, a controller area network (CAN) bus, a local interconnect network (LIN) bus, a Flex Ray bus, a media oriented systems transport (MOST) bus, a low voltage differential signaling (LVDS) bus, a time triggered protocol / class C (TTP / C) bus, or an Ethernet bus. The wireless communication means can include, for example but not limited to, a wireless sensing network (e.g., Bluetooth, Starlink, or ZigBee, etc.), a wireless local area network (e.g., WLAN or WiFi, etc.), a short-range point-to-point communication, a cellular network (e.g., 3G, 4G, 5G, or 6G, etc.), a near field communication (NFC) technology, etc.

[0042] The communication between the lidar 100 and the control platform 210 can include first direction communication and second direction communication. The first direction communication is the transmission of data from the lidar 100 to the control platform 210, for example, including the transmission of perception data and non-perception data. The perception data includes, for example, point cloud data, and the non-perception data refers to data other than the point cloud data transmitted by the lidar 100 to the control platform 210, which can be referred to as additional information. During the use of the lidar, the lidar can transmit some additional information in addition to the point cloud data to support the functions of reporting the status of the lidar, maintenance, time synchronization, security authentication, or update, etc. For example, the additional information can include one or more of the log of the lidar, fault information, synchronization signaling, authentication message, or update response message, etc. The embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the specific content of the additional information, and different content can be used in different communication processes.

[0043] The second direction communication is the transmission of data from the control platform 210 to the lidar 100. The embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the specific content of the data transmitted by the control platform 210 to the lidar 100. For example, the control platform 210 can transmit control signaling to the lidar to control the behavior of the lidar 100, such as starting, closing, restarting, or self-checking, etc.; for another example, the control platform 210 can transmit an update package to the lidar 100 for software or firmware update of the lidar; for another example, the control platform 210 can transmit configuration parameters to the lidar 100 for configuring or reconfiguring the parameters of the lidar 100; and the like.

[0044] In one implementation, the control and processing system of the lidar uses different processors to process different transactions. For example, the first processor processes the echo data to obtain the point cloud data; the point cloud data is first packaged to obtain the point cloud data package, and the point cloud data package is forwarded to the second processor. The second processor sends the point cloud data package to the control platform after second packaging. The first processor is mainly used for echo data processing, and has a higher requirement on processing speed; the second processor is mainly used for the control of the lidar, and can also be referred to as a controller; for example, the first processor can include an FPGA and an ASIC, and the second processor can include an MCU and an ASIC. The point cloud data generated by the first processor is forwarded through the second processor, which increases the transmission delay of the point cloud data, and also increases the performance requirement of the second processor.

[0045] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide some schemes, for example, including a communication circuit, a lidar, and a vehicle, which can reduce the transmission delay of point cloud data, and have important significance for scenarios with high real-time requirements, such as intelligent driving, intelligent city management, or industrial control systems. In addition, these schemes can reduce the dependence of the point cloud data transmission process on the second processor (or controller), reduce the performance requirements of the second processor (or controller), and save the overall cost of the lidar.

[0046] The embodiments of the present disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0047] Figure 3 An example structure diagram of a communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Please refer to Figure 3 The communication circuit 300 is located inside the lidar 100 and is used for communication between the lidar 100 and the control platform 210 of the vehicle. Please refer to Figure 3 The communication circuit 300 includes a controller 310, a processor 320, a first interface circuit 330, and a connector 340. The controller 310 is configured to control the operation of the lidar 100. For example, the controller 310 can control the laser of the lidar 100 to emit or stop emitting laser; for another example, the controller 310 can control the detector of the lidar 100 to be in a state of responding to an optical signal or not responding to an optical signal; for another example, the controller 310 can control the motion of the scanning system of the lidar 100; for another example, the controller 310 can control the operation of the angle detector or temperature detector of the lidar 100; for another example, the controller 310 can also control the lidar 100 to perform safety detection. The processor 320 is configured to receive echo data in the operation of the lidar 100, process the echo data into point cloud data, and perform media access control (MAC) processing on the point cloud data to obtain a first data packet D1. The first interface circuit 330 is connected with the processor 320 and is configured to obtain the first data packet D1 and perform physical layer (PHY) processing on the first data packet D1 to obtain a second data packet D2. The connector 340 is connected with the first interface circuit 330 and is configured to send the second data packet D2 to the control platform 210. For example, the controller 310 and the processor 320 can be part of the control and processing system 130.

[0048] Through the design of the above communication circuit, after obtaining the point cloud data, the processor can perform the processing of the media access control layer on the point cloud data locally, encapsulate the data packet (i.e., the first data packet) of the media access control layer, instead of forwarding it to the controller for encapsulation; and the processor and the first interface circuit are directly connected, and the processor directly transmits the encapsulated data packet to the first interface circuit without forwarding through the controller. As can be seen from the above structure, the controller in the communication circuit does not directly participate in the processing and transmission of the point cloud data.

[0049] It can be seen that the embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication circuit, which includes a processor configured to, in the operation of a laser radar, receive echo data, process the echo data into point cloud data, and perform processing of a media access control layer on the point cloud data to obtain a first data packet; a first interface circuit connected with the processor and configured to obtain the first data packet and perform processing of a physical layer on the first data packet to obtain a second data packet; and a connector connected with the first interface circuit and configured to send the second data packet to a control platform.

[0050] Through the design of the communication circuit, the forwarding delay can be saved, the processing efficiency of the point cloud data can be improved, and the transmission efficiency of the point cloud data can be further improved. In addition, the processor processes the perception data, has strong computing power, and integrates the encapsulation function of the media access control layer in the processor. The performance requirement for the processor will not have too much impact, and the cost will not increase too much. The encapsulation function of the media access control layer is designed in the controller, and the performance requirement for the controller is higher. Overall, the cost of the laser radar will increase greatly. The embodiment of the present disclosure adopts the above communication circuit, which can reduce the performance requirement for the controller, and even can save the interface design of the controller. For example, when the laser radar transmits the point cloud data to the control platform of the vehicle through Ethernet, the above communication circuit can save the design of the Ethernet interface on the controller, and further reduce the cost of the controller. The above communication circuit can reduce the cost of the laser radar as a whole, and improve the transmission efficiency of the point cloud data of the laser radar.

[0051] Figure 4 An example structure diagram of another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Please refer to Figure 4The controller 310 and the processor 320 can be connected through a first type of interface (indicated in the figure as containing “1” in the box), and the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 can be connected through a second type of interface (indicated in the figure as containing “2” in the box). The type of the first type of interface is related to the bus protocol between the controller 310 and the processor 320. For example, the first type of interface can include but is not limited to: a serial peripheral interface (SPI), an inter integrated circuit (I2C / IIC) bus interface, a universal asynchronous receiver / transmitter (UART) interface, and the like. The second type of interface is related to the communication protocol of the laser radar point cloud data transmission. For example, the second type of interface can refer to the wired or wireless communication protocol between the control and processing system 130 and the control platform 210 described above, and can include an Ethernet bus protocol, for example.

[0052] Please continue to refer to Figure 4 The processor 320 can include a data processing circuit 321 and a protocol processing circuit 322. The data processing circuit 321 is configured to process the echo data into point cloud data, and the protocol processing circuit 322 is configured to perform media access control layer processing on the point cloud data to obtain a first data packet D1. The first interface circuit 330 can obtain the first data packet D1 through the second type of interface, and perform physical layer processing on the first data packet D1 to obtain a second data packet D2. The communication protocol of the point cloud data transmission matches the second type of interface. The connector 440 receives the second data packet D2 from the first interface circuit 330, and sends the second data packet D2 to the control platform 210.

[0053] The media access control layer is located above the physical layer, for example, belongs to a part of the data link layer, and the data link layer can also include a logical link control (LLC) layer. The processor 320 or the protocol processing circuit 322 can implement all processing of the data link layer, or implement part of the processing of the data link layer, for example, implement all functions of the logical link control layer and the media access control layer, or implement the functions of the media access control layer; the embodiments of the present disclosure do not make any limitation.

[0054] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the controller 310 may, for example, comprise an MCU, a CPU, or an MPU, etc.; the processor 320 may, for example, comprise an FPGA, a DSP, or an ASIC, or the processor 320 may integrate multiple processing circuits, such as an FPGA and a DSP, etc. The first interface circuit 330 may, for example, comprise an Ethernet physical layer chip. The connector 340 may be a single type of connector or a hybrid connector, which may support multiple port designs, such as a connector integrating different types of bus port designs, for example, a hybrid connector integrating Ethernet and CAN port designs. Optionally, a power connection or the like may also be integrated.

[0055] The above communication circuit may, in the first direction, enable the laser radar as a whole to achieve more efficient point cloud data transmission at a lower cost. In the second direction, the amount of data transmitted by the control platform to the laser radar is much smaller than that in the first direction, and the interface design in the second direction may provide a second interface circuit for transmitting data in the second direction to the controller; or an interface in the second direction may be designed between the controller and the first interface circuit for transmitting data in the second direction to the controller. For additional information of the laser radar, the controller may forward the additional information to the processor, using the interface between the processor and the first interface circuit for forwarding; or the second interface circuit may be used for sending.

[0056] Several implementation examples are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings:

[0057] Figure 5 An example structure diagram of another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Please refer to Figure 5 The communication circuit 300 further comprises a second interface circuit 350 connected between the controller 310 and the connector 340. In the first direction, the second interface circuit 350 is configured to receive additional information of the laser radar from the controller 310 and send the additional information to the control platform 210 through the connector 340. In the second direction, the second interface circuit 350 is configured to receive data from the control platform 210 through the connector 340 and send the data to the controller 310.

[0058] The processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 may be connected through a second type of interface (indicated in the figure by the box containing “2”). The second interface circuit 350 is connected with the controller 310 through a third type of interface (indicated in the figure by the box containing “3”). In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the second interface circuit 350 may, for example, comprise a control area network transceiver (CAN transceiver). The second type of interface may, for example, comprise an Ethernet interface. The third type of interface may, for example, comprise a controller area network interface, such as a CAN interface or a CAN FD interface, etc.

[0059] The point cloud data has relatively high timeliness requirement and relatively large data quantity, and the transmission efficiency of the point cloud data can be improved by using a high-bandwidth Ethernet interface for transmission. The additional information of the laser radar has relatively low timeliness requirement and relatively small data quantity compared with the point cloud data, and the transmission requirement of the additional information can be met by using a controller area network interface. The data in the second direction has relatively low timeliness requirement and relatively small data quantity compared with the point cloud data, and the transmission requirement of the data in the second direction can also be met by using the controller area network interface. The second interface circuit 350 is designed, and an interface different from the first interface circuit 330 is selected, so that the interface design requirement of the controller 310 can be reduced, and the cost of the controller 310 is further reduced.

[0060] Please continue to refer to Figure 5Ethernet interface between the first interface circuit 330 and the processor 320, for example, includes a media independent interface (MII). The MII, for example, includes but is not limited to an MII, a reduced media independent interface (RMII), a serial media independent interface (SMII), a serial sync media independent interface (SSMII), a source sync serial media independent interface (SSSMII), a Gigabit media independent interface (GMII), a reduced Gigabit media independent interface (RGMII), a serial Gigabit media independent interface (SGMII), a ten bit interface (TBI), a reduced ten bit interface (RTBI), a 10 Gigabit MMI (XGMII), a 10 Gigabit attachment unit interface (XAUI), or a 40 Gigabit attachment unit interface (XLAUI), etc. The Ethernet interface between the first interface circuit 330 and the processor 320 also includes a serial management interface (SMI), which can also be referred to as an MII management interface, applied between a media access control layer and a physical layer of Ethernet, for the circuit where the media access control layer is located to implement operation and management of the circuit where the physical layer is located through read-write registers.

[0061] The controller 310 and the processor 320 can perform register reading control through the first type of interface. Please continue to refer to Figure 5 For example, the first type of interface includes an SPI. The SPI supports full-duplex communication, and data can be transmitted in two directions: the controller 310 can receive status information from the processor 320 while sending control commands, achieving more real-time and efficient control. The controller 310 can also send a synchronization signal, such as a pulse per second (PPS) signal, to the processor 320 through the SPI, for realizing time synchronization between the controller 310 and the processor 320.

[0062] Please continue to refer to Figure 5 For example, the second interface circuit 350 and the connector 340 can communicate through a high-voltage CAN (CAN high) bus and a low-voltage CAN (CAN low) bus. The two buses implement differential signal transmission, which improves the anti-interference and reliability of data transmission. The first interface circuit 330 and the connector 340 can transmit point cloud data through a media dependent interface (MDI).

[0063] Please continue to refer to Figure 5 In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the lidar 100 includes a first transmission path and a second transmission path. The first transmission path includes a path from the processor 320 to the first interface circuit 330 and a path from the first interface circuit 330 to the connector 340, and the first transmission path is configured to transmit point cloud data of the lidar to the control platform 210. The second transmission path includes a path from the controller 310 to the second interface circuit 350 and a path from the second interface circuit 350 to the connector 340, and the second transmission path is configured to transmit additional information of the lidar to the control platform 210.

[0064] For communication in the first direction, the lidar can transmit different types of data through different paths, for example, point cloud data of the lidar can be transmitted through the first transmission path, and additional information of the lidar can be transmitted through the second transmission path. In this way, the flexibility of the lidar in transmitting data externally is further increased.

[0065] The point cloud data of the lidar is used to provide perception data to the vehicle, so that the vehicle can use the perception data to understand the surrounding environment information in real time. For intelligent driving scenarios, the environment around the vehicle changes rapidly and has high real-time requirements. The processor 320 can have a large computing power to process the echo data to generate point cloud data as soon as possible. Designing an interface for point cloud data transmission at the processor 320 can allow point cloud data transmission without being forwarded by the controller 310, further increasing the real-time performance of the point cloud data. In addition, the interface design does not require too much additional computing power for the processor 320 relative to the performance of the processor 320, which can save the overall cost of the lidar.

[0066] The additional information of the lidar can refer to the description of the above embodiments. Compared with the point cloud data, the amount of additional information is relatively small, and the timeliness requirement is also low. The introduction of the second transmission path can make the point cloud quantity independent of the transmission of additional information, reduce the time delay of point cloud data due to waiting for the transmission of additional information, and further increase the real-time performance of the point cloud data.

[0067] In addition, the above design of the transmission paths can also facilitate the control platform of the vehicle to distinguish and process the received data. For example, for data from the first transmission path, the control platform can mark the data as high priority, so that they are processed preferentially; mark the data from the second transmission path as low priority, so as to reduce the impact of additional information on the processing timeliness of the point cloud data.

[0068] In addition, in the above design of the transmission paths, the controller 310 can be implemented using a circuit that does not support a high-bandwidth Ethernet interface, thus reducing the performance requirements of the controller 310 for data transmission and overall reducing the cost of the lidar.

[0069] Please continue to refer to Figure 5 In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the lidar further includes a first receiving path, the first receiving path includes a path from the connector 340 to the second interface circuit 350 and a path from the second interface circuit 350 to the controller 310, and the first receiving path is configured to receive data in the second direction, i.e., data from the control platform, which can be described with reference to the above embodiments. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the number of interfaces of the first interface circuit 330 and the processor 320 can also be saved. For example, the data interface between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 (e.g. Figure 5 RMII shown) is designed as a unidirectional interface, e.g., only includes an interface in the first direction; thus, the overall cost of the lidar can be further reduced. If the destination of the data in the second direction is the controller 310, the data can be transmitted directly to the controller 310 through the second interface circuit 350. If the destination of the data in the second direction is the processor 320, the data can be transmitted through the first type of interface between the controller 310 and the processor 320.

[0070] Figure 6 An example structure diagram of another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Please refer to Figure 6 , compared with Figure 5 the embodiment shown, the lidar 100 further includes a second receiving path. The second receiving path includes a path from the connector 340 to the first interface circuit 330 and a path from the first interface circuit 330 to the controller 310, and the second receiving path is configured to receive data from the control platform 210.

[0071] The introduction of the second receiving path can flexibly adapt to different types of control platforms, and select a suitable receiving path for transmission according to the transmission protocol supported by the control platform. The second receiving path can increase the fault tolerance or flexibility of transmission. For example, when an error occurs in the first receiving path (or the second receiving path), the second receiving path (or the first receiving path) can be used for data transmission in the first direction; for another example, when the first receiving path (or the second receiving path) is busy, the second receiving path (or the first receiving path) can be used for transmission in the first direction.

[0072] The path of the first interface circuit 330 to the controller 310 can be implemented through a second type of interface. For example Figure 6 The RMII RX is shown, where RX represents the transmission direction of data relative to the controller 310, i.e. the controller 310 receives from the outside. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the data interface in the second type of interface between the first interface circuit 330 and the controller 310 can be configured as a one-way interface: transmitting data in the second direction, i.e. data from the first interface circuit 330 to the controller 310. Similarly, the data interface in the second type of interface between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 can also be configured as a one-way interface: transmitting data in the first direction, i.e. data from the processor 320 to the first interface circuit 330.

[0073] The data interface between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 and the data interface between the controller 310 and the first interface circuit 330 are both configured as one-way interfaces, which can reduce the number of interfaces of the controller 310 and the processor 320, further reducing the overall cost of the lidar.

[0074] Optionally, a second type of interface can also be provided between the controller 310 and the processor 320, for example Figure 6 The RMIITX is shown, where TX represents the transmission direction of data relative to the controller 310, i.e. transmission from the controller 310 to the outside. The controller 310 can select to use the first type of interface (e.g. Figure 6 The interface SPI is shown) or the second type of interface to transmit data to the processor 320, for example, control signaling can be transmitted through the first type of interface, and for another example, update data packets or configuration parameters can be transmitted through the second type of interface. The lidar 100 further comprises a third sending path; the third sending path comprises a path from the controller 310 to the processor 320, a path from the processor 320 to the first interface circuit 330, and a path from the first interface circuit 330 to the connector 340, and the third sending path is configured to send additional information of the lidar to the control platform.

[0075] Figure 7 An example structure diagram of another communication circuit provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Please refer toFigure 7 , relative to Figure 5 and Figure 6 , the laser radar 100 is not configured with the second interface circuit; the first interface circuit 330 is also connected with the controller 310. The data in the first direction from the controller 310 is forwarded through the processor 320; the data in the second direction is transmitted to the controller 310 through the first interface circuit 330. The laser radar 100 comprises a first sending path, a second sending path, and a receiving path. The first sending path comprises a path from the processor 320 to the first interface circuit 330 and a path from the first interface circuit 330 to the connector 340; and the first sending path is configured to send the point cloud data of the laser radar to the control platform. The second sending path comprises a path from the controller 310 to the processor 320, a path from the processor 320 to the first interface circuit 330, and a path from the first interface circuit 330 to the connector 340; and the second sending path is configured to send additional information of the laser radar to the control platform. The receiving path comprises a path from the connector 340 to the first interface circuit 330 and a path from the first interface circuit 330 to the controller 310; and the receiving path is configured to receive data from the control platform.

[0076] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the data interface between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 can be a unidirectional interface for transmitting data in the first direction, for example Figure 7 , the interface RMII TX between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330, wherein TX represents the transmission direction of the data relative to the processor 320, i.e. transmission from the processor 320 to the outside. The data interface between the controller 310 and the first interface circuit 330 can be a unidirectional interface for transmitting data in the second direction, for example Figure 7 , the interface RMII RX between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330, wherein RX represents the transmission direction of the data relative to the controller 310, i.e. the controller 310 receives from the outside. Referring to the description of the above embodiments, the unidirectional data interface can save the interface design and further reduce the overall cost of the laser radar.

[0077] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the data interface between the processor 320 and the first interface circuit 330 can be a bidirectional interface, so as to provide a redundant path design.

[0078] Optionally, a second type of interface can also be provided between the controller 310 and the processor 320, for example Figure 7 , the interface RMII TX between the controller 310 and the processor 320, wherein TX represents the transmission direction of the data relative to the controller 310, i.e. transmission from the controller 310 to the outside. In this way, the controller 310 can select to use the first type of interface (for example Figure 7The first type of interface (e.g., the interface SPI shown) or the second type of interface transmits data to the processor 320, for example, control signaling can be transmitted through the first type of interface, and for another example, update data packets or configuration parameters can be transmitted through the second type of interface.

[0079] In the present disclosure, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, ordinal words such as "first", "second", etc. are only used to distinguish the description of the associated objects, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying the relative importance or order between the associated objects. In addition, the ordinal words also do not represent the number of the associated objects. For example, "the first lidar" can include one lidar, or multiple lidars. "Multiple" includes two or more, and other quantifiers are similar.

[0080] The term "or", "and / or" in the present disclosure is used to describe the relationship between the associated objects, which means non-exclusive inclusion. For example, "A and / or B" and "A or B" can both include: "A alone", "B alone", or "A and B", where "A" and "B" can include a single object or multiple objects. For another example, "A, B and / or C", "A, B or C", and "A, B and C" can all include: "A alone", "B alone", "C alone", "A and B", "A and C", "B and C", or "A, B and C", where "A", "B" and "C" can include a single object or multiple objects. In addition, " / " in the present disclosure is used to represent the relationship between the associated objects "or". The meaning of "at least one of A or B" and "one or more of A and B" in the present disclosure is the same as the meaning of "A or B" above, and the meaning of "one or more of A, B and C" and "at least one of A, B or C" is the same as the meaning of "A, B or C" above. The meaning of "one or more of A, B and C" is the same as the meaning of "A, B or C" above.

[0081] In the above embodiments, the description of each embodiment has its own focus, and the parts not described or recorded in detail in a certain embodiment can be referred to the relevant description of other embodiments. In addition, the above embodiments can be freely combined as needed.

Claims

1. A communication circuit, characterized by, A communication circuit for a lidar to communicate with a control platform of a vehicle, the communication circuit comprising: a processor comprising a data processing circuit configured to process return data into point cloud data and a protocol processing circuit configured to process the point cloud data into first data packets; the processor is further configured to control the lidar; a first interface circuit connected to the processor via a second type of interface; a connector configured to connect the first interface circuit and the control platform; the first interface circuit is configured to obtain the first data packets via the second type of interface and process the first data packets into second data packets; the connector is configured to send the second data packets to the control platform; a second interface circuit connected to the processor via a third type of interface.

2. The communication circuit of claim 1, wherein: the processor comprises a first processor and a second processor; the first processor comprises the data processing circuit and the protocol processing circuit; the second processor is configured to control the lidar.

3. The communication circuit of claim 2, wherein: the first interface circuit is connected to the first processor via the second type of interface; the second interface circuit is connected to the second processor via the third type of interface.

4. The communication circuit of claim 3, wherein: the first processor and the second processor are connected via a first type of interface.

5. The communication circuit of claim 3, wherein, the lidar comprises a first transmission path and a second transmission path, the first transmission path comprises a path from the first processor to the first interface circuit and a path from the first interface circuit to the connector, and the first transmission path is configured to transmit the point cloud data of the lidar to the control platform; the second transmission path comprises a path from the second processor to the second interface circuit and a path from the second interface circuit to the connector, and the second transmission path is configured to transmit additional information of the lidar to the control platform.

6. The communication circuit of claim 5, wherein, the lidar further comprises a first reception path comprising a path from the connector to the second interface circuit and a path from the second interface circuit to the second processor, and the first reception path is configured to receive data from the control platform.

7. The communication circuit of claim 6, wherein: the lidar further comprises a second reception path comprising a path from the connector to the first interface circuit and a path from the first interface circuit to the first processor, and the second reception path is configured to receive data from the control platform.

8. The communication circuit of claim 5, wherein, the lidar further comprises a third transmission path; The third sending path includes a path from the second processor to the first processor, a path from the first processor to the first interface circuit, and a path from the first interface circuit to the connector, and the third sending path is configured to send the additional information of the lidar to the control platform.

9. The communication circuit according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein, The second type of interface includes an Ethernet interface.

10. The communication circuit according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized by The third type of interface includes a local area network interface.

11. The communication circuit of any of claims 1-8, wherein, The data interface between the processor and the first interface circuit is a unidirectional interface or a bidirectional interface.

12. A lidar, comprising: including: a laser configured to emit laser light; a detector configured to receive a return of the laser light and convert the return into an electrical signal; a pre-processing circuit connected to the detector and configured to convert the electrical signal into return data; the communication circuit according to any one of claims 1-11, connected to the pre-processing circuit.

13. A carrier, characterized by including: a lidar and a control platform, the lidar including the communication circuit according to any one of claims 1-11, for communication with the control platform.

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