LIDAR sensor system including a transceiver device

Abstract

A vehicle light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system may include a device including a plurality of transceivers, a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components, and a processor. The processor may be configured to operate the device to generate a plurality of optical signals associated with a plurality of local oscillator (LO) signals based on the beam and multiplex the plurality of transceivers to transmit the plurality of optical signals into an environment. In response to transmitting the plurality of optical signals, the plurality of transceivers may be configured to receive a plurality of return optical signals reflected from objects in the environment and pair the plurality of return optical signals with the plurality of LO signals.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] [CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS] This application claims benefit of and priority to U.S. Application No. 17 / 888,355, filed August 15, 2022, which is incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002] Light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensor systems are used in a variety of applications, from altitude measurement to imaging and collision avoidance. LIDAR offers finer range resolution with smaller beam sizes than traditional microwave ranging systems such as Radio-Wave Detection and Ranging (RADAR). Optical ranging can be performed using a variety of techniques, including direct ranging based on the round-trip travel time of a light pulse to an object; chirp detection, based on the frequency difference between a transmitted chirped light signal and the return signal scattered from the object; and phase-encoded detection, based on a series of single-frequency phase changes that are distinguishable from natural signals.

[0003] When applying these technologies, LIDAR sensor systems may need to use limited or expensive hardware resources (e.g., receive (RX) hardware resources such as analog-to-digital converters (ADCs)). A mechanism is needed to efficiently share these limited hardware resources among other circuit modules. Furthermore, when designing and implementing photonic integrated circuits (PICs) or integrated optical circuits, which are chips containing photonic components, a chip-scale packaging solution is needed to efficiently share these limited hardware resources among other circuit modules. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to systems and methods for light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensor systems, and more particularly to systems and methods for LIDAR sensor systems that include a transceiver module (or transceiver device).

[0005] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) system may include a transceiver, a first device including a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components, a second device including one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and a processor configured to alternately turn on the first device and turn on the transceiver. The first device may be configured to generate an optical signal associated with a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The transceiver may be configured to transmit the optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The second device may be configured to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal.

[0006] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an autonomous vehicle control system may include one or more processors and one or more computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to alternately turn on a first device and turn on a transceiver. The first device may include a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components. The instructions cause the first device to generate an optical signal associated with a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The instructions cause the transceiver to transmit the optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The instructions cause the second device to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal. The second device may include one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). The instructions can control operation of the vehicle using the digital signal.

[0007] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an autonomous vehicle may include a vehicle controller including at least one of a steering system or a braking system and one or more processors. The one or more processors may be configured to alternately turn on a first device and turn on a transceiver. The first device may include a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components. The one or more processors may be configured to cause the first device to generate an optical signal associated with a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The one or more processors may be configured to cause the transceiver to transmit an optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to the transmission of the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The one or more processors may be configured to cause a second device to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal. The second device may include one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). The one or more processors may be configured to control at least one of the steering system or the braking system using the digital signal.

[0008] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for controlling a Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) system may be provided, the method including a transceiver, a first device including a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components, a second device including one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and a processor configured to alternately turn on the first device and turn on the transceiver. The method may include generating, by the first device, an optical signal related to a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The method may include transmitting, by the transceiver, the optical signal into an environment, receiving a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pairing the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The method may include generating, by the second device, a digital signal based on the electrical signal.

[0009] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a vehicle-based Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) system may include multiple transceivers, a device, and a processor. The device may include a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components. The processor may be configured to operate the device to generate multiple optical signals associated with multiple local oscillator (LO) signals based on the beam and multiplex the multiple transceivers to transmit the multiple optical signals into an environment. The multiple transceivers may be configured to receive multiple return optical signals reflected from objects in the environment in response to transmitting the multiple optical signals and pair the multiple return optical signals with the multiple LO signals.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an autonomous vehicle may include a vehicle controller including at least one of a steering system or a braking system and one or more processors. The one or more processors may be configured to operate a device including a laser source, generate multiple optical signals associated with multiple local oscillator (LO) signals based on a beam generated from the laser source, and multiplex multiple transceivers to transmit the multiple optical signals into an environment. In response to transmitting the multiple optical signals, the one or more processors may be configured to cause the multiple transceivers to receive multiple return optical signals reflected from objects in the environment and pair the multiple return optical signals with the multiple LO signals to generate multiple electrical signals. The one or more processors may be configured to control at least one of the steering system or the braking system using the multiple electrical signals. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011]

[0012] This and other features of the present embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0013] [Figure 1A] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous vehicle, according to some embodiments.

[0014] [Figure 1B] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous commercial truck vehicle, according to some embodiments.

[0015] [Figure 1C] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous commercial truck vehicle, according to some embodiments.

[0016] [Figure 1D] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous commercial truck vehicle, according to some embodiments.

[0017] [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a LIDAR sensor system for an autonomous vehicle, according to some embodiments.

[0018] [Figure 3A] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a LIDAR sensor system according to some embodiments.

[0019] [Figure 3B] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating another example of a LIDAR sensor system according to some embodiments.

[0020] [Figure 4A] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a transmit (TX) amplifier according to some embodiments. [Figure 4B] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a transmit (TX) amplifier according to some embodiments.

[0021] [Figure 4C] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a transceiver device according to some embodiments.

[0022] [Figure 5] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0023] [Figure 6] FIG. 1 illustrates yet another example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0024] [Figure 7] FIG. 1 illustrates yet another example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0025] [Figure 8] FIG. 1 illustrates yet another example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0026] [Figure 9] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary methodology for controlling a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0027] [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a computing system according to some embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0028] According to certain aspects, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to systems and methods for controlling a vehicle using light detection and ranging (LIDAR), and more particularly, to systems and methods for a LIDAR sensor system that includes a transceiver module (or transceiver device).

[0029] According to certain aspects, a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system may include a transceiver, a first device including a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components, a second device including one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and a processor configured to alternately turn on the first device and turn on the transceiver. The first device may be configured to generate an optical signal related to a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The transceiver may be configured to transmit the optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The second device may be configured to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal. [1. System environment for autonomous vehicles]

[0030] FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating an example system environment for an autonomous vehicle, according to some embodiments.

[0031] 1A , an exemplary autonomous vehicle 110A capable of implementing various techniques disclosed herein is shown. For example, vehicle 110A may include a powertrain 192 that includes a prime mover 194 powered by an energy source 196 and that can power a drivetrain 198, and a control system 180 that includes directional control 182, powertrain control 184, and brake control 186. Vehicle 110A may be embodied in a variety of forms, including vehicles capable of transporting people and / or cargo and operating in a variety of environments, and the aforementioned components 180-198 may vary widely based on the type of vehicle in which they are used.

[0032] For simplicity, the embodiments discussed below focus on wheeled land vehicles such as cars, vans, trucks, and buses. In such embodiments, prime mover 194 may include (among other things) one or more electric motors and / or internal combustion engines. The energy source may include, for example, a fuel system (e.g., providing gasoline, diesel, hydrogen, etc.), a battery system, solar panels or other renewable energy sources, and / or a fuel cell system. Drivetrain 198 may include wheels and / or tires along with a transmission and / or any other mechanical drive components for converting the power output of prime mover 194 into vehicle motion, one or more brakes configured to controllably stop or slow vehicle 110A, and a steering or steering component suitable for controlling the trajectory of vehicle 110A (e.g., a rack-and-pinion steering linkage that allows one or more wheels of vehicle 110A to pivot about a generally vertical axis to change the angle of the wheel's plane of rotation relative to the vehicle's longitudinal axis). In some embodiments, a combination of powertrains and energy sources can be used (e.g., in the case of electric / gas hybrid vehicles), and in some embodiments, multiple electric motors (e.g., individual wheels or axles only) can be used as prime movers.

[0033] Directional control 182 may include one or more actuators and / or sensors for controlling and receiving feedback from directional or steering components to enable vehicle 110A to follow a desired trajectory. Powertrain control 184 is configured to control the speed and / or direction of vehicle 110A by controlling the output of powertrain 102, such as by controlling the output of prime mover 194 and controlling the gears of a transmission in drivetrain 198. Brake control 116 may be configured to control one or more brakes, e.g., disc or drum brakes coupled to the wheels of the vehicle, to slow or stop vehicle 110A.

[0034] Other vehicle types, including, but not limited to, off-road vehicles, all-terrain or tracked vehicles, construction equipment, etc., may use different powertrains, drivetrains, energy sources, directional control, powertrain control, and braking control. Also, in some embodiments, some of the components may be combined; for example, directional control of the vehicle is primarily handled by modifying the output of one or more prime movers. Accordingly, the embodiments described herein are not limited to the specific application of the technology described herein in Autonomous Wheeled Land Vehicles.

[0035] Various levels of autonomous control for vehicle 110A are implemented in vehicle control system 120, which may include one or more processors 122 and one or more memories 124, each of which may be configured to execute program code instructions 126 stored in memory 124. The processors may include, for example, graphics processing units (GPU(s)) and / or central processing units (CPU(s)).

[0036] The sensors 130 may include various sensors suitable for collecting information from the vehicle's surrounding environment for use in controlling the vehicle's operation. For example, the sensors 130 may include a radar sensor 134, a LIDAR sensor 136, a 3D positioning sensor 138, such as an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, or a satellite navigation system such as GPS (Global Positioning System), GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System), BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), Galileo, or Compass. The 3D positioning sensor 138 can be used to determine the vehicle's position on Earth using satellite signals. The sensors 130 may include a camera 140 and / or an inertial measurement device (IMU) 142. The camera 140 may be a monographic or stereographic camera and can record still and / or video images. The IMU 142 may include multiple gyroscopes and accelerometers capable of detecting linear and rotational motion of the vehicle in three directions. One or more encoders (not shown), such as wheel encoders, may be used to monitor the rotation of one or more wheels of the vehicle 110A. Each sensor 130 may output sensor data at a variety of data rates that may differ from the data rates of the other sensors 130.

[0037] The outputs of the sensors 130 may be provided to a set of control subsystems 150, including a position estimation subsystem 152, a planning subsystem 156, a perception subsystem 154, and a control subsystem 158. The position estimation subsystem 152 may perform functions such as precisely determining the position and orientation (also sometimes referred to as “pose”) of the vehicle 110A within the surrounding environment, and generally within some reference frame. The autonomous vehicle's position may be compared to the positions of additional vehicles within the same environment as part of generating labeled autonomous vehicle data. The perception subsystem 154 may perform functions such as detecting, tracking, determining, and / or identifying objects within the vehicle's 110A environment. Machine learning models may be utilized to track the objects. The planning subsystem 156 may perform functions such as planning the vehicle's trajectory over some time frame given a desired destination, as well as primarily static and moving objects within the environment. Machine learning models may be utilized to plan the vehicle trajectory. Control subsystem 158 may perform functions such as generating appropriate control signals to control various controls within vehicle control system 120 to implement a planned trajectory for vehicle 110A. Machine learning models may be utilized to generate one or more signals to control the autonomous vehicle to implement the planned trajectory.

[0038] It will be understood that the collection of components shown in FIG. 1A for vehicle control system 120 is merely exemplary. In some embodiments, individual sensors may be omitted. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, multiple sensors of the type shown in FIG. 1A may be used redundantly and / or to cover different areas around the vehicle, and other types of sensors may be used. Similarly, different types and / or combinations of control subsystems may be used in other embodiments. Also, while subsystems 152-158 are shown as separate from processor 122 and memory 124, it will be understood that in some embodiments, some or all of subsystems 152-158 may be implemented as program code instructions 126 resident in one or more memories 124 and executed by one or more processors 122, and that these subsystems 152-158 may, in some cases, be implemented using the same processor and / or memory. The subsystems may be implemented, at least in part, using various dedicated circuit logic, various processors, various field programmable gate arrays (“FPGAs”), various application-specific integrated circuits (“ASICs”), various real-time controllers, etc. As previously mentioned, the multiple subsystems may use circuits, processors, sensors, and / or other components, and the various components of vehicle control system 120 may be connected to the network in a variety of ways.

[0039] In some embodiments, vehicle 110A may further include a secondary vehicle control system (not shown) that can be used as a redundant or backup control system for vehicle 110A. The secondary vehicle control system may be capable of fully operating autonomous vehicle 110A in the event of an adverse event occurring in vehicle control system 120, while in other embodiments, the secondary vehicle control system may have only limited functionality, such as, for example, shutting down vehicle 110A in response to an adverse event detected by primary vehicle control system 120. In still other embodiments, the secondary vehicle control system may be omitted.

[0040] In general, the various components shown in FIG. 1A can be implemented using many different architectures, including various combinations of software, hardware, circuit logic, sensors, and networks. Each processor can be implemented, for example, as a microprocessor, and each memory can include not only random access memory (RAM) devices constituting main storage, but also any secondary levels of memory, such as cache memory, non-volatile or backup memory (e.g., programmable or flash memory), read-only memory, etc. Each memory can also be considered to include memory storage devices physically located elsewhere in vehicle 110A, such as any cache memory within the processor, as well as any storage capacity used as virtual memory, such as stored in a mass storage device or other computer controller. One or more of the processors shown in FIG. 1A, or entirely separate processors, can be used to implement additional functions within vehicle 110A other than those for autonomous control, such as operation of entertainment system control, doors, lighting, convenience functions, etc.

[0041] Also, for additional storage devices, vehicle 110A may include one or more mass storage devices, such as, among others, a removable disk drive, a hard disk drive, a direct access storage device (DASD), an optical drive (e.g., a CD drive, a DVD drive, etc.), a solid state storage drive (SSD), network attached storage, a storage area network, and / or a tape drive.

[0042] Additionally, vehicle 110A may include a user interface 164, such as one or more displays, touchscreens, voice and / or gesture interfaces, buttons and other tactile controls, etc., that allows vehicle 110A to receive a number of inputs from a user or operator and generate outputs for the user or operator. Alternatively, user input may be received via an app or web interface on another computer or electronic device, such as a mobile device.

[0043] Vehicle 110A may also include one or more network interfaces, e.g., network interface 162, suitable for communicating with one or more networks 170 (e.g., a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless network, and / or the Internet, etc.), thereby enabling communication of information with other computers and electronic devices, including, for example, a central service such as a cloud service, so that vehicle 110A may receive environmental and other data usable for autonomous control. Data collected by one or more sensors 130 may be uploaded via network 170 to computing system 172 for further processing. A timestamp may be added to each instance of vehicle data before uploading. Further processing of autonomous vehicle data by computing system 172 according to many embodiments is described in connection with FIG. 2.

[0044] 1A and the various additional controllers and subsystems disclosed herein generally operate under the control of an operating system, as described in more detail below, and execute or rely on various computer software applications, components, programs, objects, modules, data structures, etc. Furthermore, the various applications, components, programs, objects, modules, etc. may execute on one or more processors of other computers coupled to vehicle 110A via network 170, e.g., in a distributed, cloud-based, or client-server computing environment, such that the processing required to implement the functionality of a computer program is allocated across multiple computers and / or services via the network.

[0045] Generally, the routines executed to implement the various embodiments described herein, whether embodied as part of an operating system, a specific application, component, program, object, module, or sequence of instructions, or any subset thereof, are referred to herein as "program code." Program code comprises one or more instructions that reside at various times in various memory and storage devices and that, when read and executed by one or more processors, perform the steps necessary to perform the steps or elements embodying various aspects of the present disclosure. Also, while the embodiments are described in the context of fully functional computers and systems, it will be understood that the various embodiments described herein can be distributed as program products in various forms, and that the embodiments can be embodied independently of the particular type of computer-readable medium used to effect such distribution.

[0046] Examples of computer-readable media include tangible, non-transitory media such as volatile and non-volatile memory devices, floppy and other removable disks, solid-state drives, hard disk drives, magnetic tape, and optical disks (e.g., CD-ROMs, DVDs, etc.), among others.

[0047] Additionally, various program code described below may be identified based on the application for which it is embodied in a particular embodiment. However, any particular program nomenclature below is used merely for convenience, and thus the present disclosure should not be limited to use only with any particular application identified and / or implied by such nomenclature. Furthermore, given the generally open-ended way in which computer programs may be organized into routines, procedures, methods, modules, objects, etc., and the various ways in which program functions may be allocated among the various software layers (e.g., operating systems, libraries, APIs, applications, applets, etc.) resident within a typical computer, it should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the specific structure and allocation of program functions described herein.

[0048] The environment illustrated in Figure 1A is not intended to limit the embodiments disclosed herein, and in fact, other alternative hardware and / or software environments may be used without departing from the scope of the embodiments disclosed herein. [2. FM LIDAR for Automotive Applications]

[0049] The truck may include a LIDAR system (e.g., vehicle control system 120 of FIG. 1A, LIDAR system 201 of FIG. 2, LIDAR system 301 of FIG. 3A, LIDAR sensor system 350 of FIG. 3B, etc.). In some embodiments, the LIDAR system may encode an optical signal using frequency modulation and scatter the encoded optical signal into free space using an optical system. By detecting the frequency difference between the encoded optical signal and a return signal reflected from an object, a frequency modulation (FM) LIDAR system can determine the object's location using the Doppler effect or precisely measure the object's velocity. FM LIDAR systems can use continuous wave (referred to as "FMCW LIDAR" or "Coherent FMCW LIDAR") or quasi-continuous wave (referred to as "FMQW LIDAR"). The LIDAR system may encode an optical signal using phase modulation (PM) and scatter the encoded optical signal into free space using an optical system.

[0050]

[0051]

[0052] FM or phase-modulated (PM) LIDAR systems may offer significant advantages over conventional LIDAR systems for automotive and / or commercial trucking applications. First, in some cases, an object (e.g., a pedestrian wearing dark clothing) may have low reflectivity, in that only a small amount (e.g., 10% or less) of the light striking the object is reflected back to the FM or PM LIDAR system's sensor (e.g., sensor 130 in FIG. 1A). In other cases, an object (e.g., a shiny road sign) may have high reflectivity (e.g., 10% or more), in that a large amount of the light striking the object is reflected back to the FM LIDAR system's sensor.

[0053] Regardless of the object's reflectivity, FM LIDAR systems can detect (e.g., classify, recognize, locate, etc.) objects at greater distances (e.g., twice as far) than conventional LIDAR systems. For example, FM LIDAR systems can detect low-reflectivity objects at distances of over 300 meters and high-reflectivity objects at distances of over 400 meters.

[0054] To achieve this improvement in detection capabilities, FM LIDAR systems can use sensors (e.g., sensor 130 in FIG. 1A). In some embodiments, these sensors can be sensitive to single photons, meaning the sensor can detect the smallest amount of light possible. In some applications, FM LIDAR systems can use infrared wavelengths (e.g., 950 nm, 1550 nm, etc.), but are not limited to infrared wavelength ranges (e.g., near-infrared: 800 nm to 1500 nm, mid-infrared: 1500 nm to 5600 nm, and far-infrared: 5600 nm to 1,000,000 nm). By operating an FM or PM LIDAR system at infrared wavelengths, the FM or PM LIDAR system can broadcast stronger light pulses or beams while still meeting eye safety standards. Conventional LIDAR systems are often not sensitive to single photons and / or operate only at near-infrared wavelengths, requiring their light output (and distance sensing capabilities) to be limited for eye safety reasons.

[0055] Therefore, by detecting objects at greater distances, FM LIDAR systems have more time to react to unexpected obstacles. Indeed, even a few milliseconds of additional time can improve stability and convenience, especially for large vehicles (e.g., commercial trucks) traveling on highways.

[0056] Another advantage of FM LIDAR systems is that they can instantly provide accurate velocity for each data point. In some embodiments, velocity measurement is achieved using the Doppler effect, which shifts the frequency of light received from an object based on at least one of the radial velocity (e.g., the direction vector between the detected object and the sensor) or the frequency of the laser signal. For example, for speeds occurring in road conditions where velocities are less than 100 m / s, this shift at a 1550 nm wavelength corresponds to a frequency shift of less than 130 MHz. This frequency shift is small enough to be difficult to detect directly in the optical domain. However, by utilizing coherent detection in FMCW, PMCW, or FMQW LIDAR systems, the signal can be converted to the RF domain so that the frequency shift can be calculated using various signal processing techniques. This allows autonomous vehicle control systems to process the data received more quickly.

[0057] Instantaneous velocity calculations also make it easier for an FM LIDAR system to determine distant or sparse data points as objects and / or track how these objects are moving over time. For example, an FM LIDAR sensor (e.g., sensor 130 of FIG. 1A) may receive only a few returns (e.g., collisions) for an object 300 m away, but if these returns provide a velocity value of interest (e.g., toward a vehicle traveling at speeds greater than 70 mph), the FM LIDAR system and / or autonomous vehicle control system can determine individual weights for the probability associated with the object.

[0058] Faster identification and / or tracking for FM LIDAR systems gives autonomous vehicle control systems more time to steer the vehicle. With a better understanding of how fast an object is moving, autonomous vehicle control systems can better plan their response.

[0059] Another advantage of FM LIDAR systems is that they are less static than traditional LIDAR systems. That is, traditional LIDAR systems, designed to be more sensitive to light, typically perform poorly in bright sunlight. Such systems tend to suffer from crosstalk (e.g., when sensors are confused by each other's light pulses or light beams) and self-interference (e.g., when a sensor is confused by its own previous light pulse or light beam). To overcome this drawback, vehicles using traditional LIDAR systems often require additional hardware, complex software, and / or more computing power to manage this "noise."

[0060] In contrast, FM LIDAR systems do not experience these types of problems because each sensor is specifically designed to respond only to its own unique light characteristics (e.g., light beams, light waves, light pulses). If the returning light does not match the timing, frequency, and / or wavelength of the originally transmitted light, the FM sensor can filter (e.g., remove, ignore, etc.) that data point. This allows FM LIDAR systems to compute (e.g., generate, derive, etc.) more accurate data with fewer hardware or software requirements, resulting in a smoother driving experience.

[0061] Finally, FM LIDAR systems are more easily scalable than traditional LIDAR systems. As more autonomous vehicles (e.g., cars, commercial trucks, etc.) appear on the road, vehicles powered by FM LIDAR systems will not have to face interference issues due to sensor crosstalk. FM LIDAR systems also use less optical peak power than traditional LIDAR sensors. This allows some or all of the optical components for FM LIDAR to be fabricated on a single chip, which offers unique advantages as discussed herein. [3. Commercial Trucking]

[0062] FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous commercial truck fleet, according to some embodiments. The environment 100B includes a commercial truck 102B for carrying cargo 106B. In some embodiments, the commercial truck 102B may include a vehicle configured for long-haul freight transportation, regional freight transportation, intermodal freight transportation (i.e., a road-based vehicle is used as one of several modes of transportation to transport cargo), and / or any other road-based freight transportation application. The commercial truck 102B may be a flatbed truck, a refrigerated truck (e.g., a reefer truck), a ventilated van (e.g., a dry van), a moving truck, etc. The cargo 106B may be goods and / or products. The commercial truck 102B may include a trailer for carrying the cargo 106B, such as a flatbed trailer, a lowboy trailer, a step deck trailer, an extendable flatbed trailer, a side-kick trailer, etc.

[0063] Environment 100B includes object 110B (shown in FIG. 1B as another vehicle) within a distance range of 30 meters or less from the truck.

[0064] The commercial truck 102B may include a LIDAR system 104B (e.g., the FM LIDAR system of FIG. 1A , the LIDAR system 201 of FIG. 2 , the LIDAR system 301 of FIG. 3A , the LIDAR system 350 of FIG. 3B , etc.) for determining the distance to the object 110B and / or measuring the velocity of the object 110B. While FIG. 1B shows one LIDAR system 104B mounted on the front of the commercial truck 102B, the number of LIDAR systems mounted on the commercial truck and the mounting areas of the LIDAR systems are not limited to a particular number and area. The commercial truck 102B may include any number of LIDAR systems 104B (or components thereof, such as sensors, modulators, coherent signal generators, etc.) mounted on any area (e.g., the front, back, sides, top, bottom, lower, bottom, and / or bottom) of the commercial truck 102B to facilitate detection of objects in any free space about the commercial truck 102B.

[0065] As shown, the LIDAR system 104B in the environment 100B may be configured to detect objects (e.g., other vehicles, bicycles, trees, road signs, potholes, etc.) at a short distance (e.g., 30 meters or less) from the commercial truck 102B.

[0066] 1C is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous commercial truck vehicle, according to some embodiments. Environment 100C includes the same components included in environment 100B (e.g., commercial truck 102B, cargo 106B, LIDAR system 104B, etc.).

[0067] Environment 100C includes object 110C (shown in FIG. 1C as another vehicle) within a distance range of (i) 30 meters or more and (ii) 150 meters or less from commercial truck 102B. As shown, LIDAR system 104B in environment 100C may be configured to detect objects (e.g., other vehicles, bicycles, trees, road signs, potholes, etc.) within a predetermined distance (e.g., 100 meters) from commercial truck 102B.

[0068] 1D is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system environment for an autonomous commercial truck vehicle, according to some embodiments. Environment 100D includes the same components included in environment 100B (e.g., commercial truck 102B, cargo 106B, LIDAR system 104B, etc.).

[0069] Environment 100D includes object 110D (shown as another vehicle in FIG. 1D ) within a distance range of more than 150 meters from commercial truck 102B. As shown, LIDAR system 104B in environment 100D can be configured to detect objects (e.g., other vehicles, bicycles, trees, road signs, potholes, etc.) within a predetermined distance (e.g., 300 meters) from commercial truck 102B.

[0070] For commercial trucking applications, effective object detection at all ranges is important due to increased vehicle weight and correspondingly longer stopping distances. FM LIDAR systems (e.g., FMCW and / or FMQW systems) or PM LIDAR systems are ideally suited for commercial trucking applications due to the advantages discussed above. Ultimately, commercial trucks equipped with such systems are better able to safely transport both people and goods over short or long distances, thereby improving the safety of not only the commercial truck but also surrounding vehicles. In various embodiments, these FM or PM LIDAR systems can be used in semi-autonomous applications, where a driver is onboard the commercial truck and some functions of the commercial truck are operated autonomously using the FM or PM LIDAR system, or in fully autonomous applications, where the commercial truck is operated entirely by the FM or LIDAR system, either alone or in combination with other vehicle systems. 4. Continuous Wave (CW) Modulation and Quasi-Continuous Wave (Quasi-CW) Modulation

[0071] In a LIDAR system using CW modulation, the modulator continuously modulates the laser light. For example, if the modulation period is 10 seconds, the input signal is modulated for the entire 10 seconds. Alternatively, in a LIDAR system using quasi-continuous wave modulation, the modulator modulates the laser light to have both active and inactive portions. For example, in a 10-second period, the modulator modulates the laser light for only 8 seconds (also called the "active portion") and does not modulate the laser light for 2 seconds (also called the "inactive portion"). This allows the LIDAR system to reduce power consumption for 2 seconds because the modulator does not need to provide a continuous signal.

[0072] For frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) LIDAR for vehicle applications, FMCW measurement and signal processing methodologies are used, but it may be advantageous to operate the LIDAR system using quasi-continuous wave modulation rather than having the optical signal always on (e.g., activated, powered, transmitting, etc.). In some embodiments, the quasi-continuous wave modulation may have a duty cycle of 1% or more up to 50% or less. If the energy in the off state (e.g., inactivated, powered down, etc.) is dissipated during the actual measurement time, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) may be improved or less signal processing is required, allowing all energy to be consistently integrated over a longer period of time. 5. LIDAR Systems for Autonomous Vehicles

[0073] 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example environment for a LIDAR sensor system for an autonomous vehicle, according to some embodiments. The environment 200 includes a LIDAR sensor system 201, which includes a transmit (TX) path and a receive (RX) path. The TX path includes one or more TX input / output ports (not shown in FIG. 2), and the RX path includes one or more RX input / output ports (not shown in FIG. 2).

[0074] In some embodiments, the semiconductor substrate and / or the semiconductor package may include a TX path and / or an RX path. In some embodiments, the semiconductor substrate and / or the semiconductor package may include at least one of a Silicon Photonics Circuitry, a Photonic Lightwave Circuit (PLC), or a III-V semiconductor circuit.

[0075] In some embodiments, the first semiconductor substrate and / or first semiconductor package may include a TX path, and the second semiconductor substrate and / or second semiconductor package may include an RX path. In some configurations, the RX input / output ports and / or the TX input / output ports may be present (or formed / arranged / located / disposed) along one or more edges of one or more semiconductor substrates and / or semiconductor packages.

[0076] The environment 200 includes one or more transmitters 216 and one or more receivers 218 .

[0077] The environment 200 includes one or more optical systems 210 (e.g., an oscillating scanner, a unidirectional scanner, a Risley prism, an optical circulator and / or a beam collimator, etc.) coupled to the LIDAR system 201. In some embodiments, the one or more optical systems 210 may be coupled to the TX path via one or more TX input / output ports. In some embodiments, the one or more optical systems 210 may be coupled to the RX path via one or more RX input / output ports.

[0078] The environment 200 includes a vehicle control system 120 (e.g., vehicle control system 120 of FIG. 1) coupled to a LIDAR system 201. In some embodiments, the vehicle control system 120 may be coupled to the RX path via one or more RX input / output ports.

[0079] The TX path may include a laser source 202, a modulator 204A, a modulator 204B, an amplifier 206, and one or more transmitters 216. The RX path may include one or more receivers 218, a mixer 208, a detector 212, a transimpedance amplifier (TIA) 214, and one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). While FIG. 2 shows only a select number of components and one input / output channel, the environment 200 may include any number of components and / or input / output channels (in any combination) interconnected in any arrangement to facilitate the combination of various functions of the LIDAR system to support vehicle operation.

[0080] The laser source 202 may be configured to generate an optical signal (or beam) derived from (or related to) a local oscillator (LO) signal. In some embodiments, the optical signal may have an operating wavelength equal to or substantially equal to 1550 nanometers. In some embodiments, the optical signal may have an operating wavelength between 1400 nanometers and 1400 nanometers.

[0081] The laser source 202 may be configured to provide an optical signal to the modulator 204A, which may be configured to modulate the phase and / or frequency of the optical signal based on a first radio frequency (RF) signal (shown in FIG. 2 as "RF1") to generate a modulated optical signal using continuous wave (CW) modulation or quasi-continuous wave modulation. The modulator 204A may be configured to transmit the modulated optical signal to the amplifier 206. The amplifier 206 may be configured to amplify the modulated optical signal to generate an amplified optical signal to the optical system 210 via one or more transmitters 216. The one or more transmitters 216 may include one or more optical waveguides or antennas.

[0082] The optical system 210 may be configured to steer the amplified optical signal received from the TX path toward an environment within a given field of view toward an object 218, receive a return signal reflected back from the object 218, and provide the return signal to the mixer 208 of the RX path via one or more receivers 218. The one or more receivers 218 may include one or more optical waveguides or antennas. In some configurations, the transmitter 216 and the receiver 218 may form one or more transceivers (not shown in FIG. 2 ). In some configurations, the one or more transceivers may include a monostatic transceiver or a bistatic transceiver.

[0083] The laser source 202 may be configured to provide an LO signal to the modulator 204B, which is configured to modulate the phase and / or frequency of the LO signal based on a second RF signal (shown as “RF2” in FIG. 2 ) to generate a modulated LO signal using continuous wave (CW) modulation or quasi-continuous wave modulation, and transmit the modulated LO signal to the mixer 208 in the RX path.

[0084] The mixer 208 may be configured to mix (e.g., combine, multiply, etc.) the modulated LO signal with the return signal to generate a down-converted signal and send the down-converted signal to the detector 212. In some configurations, the mixer 208 may be configured to send the modulated LO signal to the detector 212.

[0085] The detector 212 may be configured to generate an electrical signal based on the downconverted signal and send the electrical signal to the TIA 214. In some configurations, the detector 212 may be configured to generate an electrical signal based on the downconverted signal and the modulated signal.

[0086] The TIA 214 may be configured to amplify the electrical signal and transmit the amplified electrical signal to the vehicle control system 120 via one or more ADCs 220 .

[0087] In some embodiments, the TIA 214 may have a Peak Noise-Equivalent Power (NEP) of less than 5 picowatts per square root Hertz (i.e., 5×10 Watts per square root Hertz). In some embodiments, the TIA 214 may have a gain between 4 kiloohms and 25 kiloohms.

[0088] In some embodiments, the detector 212 and / or the TIA 214 may have a 3 decibel bandwidth between 80 kilohertz (kHz) and 450 megahertz (MHz).

[0089] The vehicle control system (e.g., control subsystem 150) may be configured to determine the distance from object 218 and / or measure the velocity of object 218 based on one or more electrical signals received from the TIA via one or more ADCs 224.

[0090] In some embodiments, modulator 204A and / or modulator 204B may have a bandwidth between 400 megahertz (MHz) and 1000 (MHz).

[0091] In some embodiments, modulator 204A may be configured to transmit a first modulated optical signal and a second modulated optical signal to amplifier 206. Amplifier 206 may be configured to amplify the first and second modulated optical signals to generate amplified optical signals for optical system 210 via transmitter 216. Optical system 210 may be configured to steer the first and second modulated optical signals received from the TX path toward an environment within a given field of view toward an object 218, receive corresponding first and second return signals reflected back from object 218, and provide the first and second return signals to mixer 208 of the RX path via receiver 218. Modulator 204B may be configured to generate (1) a first modulated LO signal associated with the first modulated optical signal and (2) a second modulated LO signal associated with the second modulated optical signal, and transmit the first and second modulated LO signals to mixer 208 of the RX path. The mixer 208 may be configured to pair (e.g., connect, link, identify, etc.) the first return optical signal with the first modulated LO signal, mix (e.g., combine, multiply, etc.) the first return optical signal with the first modulated LO signal to generate a first downconverted signal, and transmit the first downconverted signal to the detector 212. Similarly, the mixer 208 may be configured to pair the second return optical signal with the second modulated LO signal, mix the second return optical signal with the second modulated LO signal to generate a second downconverted signal, and transmit the second downconverted signal to the detector 212. The detector 212 may be configured to generate first and second electrical signals based on the first and second downconverted signals, respectively. The vehicle control system 120 may be configured to determine a distance to and / or measure a velocity of the object 218 based on the first and second electrical signals received via the TIA 214 and the ADC 220. [6. LIDAR system including transceiver module (device)]

[0092] LIDAR sensor systems may need to use limited or expensive hardware resources (e.g., receive (RX) hardware resources such as analog-to-digital converters (ADCs)). A mechanism is needed to efficiently share these limited hardware resources among other circuit modules. Furthermore, when designing and implementing photonic integrated circuits (PICs), or integrated optical circuits, which are chips containing photonic components, a chip-scale packaging solution is needed to efficiently share these limited hardware resources among other circuit modules.

[0093] To address these issues, in some embodiments, a LIDAR sensor system (e.g., an FMCW or other coherent LIDAR sensor system) may include a processor, a photonics module (e.g., a photonics device or photonics assembly) as a first device, a LIDAR processing device (e.g., a LIDAR computing assembly) including one or more ADCs as a second device, and a transmit (TX) / receive (RX) / optical device (e.g., a free-space optical assembly) including multiple transceiver sets. In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system may be configured to generate and transmit M×N optical signals by alternately turning on the photonics module M times and turning on the TX / RX / optical device (or one set of N transceivers) M times (e.g., time-multiplexing the M sets of N transceivers) to transmit M×N optical signals (e.g., light beams, optical signals) into the environment, where M and N are integers (e.g., M≧2, N≧8). In response to transmitting the optical signals, multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M×N transceivers) can receive return signals on M×N channels, and the LIDAR processing device can process the return optical signals on the M×N channels. In this manner, the LIDAR processing device (e.g., ADC) can be efficiently shared among multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N transceivers).

[0094] In some embodiments, a LIDAR sensor system may be configured to generate M×N optical signals, transmit the M×N optical signals to an environment substantially simultaneously (e.g., without multiplexing M sets of N transceivers, M=1), receive return optical signals (e.g., optical signals returning from an object), and process the return optical signals substantially simultaneously on N channels (M=1). For example, the LIDAR sensor system may include a photonics module that can generate N TX beams and provide the N TX beams and LO signals to a transceiver device (or module) that includes N transceivers. The N transceivers may transmit the N TX beams to the environment, receive the return optical signals as N RX optical signals on N RX channels, perform mixing and photodetection on the N RX optical signals using the LO signals, and provide N electrical signals to a LIDAR processing device. The LIDAR processing device may process the N electrical signals using multiple ADCs (e.g., N ADCs). In this manner, the LIDAR sensor system may process N optical signals substantially simultaneously. For example, a LIDAR sensor system can process 16 optical signals (N=16) substantially simultaneously.

[0095] In some embodiments, a LIDAR sensor system may be configured to generate and transmit N optical signals into an environment at M different times during a period (e.g., by time multiplexing M sets of N transceivers), receive return optical signals (e.g., optical signals returning from an object), and process the return optical signals in M×N channels. For example, if M=2, during a period, a photonics module of the LIDAR sensor system may generate N TX beams and provide N TX beams and an LO signal twice (or at two different times) to a transceiver device (or module) including 2N transceivers such that the 2N transceivers can transmit the 2N TX beams into the environment during that period. In some embodiments, during that period, the photonics module and one set of N transceivers (out of the 2N transceivers) may alternately be turned on twice (or at two different times) to transmit the 2N TX beams into the environment. For example, during that period, (1) the photonics module may be turned on and generate a first set of N optical signals, (2) the first set of N transceivers may be turned on and transmit the first set of N optical signals to the environment, (3) the photonics module may be turned on and generate a second set of N optical signals, and (4) the second set of N transceivers may be turned on and transmit the second set of N optical signals to the environment. The 2N transceivers may receive the return optical signals on the 2N RX channels as 2N RX optical signals, perform mixing and photodetection on the 2N RX optical signals using the LO signal, and provide 2N electrical signals to a LIDAR processing device including multiple ADCs (e.g., 2N ADCs). The LIDAR processing device may process the 2N electrical signals using the ADCs. In this way, the LIDAR sensor system (or ADC) may be efficiently shared between the first set of N transceivers and the second set of N transceivers. For example, a LIDAR sensor system can process 16 optical signals (M=2, N=8) by efficiently sharing the ADC between a first set of eight transceivers and a second set of eight transceivers.

[0096] In some embodiments, the processor of the LIDAR sensor system can time multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can transmit N optical signals to the environment at M different times during the period. In some embodiments, the processor can determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and perform time sequencing according to the determined sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can transmit N optical signals to the environment at M different times during the period according to the sequence. In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system can similarly be configured to generate and provide M×N LO signals to the TX / RX / optical devices. For example, the processor may (1) time multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that one (selected) set of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals at M different times during a period of time, or (2) determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and time sequence them according to that sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals according to that sequence at M different times during the period of time.

[0097] In some embodiments, the photonics module (first device) of the LIDAR sensor system may include a laser source, a seed device (e.g., a photonics seed module), and multiple TX amplifiers (e.g., a photonics TX amplifier module). In some embodiments, the laser source may be a laser diode (e.g., a distributed feedback (DFB) laser diode). In some embodiments, the laser source may generate a laser having a wavelength between 1530 nm and 1565 nm.

[0098] In some embodiments, the seed device may include an input optical path, a first optical path, multiple second optical paths, a first optical amplifier, multiple second optical amplifiers, and a control circuit. The input optical path may be configured to receive a beam from a laser source at one end. The first optical path and the multiple second optical paths may each branch at the other end of the input optical path. The first optical amplifier may be coupled to the first optical path. The multiple second optical amplifiers may each be coupled to the multiple second optical paths. The control circuit may be configured to selectively turn on one of the multiple second optical amplifiers to output a modulated optical signal of the beam as a TX optical signal. The control circuit may be configured to turn on the first optical amplifier to output a modulated optical signal of the beam as an LO signal. In this manner, the seed device may generate a TX optical signal and an LO signal based on the optical beam from the laser source, provide the TX optical signal to one or more TX amplifiers, and provide the LO signal to one or more transceivers of the TX / RX / optical device. In some embodiments, the seed device may provide the LO signal to one or more transceivers via one or more multi-fiber push-on (MPO) connectors.

[0099] In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include multiple apertures at their inputs to which the seed device can provide a single optical signal. In some embodiments, the seed device may provide the TX optical signal to the multiple TX amplifiers via one or more splitters. The one or more splitters may be one or more optical fiber splitters. The splitters may be coupled to the inputs of the optical amplifiers using either butt coupling or lens coupling. For example, in butt coupling, the input of the optical amplifier may directly face the output terminal of the seed device (e.g., the end of a waveguide). In lens coupling, the input of the optical amplifier and the output terminal of the seed device may be coupled using a lens, such as a ball lens. In this way, the seed device can seed multiple TX amplifiers with multiple apertures (e.g., tapered semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) or tapered SOA arrays) with a single optical signal.

[0100] Each of the multiple TX amplifiers can receive a TX optical signal and output an amplified TX optical signal to one or more transceivers of the TX / RX / optical device. In some embodiments, each TX amplifier can provide multiple amplified TX optical signals to one or more transceivers based on the amplified TX optical signal via a splitter. In some embodiments, the one or more amplified TX optical signals can be output to one or more transceivers via an MPO connector (e.g., 16 optical fibers for 16 TX optical signals).

[0101] In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include multiple optical amplifiers. The optical amplifiers may include semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs), fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifiers, or erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs). For example, the multiple TX amplifiers may include one or more EDFAs with an input power level of 4 W. In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include an optical amplifier array. The optical amplifiers may include an SOA array, a fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifier array, or an EDFA array.

[0102] In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include multiple tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs) including tapered sections that gradually increase the cross-sectional area of ​​the amplified beam. The multiple TPAs ​​may include one or more of a tapered SOA, a tapered fiber Raman amplifier, and a Brillouin amplifier or a tapered EDFA. The multiple TPAs ​​may include one or more of a tapered SOA array, a tapered fiber Raman amplifier, and a Brillouin amplifier array or a tapered EDFA array.

[0103] In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include an amplifier set, where the input of one amplifier in the amplifier set is coupled to the input of another amplifier in the amplifier set. For example, the amplifier set may include five TPAs ​​(e.g., the first through fifth TPAs) configured such that the input of the first TPA is coupled to the inputs of the second through fifth TPAs. In some embodiments, a set of amplifiers having the above configuration may be implemented as a chip (referred to as a U-turn chip). In some embodiments, the seed device may provide a first TX optical signal to the output of the first TPA such that (1) the first TX optical signal is input to the inputs of the second through fifth TPAs, and (2) the second through fifth TPAs ​​output four amplified TX optical signals.

[0104] In some embodiments, the photonics module may include at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a photonic lightwave circuit (PLC), a III-V semiconductor circuit, or a micro-optical circuit. The III-V semiconductor may include at least one of indium nitride (InN) or gallium arsenide (GaAs). In some embodiments, the PLC may be a glass-based PLC. The silicon photonics circuit may include a silicon nitride circuit (e.g., a Si3N4-based circuit). In some embodiments, the seed device may include at least one of a III-V semiconductor circuit or a micro-optical circuit. In some embodiments, the seed device may be a chip or integrated circuit including at least one of a III-V semiconductor circuit or a micro-optical circuit. In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include at least one of a III-V semiconductor circuit or a micro-optical circuit. In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include a chip or integrated circuit including at least one of a III-V semiconductor circuit or a micro-optical circuit.

[0105] In some embodiments, the TX / RX / optical device of the LIDAR sensor system may include one or more transceivers (e.g., M×N transceivers each transmitting and receiving a single optical signal), one or more optical mixers, one or more optical detectors, one or more optical devices (e.g., collimators), and / or one or more laser scanners (e.g., galvo scanners, polygon scanners, etc.). Each of the one or more transceivers may be a monostatic transceiver or a bistatic transceiver including a TX waveguide (or antenna) and an RX waveguide (or antenna). The one or more optical devices may include one or more collimators configured to narrow or limit multiple optical signals (e.g., 16 optical beams). The one or more optical mixers may optically mix one or more return optical signals with the LO signal received from the seed device to generate one or more mixed optical signals. The one or more optical detectors may receive the one or more mixed optical signals and generate one or more electrical signals. The one or more laser scanners may be controlled by a LIDAR processing device (e.g., using a software driver).

[0106] In some embodiments, the TX / RX / optical device may include at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, a III-V semiconductor circuit, or a micro-optical circuit. In some embodiments, one or more transceivers of the TX / RX / optical device may include at least one of a silicon photonics circuit or a PLC. In some embodiments, one or more transceivers may be a chip or integrated circuit including at least one of a silicon photonics circuit or a PLC.

[0107] In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device (second device) of the LIDAR sensor system may include one or more ADCs or multi-channel ADCs (e.g., 16 ADCs or 16-channel ADCs) configured to generate one or more digital signals based on one or more return optical signals and provide the digital signals to the autonomous vehicle control system. The LIDAR processing device may include one or more amplifiers and / or one or more digital-to-analog converters (DACs). The LIDAR processing device may be a computing system (e.g., computing system 1000 of FIG. 10) that can execute software modules stored in a memory. For example, the LIDAR processing device may store software drivers for controlling one or more scanners (e.g., galvo scanner, polygon scanner, etc.) of the TX / RX / optical device.

[0108] In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device may include a radio frequency (RF) chip (or integrated circuit) implementing one or more ADCs, one or more amplifiers, and / or one or more DACs. The RF chip may be an RF System-on-Chip (RF SoC). The RF chip may be an RF System-on-Chip Field-Programmable Gate Array (RF SoC FPGA). In some embodiments, the RF chip may include one or more RF-ADCs (Radio Frequency Analog to Digital Converters) and one or more RF-DACs (Radio Frequency Digital to Analog Converters). In some embodiments, the RF-ADCs and RF-DACs may be configured in pairs for real and imaginary I / Q (In-phase / Quadrature) data. For example, the LIDAR processing device may provide a two-channel RF signal (e.g., I / Q data) to a seed device for modulation (e.g., I / Q modulation). The RF chip may communicate with a vehicle or a vehicle control system (e.g., an autonomous vehicle control system) via a Gigabit Ethernet (GigE) interface. In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device may include a Functional Safety (FuSa) system implemented in circuitry or software on the LIDAR processing device.

[0109] According to certain aspects, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system including a transceiver, a first device including a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components, a second device including one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and a processor configured to alternately turn on the first device and turn on the transceiver. The first device may generate an optical signal related to a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The transceiver may transmit the optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The second device may generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal.

[0110] In some embodiments, the processor may be configured to periodically turn on the first device with a first duty cycle and turn on the transceiver with a second duty cycle.

[0111] In some embodiments, the transceiver includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit. In some embodiments, the first device includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a photonic lightwave circuit (PLC), or a III-V semiconductor circuit. In some embodiments, the second device includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit.

[0112] In some embodiments, the transceiver may have a first group of N transmit (TX) channels, a second group of N TX channels, and 2N receive (RX) channels, where N is an integer. The second device may have 2N channels. N may be 8 or greater. For example, N may range from 8 to 16.

[0113] In some embodiments, the first device may be configured to generate a first optical signal associated with the first LO signal. In response to the first device generating the first optical signal, the transceiver may be configured to transmit the first optical signal to the environment via the first group of N TX channels. In response to the transceiver transmitting the first optical signal, the first device may be configured to generate a second optical signal associated with the second LO signal. In response to the first device generating the second optical signal, the transceiver may be configured to transmit the second optical signal to the environment via the second group of N TX channels.

[0114] In some embodiments, in response to turning on the first device, the first device may be configured to selectively provide optical signals to one of the first group of N TX channels or the second group of N TX channels. In response to turning on the transceiver, the transceiver may be configured to transmit optical signals to the environment via one of the first group of N TX channels or the second group of N TX channels, receive return optical signals via the 2N RX channels, and pair the return optical signals with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The second device may be configured to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signals via the 2N channels of the second device.

[0115] In some embodiments, the LIDAR system may further include a plurality of optical amplifiers configured to provide amplified optical signals to the first group of N TX channels. The number of the plurality of optical amplifiers may be less than N. The plurality of optical amplifiers may include one or more tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs). The one or more TPAs ​​may include a tapered section that gradually increases the cross-sectional area of ​​the amplified beam. The one or more TPAs ​​may be one or more tapered semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs).

[0116] In some embodiments, the first device may be configured to provide a seed optical signal to a plurality of optical amplifiers based on the beam. The LIDAR system may further include a splitter. The first device may be configured to provide the seed optical signal to the plurality of optical amplifiers via the splitter. The splitter may be coupled to input sides of the optical amplifiers using either butt coupling or lens coupling.

[0117] In some embodiments, the transceiver may be an integrated circuit including at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit. In some embodiments, the transceiver may include a transmitter device and a receiver device. One of the transmitter device or the receiver device is an integrated circuit including at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit.

[0118] According to certain aspects, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an autonomous vehicle control system including one or more processors and one or more computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to alternately turn on a first device and turn on a transceiver. The first device may include a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components. The instructions cause the first device to generate an optical signal related to a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The instructions cause the transceiver to transmit the optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The instructions cause a second device to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal. The second device may include one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). The instructions can control operation of the vehicle using the digital signal.

[0119] According to certain aspects, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an autonomous vehicle including at least one of a steering system or a braking system and a vehicle controller including one or more processors. The one or more processors may be configured to alternately turn on a first device and turn on a transceiver. The first device may include a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components. The one or more processors may be configured to cause the first device to generate an optical signal associated with a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam. The one or more processors may be configured to cause the transceiver to transmit an optical signal into an environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to the transmission of the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal. The one or more processors may be configured to cause a second device to generate a digital signal based on the electrical signal. The second device may include one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). The one or more processors may be configured to control at least one of the steering system or the braking system using the digital signal.

[0120] Various embodiments of the present disclosure have one or more of the following advantages and benefits.

[0121] First, embodiments of the present disclosure may provide a useful technique for efficiently using limited or expensive hardware resources (e.g., receive (RX)-side hardware resources such as analog-to-digital converters (ADCs)). In some embodiments, a LIDAR sensor system may be configured to generate and transmit M×N optical signals by alternately turning on a photonics module M times and turning on a TX / RX / optical device (or one set of N transceivers) (e.g., by temporally multiplexing M sets of N transceivers) to transmit M×N (e.g., M≧2, N≧8) optical signals (e.g., light beams, optical signals) into the environment. In response to transmitting the optical signals, the multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M×N transceivers) can receive return signals in M×N channels, and the LIDAR processing device can process the return optical signals in the M×N channels. In this way, the LIDAR processing device (e.g., ADC) can be efficiently shared among the multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N transceivers).

[0122] Second, embodiments of the present disclosure may provide techniques useful for providing chip-scale packaging solutions for efficiently sharing these limited hardware resources among other circuit modules. In some embodiments, a LIDAR sensor system may include a seed device implemented on a chip or integrated circuit ("seed device chip") including at least one of a III-V semiconductor circuit or a micro-optical circuit. The LIDAR system may also include multiple transceivers implemented on a chip or integrated circuit ("transceiver chip") including at least one of a silicon photonics circuit or a PLC. Similar to the method described above, the seed device chip and the transceiver chip may be alternately turned on M times to temporally multiplex M sets of N transceivers within the transceiver chip, through which M×N optical signals may be transmitted to the environment. In response to the transmission of the optical signals, the transceiver chip may receive return signals in M×N channels, and the LIDAR processing device may process the return optical signals in the M×N channels. In this way, a LIDAR processing device (e.g., an ADC) can be efficiently shared among multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N transceivers in a transceiver chip).

[0123] Third, embodiments of the present disclosure may provide a useful technique for seeding multiple TX amplifiers having multiple apertures with a single optical signal. In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers may include multiple apertures at their inputs to which a seed device can provide a single optical signal. The seed device may provide the TX optical signal to the multiple TX amplifiers via one or more splitters. The one or more splitters may be one or more optical fiber splitters. The splitters may be coupled to the inputs of the optical amplifiers using either butt coupling or lens coupling. In this way, the seed device can seed multiple TX amplifiers having multiple apertures (e.g., tapered SOAs or tapered SOA arrays) with a single optical signal.

[0124] 3A is a block diagram illustrating an example of a LIDAR sensor system according to some embodiments. The environment 300 includes a LIDAR sensor system 301 including a processor 340, a photonics module 303 (or photonics device), a TX / RX / optical device 307, and a LIDAR processing device 305. Processor 340 may have a configuration similar to processor 1010 of FIG.

[0125] In some embodiments, the photonics module 303 may include a laser source 302, a modulator 304A, a modulator 304B, and an amplifier 306. The laser source 302 may be configured to generate an optical signal (or beam). The laser source 302 may be configured to provide the optical signal to the modulator 304A, which may be configured to modulate the phase and / or frequency of the optical signal based on a first radio frequency (RF) signal (shown as “RF3” in FIG. 3 ) to generate a modulated optical signal using continuous wave (CW) modulation or quasi-continuous wave modulation. In some embodiments, the photonics module 303 may be configured to receive the RF signal RF3 from the LIDAR processing device 305 via a communication interface 309. The modulator 304A may be configured to transmit the modulated optical signal (e.g., a TX optical signal) to the amplifier 306. In some embodiments, the amplifier 306 may include multiple amplifiers configured to receive the TX optical signal via one or more splitters (not shown in FIG. 3A ). Each of the multiple amplifiers may be configured to amplify the TX optical signal to generate an amplified TX optical signal and provide the multiple amplified TX optical signals to the TX / RX / optical device 307 based on the amplified TX optical signal via a splitter (not shown in FIG. 3A ). In this manner, the amplifier 306 may provide the multiple amplified TX optical signals to the TX / RX / optical device 307.

[0126] In some embodiments, laser source 302 may be configured to provide an LO signal to modulator 204B, which may be configured to modulate the phase and / or frequency of the LO signal based on a second RF signal (shown as “RF4” in FIG. 3A ) to generate a modulated LO signal using continuous wave (CW) modulation or quasi-continuous wave modulation, and transmit the modulated LO signal to mixers (e.g., 308-1, . . . , 308-M) of TX / RX / optical device 307. In some embodiments, photonics module 303 may be configured to receive RF signal RF4 from LIDAR processing device 305 via communication interface 309.

[0127] In some embodiments, the TX / RX / optical device 307 may include multiple N-channel transceivers 307-1, ..., 307-M (e.g., M N-channel transceivers, where M and N are integers) and one or more optical systems 310. In some embodiments, each N-channel transceiver may include N transceivers that transmit and receive a single optical signal. Each transceiver may be a monostatic or bistatic transceiver. Each N-channel transceiver (e.g., 307-1) may include an N-channel transmitter (e.g., transmitter 320-1, which may include N single-channel transmitters), an N-channel receiver (e.g., receiver 322-1, which may include N single-channel receivers), an N-channel mixer (e.g., mixer 308-1, which may include N single-channel mixers), and an N-channel photodetector (e.g., detector 321-1, which may include N single-channel photodetectors).

[0128] In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system's processor 340 can use control signals 343, 347 to alternately turn on the photonics module 303 and turn on the TX / RX / optical device 307 (or these N-channel transceivers) during a period of time to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The LIDAR sensor system's processor 340 can use control signals 343, 347 to alternately turn on the photonics module 303 with a first duty cycle and turn on the TX / RX / optical device 307 (or these N-channel transceivers) with a second duty cycle during a period of time to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor 340 can use control signals 343, 347 to time multiplex the M N-channel transceivers such that a (selected) N-channel transceiver can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time. The processor 340 may determine a sequence for the M N-channel transceivers and time-sequence them according to the determined sequence so that each of the M N-channel transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals to the environment according to the sequence at M different times during the period. In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system may similarly be configured to generate and provide M×N LO signals to the TX / RX / optical device. For example, the processor may (1) time-multiplex the M N-channel transceivers so that a (selected) N-channel transceiver can receive N LO signals at M different times during the period, or (2) determine a sequence for the M N-channel transceivers and time-sequence them according to the sequence so that each of the M N-channel transceivers can receive N LO signals according to the sequence at M different times during the period. In some embodiments, the photonics module 303 may provide the same LO signal to the M N-channel transceivers.

[0129] In some embodiments, the TX / RX / optical device 307 may include one or more optical systems 310 (e.g., a vibration scanner, a unidirectional scanner, a Risley prism, an optical circulator, and / or a beam collimator, etc.) coupled to the transceivers 307-1,..., 307-M. In some embodiments, one or more optical systems 210 may be coupled to the transmitters 320-1,..., 320-M via corresponding TX input / output ports. In some embodiments, one or more optical systems 210 may be coupled to the receivers 322-1,..., 322-M via corresponding RX input / output ports.

[0130] In some embodiments, optical system 310 can (1) receive N amplified optical signals generated by an N-channel transmitter (e.g., 320-1) and (2) transmit or steer the received N amplified optical signals into the environment. Optical system 310 can repeat the transmission of the N amplified optical signals M times during that period (e.g., transmissions by transmitters 320-1, 320-2, . . . , 320-M).

[0131] In some embodiments, the optical system 310 may receive return signals reflected back from one or more objects and provide the return signals to corresponding receivers (e.g., 322-1, ..., or 322-M). The return signals may include N return signals. A mixer (e.g., 308-1, ..., or 308-M) corresponding to the receiver (e.g., a mixer in the same transceiver) may (1) receive the return signals via a receiver, (2) receive an LO signal from the photonics module 303, (3) optically mix (e.g., combine, multiply, etc.) the return signals and the LO signal, (4) generate a downconverted signal, and send the downconverted signal to a detector (e.g., 312-1, ..., or 312-M) corresponding to the mixer (e.g., a detector in the same transceiver) to generate a mixed signal. A detector (e.g., 312-1) can (1) receive the mixed signal, (2) generate an electrical signal based on the mixed signal, and (3) transmit the electrical signal to the LIDAR processing device 305. The electrical signal can include N electrical signals.

[0132] In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device 305 may include one or more amplifiers 314, one or more ADCs or multi-channel ADCs 324 (e.g., 16 ADCs or 16-channel ADCs) configured to generate one or more digital signals based on one or more electrical signals received from the TX / RX / optical device 307, and provide the digital signals to the autonomous vehicle control system.

[0133] In some embodiments, processor 340 may time-multiplex M N-channel transceivers (e.g., transceivers 307-1, ..., 307-M) such that a (selected) N-channel transceiver can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during a period of time.

[0134] In some embodiments, the modulator 304A may be configured to transmit the first modulated optical signal and the second modulated optical signal to the amplifier 306. The amplifier 306 may be configured to amplify the first modulated optical signal to generate N first amplified TX optical signals at a first transceiver of the M transceivers 307-1, 307-2, ..., 307-M. Similarly, the amplifier 306 may be configured to amplify the second modulated optical signal to generate N second amplified TX optical signals at a second transceiver of the M transceivers.

[0135] The modulator 304B may be configured to generate a first modulated LO signal associated with the first modulated optical signal and transmit the first modulated LO signal to a mixer of the first transceiver. Similarly, the modulator 304B may be configured to generate a second modulated LO signal associated with the second modulated optical signal and transmit the second modulated LO signal to a mixer of the second transceiver.

[0136] The optical system 310 may be configured to steer the N first amplified TX optical signals received from the amplifier 306 into an environment within a given field of view toward the object 318. Similarly, the optical system 310 may be configured to steer the N second amplified TX optical signals received from the amplifier 306 into an environment within a given field of view toward the object 318.

[0137] In some embodiments, the optical system 310 may receive first return signals (e.g., N return signals) reflected back from the object 318 and provide the first return signals to an RX path of a first transceiver including a receiver, a mixer, and a detector. The mixer of the first transceiver may be configured to pair (e.g., connect, link, identify, etc.) the first return optical signal with a first modulated LO signal, mix (e.g., combine, multiply, etc.) the first return optical signal with the first modulated LO signal to generate a first downconverted signal, and transmit the first downconverted signal to a detector of the first transceiver. The detector of the first transceiver may generate first electrical signals (e.g., N electrical signals) and transmit the first electrical signals to the LIDAR processing device 305.

[0138] Similarly, the optical system 310 may receive second return signals (e.g., N return signals) reflected back from the object 318 and provide the second return signals to an RX path of a second transceiver including a receiver, a mixer, and a detector. The mixer of the second transceiver may be configured to pair (e.g., connect, link, identify, etc.) the second return optical signal with a second modulated LO signal, mix (e.g., combine, multiply, etc.) the second return optical signal with the second modulated LO signal to generate a second downconverted signal, and transmit the second downconverted signal to a detector of the second transceiver. The detector of the second transceiver may generate second electrical signals (e.g., N electrical signals) and transmit the second electrical signals to the LIDAR processing device 305.

[0139] In some embodiments, one or more ADCs 324 of the LIDAR processing device 305 may be configured to generate first and second digital signals based on the first and second electrical signals received from the TX / RX / optical device 307 via the one or more amplifiers 314 and provide the first and second digital signals to the autonomous vehicle control system 120. The vehicle control system 120 may be configured to determine a distance to or measure a velocity of the object 318 based on the first and second digital signals.

[0140] FIG. 3B is a block diagram illustrating another example of a LIDAR sensor system according to some embodiments.

[0141] 3B, a LIDAR sensor system 350 (e.g., an FMCW or other coherent LIDAR sensor system) may include a processor 390, a photonics module 380 (e.g., a photonics device or photonics assembly) as a first device, a LIDAR processing device 370 (e.g., a LIDAR computing assembly) including one or more ADCs 373 as a second device, and a transmit (TX) / receive (RX) / optical device 360 ​​(e.g., a free-space optical assembly) including multiple sets of transceivers. In some embodiments, the multiple sets of transceivers may include (1) M sets of N single-channel transceivers (M and N are integers) or (2) M N-channel transceivers (e.g., 367-1, . . . , 367-M).

[0142] In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system 350 may be configured to generate and transmit M×N (e.g., M≧2, N≧8) optical signals by (1) alternately turning on the photonics module 380 and turning on the TX / RX / optical device 360 ​​(or one set of these N transceivers) M times, or (2) temporally multiplexing the M sets of N transceivers to transmit M×N optical signals into the environment. In response to transmitting the optical signals, the multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N single-channel transceivers or M N-channel transceivers) may receive return signals in the M×N channels, and the LIDAR processing device 350 can process the return optical signals in the M×N channels. In this way, the LIDAR processing device 370 (or ADC 373) can be efficiently shared among the multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N single-channel transceivers or M N-channel transceivers).

[0143] In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system 350 may be configured to generate M×N optical signals, transmit the M×N optical signals into the environment substantially simultaneously (when M=1; e.g., without multiplexing the M sets of N transceivers), receive return optical signals (e.g., optical signals returning from an object), and process the return optical signals in N channels substantially simultaneously. For example, when M=1, the photonics module 380 may generate N TX beams and provide the N TX beams and LO signals to a transceiver device (or module), which may be N single-channel transceivers or N-channel transceivers. The transceiver device may transmit the N TX beams into the environment, receive the return optical signals from the N RX channels as N RX optical signals, perform mixing and photodetection on the N RX optical signals using the LO signal, and provide N electrical signals to the LIDAR processing device 370. The LIDAR processing device 370 may process the N electrical signals using multiple ADCs 373 (e.g., N ADCs). In this manner, the LIDAR sensor system 350 can process N optical signals substantially simultaneously. For example, the LIDAR sensor system can process 16 optical signals substantially simultaneously (M=1 and N=16).

[0144] In some embodiments, where M≧2, the LIDAR sensor system 350 may be configured to temporally multiplex M sets of N transceivers (e.g., 367-1, . . . , 367-M) to generate and transmit N optical signals into the environment at M different times during a time period, receive return optical signals (e.g., optical signals returning from an object), and process the return optical signals in M×N channels. For example, if M=2, during a time period, the photonics module 380 may generate N TX beams and provide the N TX beams and LO signal to a transceiver device (or module) including the N transceivers twice (or at two different times) so that a total of 2N transceivers can transmit 2N TX beams into the environment during the time period. In some embodiments, during the time period, one set (e.g., 367-1 or 367-2) of the photonics module 380 and two sets of N transceivers can be alternately turned on twice (or at two different times) to transmit 2N TX beams into the environment. For example, during that period, (1) the photonics module 380 may be turned on to generate a first set of N optical signals, (2) a first set of N transceivers (e.g., 367-1) may be turned on to transmit the first set of N optical signals to the environment, (3) the photonics module 380 may be turned on to generate a second set of N optical signals, and (4) a second set of N transceivers (e.g., 367-2) may be turned on to transmit the second set of N optical signals to the environment. The 2N transceivers (e.g., 367-1 and 367-2) may receive the return optical signals on the 2N RX channels as 2N RX optical signals, perform mixing and photodetection on the 2N RX optical signals using the LO signal, and provide 2N electrical signals to the LIDAR processing device 370, which includes multiple ADCs 373 (e.g., 2N ADCs). The LIDAR processing device 370 may process the 2N electrical signals using the ADCs 373. In this way, the LIDAR processing device or ADC can be efficiently shared between the first set of N transceivers and the second set of N transceivers.For example, a LIDAR sensor system can process 16 optical signals (M=2, N=8) by efficiently sharing the ADC 373 between a first set of eight transceivers (e.g., 367-1) and a second set of eight transceivers (e.g., 367-2).

[0145] In some embodiments, processor 390 may control photonics module 380 to generate and provide N TX optical signals to TX / RX / optical device at M different times during a period of time. Processor 390 may time-multiplex M N-channel transceivers (e.g., 367-1, . . . , 367-M) such that a (selected) N-channel transceiver can transmit N TX optical signals to the environment at M different times during a period of time. Processor 390 may determine a sequence of M N-channel transceivers and perform time sequencing according to the determined sequence such that each of the M N-channel transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals to the environment according to the sequence at M different times during a period of time. Processor 390 may perform time-multiplexing or time sequencing using (1) control signal 393 input to photonics module 380 and (2) control signal 391 input to TX / RX / optical device 360.

[0146] In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system may similarly be configured to generate and provide M×N LO signals to the TX / RX / optical device. For example, processor 390 may control photonics module 380 to generate and provide N LO signals to the TX / RX / optical device at M different times during a period of time. The processor may (1) time-multiplex M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) N-channel transceiver can receive the N LO signals at M different times during a period of time, or (2) determine a sequence of M N-channel transceivers and time-sequence them according to the sequence such that each of the M N-channel transceivers can receive the N LO signals according to the sequence at M different times during a period of time. Processor 390 may perform time-multiplexing or time-sequencing on the LO signals using control signals input to photonics module 380 and control signals input to TX / RX / optical device 360.

[0147] In some embodiments, the photonics module 380 may include a laser source 380 (as a first device), a seed device 382 (e.g., a photonics seed module), and multiple TX amplifiers 384 (e.g., a photonics TX amplifier module). The laser source 380 may be a laser diode (e.g., a distributed feedback (DFB) laser diode). The laser source may generate a laser having a wavelength in the range of 1530 nm to 1565 nm.

[0148] In some embodiments, the seed device 382 may include an input optical path, a first optical path, several second optical paths, a first optical amplifier, several second optical amplifiers, and a control circuit. The input optical path may be configured to receive a beam from a laser source at one end. The first optical path and the several second optical paths may each branch at the other end of the input optical path. The first optical amplifier may be coupled to the first optical path. The several second optical amplifiers may each be coupled to the several second optical paths. The control circuit may be configured to selectively turn on one of the several second optical amplifiers to output a modulated optical signal of the beam as the TX optical signal. The control circuit may be configured to turn on the first optical amplifier to output a modulated optical signal of the beam as the LO signal. In this manner, the seed device 382 may generate a TX optical signal and an LO signal based on the optical beam from the laser source 380, provide the TX optical signal to one or more TX amplifiers 384, and provide the LO signal 353 to one or more transceivers (e.g., transceivers 367-1, . . . , 367-M) of the TX / RX / optical device. In some embodiments, the seed device 382 may provide the LO signal 353 to one or more transceivers via one or more multi-fiber push on (MPO) connectors 388.

[0149] Each of the multiple TX amplifiers 384 can receive a TX optical signal and output an amplified TX optical signal to one or more transceivers of a TX / RX / optical device. In some embodiments, each TX amplifier can provide multiple amplified TX optical signals 351 to one or more transceivers based on the amplified TX optical signal via a splitter. In some embodiments, the one or more amplified TX optical signals can be output to one or more transceivers via an MPO connector 386 (e.g., 16 optical fibers for 16 TX optical signals).

[0150] In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers 384 may include multiple optical amplifiers. The optical amplifiers may include one or more semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs), one or more fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifiers, or one or more erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs). For example, the one or more SOAs may have input power levels ranging from 1 mW to 20 mW, and the multiple TX amplifiers may include one or more EDFAs with input power levels ranging from 0.1 mW to 1 mW. In some embodiments, the multiple TX amplifiers 384 may include an optical amplifier array. The optical amplifiers may include an SOA array, a fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifier array, or an EDFA array.

[0151] In some embodiments, the TX amplifiers 384 may include multiple tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs), each of which may include a tapered section that gradually increases the cross-sectional area of ​​the amplified beam. The TPAs ​​may include one or more of tapered SOAs, tapered fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifiers, or tapered EDFAs. The TPAs ​​may include one or more of tapered SOA arrays, tapered fiber Raman and Brillouin amplifier arrays, or tapered EDFA arrays.

[0152] In some embodiments, the TX / RX / optical device 360 ​​may include one or more transceivers (e.g., M N-channel transceivers 367-1, ..., 367-M, each transmitting and receiving N optical signals), one or more optical mixers (not shown), one or more optical detectors (not shown), one or more optical devices (e.g., collimator 364), and / or one or more laser scanners (e.g., galvo scanner 366, polygon scanner 368, etc.). Each of the one or more transceivers may be a monostatic transceiver or a bistatic transceiver including a TX waveguide (or antenna) and an RX waveguide (or antenna). In some embodiments, each of the one or more transceivers may also include an optical mixer and an optical detector. The one or more optical devices may include one or more collimators 364 configured to narrow or limit multiple optical signals (e.g., 16 optical beams). The one or more optical mixers may optically mix the one or more return optical signals with the LO signal 353 received from the seed device 382 to generate one or more mixed optical signals. The one or more optical detectors may receive the one or more mixed optical signals and generate one or more electrical signals. The one or more laser scanners 366, 368 may be controlled by the LIDAR processing device 370 (e.g., using a software driver).

[0153] In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device 370 (as a second device) may include one or more ADCs 373 or multi-channel ADCs (e.g., 16 ADCs or 16-channel ADCs) configured to generate one or more digital signals based on the one or more return optical signals and provide the digital signals to the autonomous vehicle control system. The ADCs 373 may receive one or more electrical signals (e.g., M×N electrical signals 355) from the photodetectors of the TX / RX / optical device 360 ​​via an RF connector 372. The LIDAR processing device 370 may include one or more amplifiers 371 and / or one or more digital-to-analog converters (DACs) 375. The LIDAR processing device 370 may be a computing system having a configuration similar to the computing system 1000 of FIG. 10 and may execute software modules stored in a memory. For example, the LIDAR processing device 370 may store software drivers (e.g., galvo driver 376, polygon motor driver 378) for removing one or more scanners (e.g., galvo scanner 366, polygon scanner 368) of the TX / RX / optical device via communication interfaces 357, 359.

[0154] In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device 370 may include a radio frequency (RF) chip (or integrated circuit) implementing one or more ADCs, one or more amplifiers, and / or one or more DACs. The RF chip 374 may be an RF System-on-Chip (RF SoC). The RF chip 374 may be an RF System-on-Chip Field-Programmable Gate Array (RF SoC FPGA). In some embodiments, the RF chip 374 may include one or more RF-ADCs (Radio Frequency Analog to Digital Converters) and one or more RF-DACs (Radio Frequency Digital to Analog Converters). In some embodiments, the RF-ADCs and RF-DACs may be configured in pairs for real and imaginary I / Q (In-Phase / Quadrature) data. For example, the LIDAR processing device 370 may provide a two-channel RF signal (e.g., I / Q data) to the seed device 382 for modulation (e.g., I / Q modulation). The RF chip 374 can communicate with a vehicle or vehicle control system (e.g., autonomous vehicle control system 120) via a Gigabit Ethernet (GigE) interface 395. In some embodiments, the LIDAR processing device 370 can include a Functional Safety (FuSa) system implemented in circuitry or software on the LIDAR processing device.

[0155] 4A and 4B illustrate an example of a transmit (TX) amplifier according to some embodiments.

[0156] Referring to FIG. 4A, a TX amplifier (e.g., TX amplifier 384 in FIG. 3B) may include multiple TX amplifiers 420. The multiple TX amplifiers 420 may include chips 422, 426, each including an optical amplifier array. Chip 426 may include an array 432 of four tapered optical amplifiers and multiple lenses 434 coupled between the array 432 and a corresponding waveguide circuit 428 (which may connect to multiple transceivers). In some embodiments, the lenses 434 may be coupled to the waveguide circuit 428 of a silicon photonics chip or other waveguide platform (e.g., a PLC). Examples of the waveguide circuit 428 may include a fiber optic cable or an optical fiber array implemented on a silicon photonics circuit. In some embodiments, chip 426 may include an array of solid-state optical amplifiers. In some embodiments, the number of tapered optical amplifiers in array 432 may be between two and six. The array 432 may include multiple apertures (not shown) on its input side through which a seed device (e.g., seed device 382) can provide an optical signal (e.g., a TX optical signal). The seed device may generate multiple TX optical signals based on a single TX optical signal using one or more splitters (not shown in FIG. 4A ) and provide the multiple TX optical signals to the array 432 via the optical fiber cable 424. The one or more splitters may be one or more optical fiber splitters. The splitters may be coupled to the input sides of the optical amplifiers using either butt coupling or lens coupling. For example, in butt coupling, the input side of the optical amplifier may directly face the output terminal (e.g., the end of a waveguide) of the seed device. In lens coupling, the input side of the optical amplifier and the output terminal of the seed device may be coupled using a lens, e.g., a ball lens. In this manner, the seed device may seed multiple TX amplifiers (e.g., arrays 422, 424) having multiple apertures with a single TX optical signal.

[0157] 4A, in some embodiments, the fiber optic cables 424, 428 (or fiber optic arrays) can be implemented in silicon photonics circuits (e.g., silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuits). An array 432 of tapered optical amplifiers (e.g., tapered SOAs) can be implemented in III-V semiconductor circuits. A plurality of lenses 434 can be implemented in micro-optical circuits.

[0158] Referring to FIG. 4B, a TX amplifier (e.g., TX amplifier 384 in FIG. 3B) may include U-turn chips 440, 450 and an optical fiber cable 460. The U-turn chip 440 may include a plurality of lenses 444, an array of five tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs) 446, and input wiring 448. Similarly, the U-turn chip 450 may include a plurality of lenses 454, an array of five TPAs ​​(referred to as the first through fifth TPAs ​​from right to left) 456, and input wiring 458. In the input wiring 448, 458, the input side of the first TPA (e.g., the right-most TPA) may be coupled to the input sides of the second through fifth TPAs ​​(e.g., the remaining four TPAs). With this configuration, the TX optical signal 461 received by the first TPA can be provided to the inputs of the second to fifth TPAs ​​via corresponding lenses 454, so that the second to fifth TPAs ​​can output four amplified TX optical signals to four waveguide circuits 463 via corresponding lenses 454. Examples of waveguide circuits 463 can include fiber optic cables or optical fiber arrays implemented in silicon photonics circuits.

[0159] 4B, in some embodiments, the waveguide circuit 460 can be a fiber optic cable or an optical fiber array implemented in a silicon photonics circuit (e.g., a silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuit). The TPA arrays 446, 456 can be implemented in a III-V semiconductor circuit. The multiple lenses 444, 454 can be implemented in a micro-optical circuit.

[0160] FIG. 4C illustrates an example of a transceiver device according to some embodiments.

[0161] 4C , a single-channel transceiver 480 capable of transmitting and receiving a single optical signal may include a transmitter 482 (or TX waveguide or antenna), a receiver 484 (or RX waveguide or antenna), an optical mixer 486, an optical detector 488, a TX input terminal 483, and an LO input terminal 481. The transmitter 482 may transmit a TX optical signal received at the TX input terminal 483 into the environment. The receiver 484 may receive a return signal reflected back from an object and provide the return signal to the optical mixer 486. The optical mixer may receive an LO signal (from the seed device) at the LO input terminal 481 and optically mix the return optical signal with the LO signal to generate a mixed optical signal. The optical detector 488 may receive the mixed optical signal and generate an electrical signal that is output to a LIDAR processing device (e.g., LIDAR processing device 370).

[0162] 4C, in some embodiments, transceiver 480 (and transmitter 482, receiver 484, optical mixer 486, photodetector 488, LO input terminal 481, and TX input terminal 483) can be implemented in silicon photonics circuitry, including silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry. In some embodiments, transceiver 480 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit that includes silicon photonics circuitry. In some embodiments, photodetector 488 may be implemented in silicon photonics circuitry or monolithically integrated with the PLC.

[0163] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a LIDAR sensor system according to some embodiments.

[0164] 5, the LIDAR sensor system 500 may include a seed device 550 and a transceiver / TX amplifier device 502. In some embodiments, the seed device 550 may include a laser source 552, a first optical set including a lens 553, an optical isolator 554, a lens 555, a modulator 556 (e.g., an I / Q modulator), a pair of tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs) 557, a second optical set including lenses 558 and 559, and a third optical set including lenses 560 and 561. The first optical set may form a common optical path. The upper TPA of the pair 557 and the second optical set may form an LO optical path, and the lower TPA of the pair 557 and the third optical set may form a TX optical path. With this configuration, the seed device 550 may generate an LO signal via the common optical path and the LO optical path based on the optical beam from the laser source 552 and provide the LO optical signal to the LO input path 505 of the transceiver / TX amplifier device 502. The seed device 550 may generate a TX optical signal via the common optical path and the TX optical path based on the optical beam from the laser source 552 and provide the TX optical signal to the TX input path 506 of the transceiver / TX amplifier device 502 .

[0165] In some embodiments, the transceiver / TX amplifier device 502 may include multiple TX amplifier arrays 510, 520, 530, and 540. Each of the multiple TX amplifier arrays 510, 520, 530, and 540 may be implemented as a chip having a configuration similar to the chip 426 of FIG. 4A. Each TX amplifier array may include multiple apertures (not shown) at its input side to which the TX optical signal generated by the seed device 550 can be provided. The TX optical signal generated by the seed device 550 may be provided to the multiple TX amplifier arrays via one or more splitters 508-1, 508-2, 508-3, 508-4, and 509. The one or more splitters may be one or more optical fiber splitters. The splitters may be coupled to the input side of the optical amplifier using either butt coupling or lens coupling. For example, in butt coupling, the input side of the optical amplifier may directly face the output terminal (e.g., the end of a waveguide) of the seed device. In lens coupling, the input of the optical amplifier and the output of the seed device can be coupled using a lens, e.g., a ball lens. In this way, the seed device can seed multiple TX amplifiers with multiple apertures (e.g., a tapered SOA or tapered SOA array) with a single optical signal.

[0166] In some embodiments, the transceiver / TX amplifier device 502 may include multiple transceivers 514-1, 514-2, ..., 514-32. Each of the multiple transceivers may have a configuration similar to the single-channel transceiver 480 of FIG. 4C. The multiple TX amplifier arrays 510, 520, 530, 540 may output amplified TX optical signals to each TX input terminal of the multiple transceivers via a waveguide circuit (e.g., waveguide circuit 511), multiple splitters (e.g., splitter 512), and multiple split TX optical paths 513, 523, 533, 543. Examples of the waveguide circuit 511 may include a fiber optic cable or an optical fiber array implemented in a silicon photonics circuit. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the multiple transceivers may include four sets of eight transceivers (M=4, N=8). With this configuration, a processor of the LIDAR sensor system (e.g., processor 340 of FIG. 3B ) can alternately turn on seed device 550 and turn on transceiver / TX amplifier device 502 M times during a period to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can turn on seed device 550 with a first duty cycle during the period and turn on transceiver / TX amplifier device 502 with a second duty cycle to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can time multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period. The processor can determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and perform time sequencing according to the determined sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period.

[0167] In some embodiments, the LO signal generated by the seed device may be provided to each LO input terminal of multiple transceivers 514-1, 514-2, . . . , 514-32 via a splitter (e.g., splitter 507) and multiple split optical LO paths 517, 527, 537, 547. With this configuration, the LIDAR sensor system 500 may be configured to generate and provide M×N LO signals to the multiple transceivers. For example, the processor may (1) time-multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals at M different times during a period of time, or (2) determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and time-sequence them according to the sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals according to the sequence at M different times during the period of time. In some embodiments, the seed device 550 may provide the same LO signal to the M sets of N transceivers substantially simultaneously.

[0168] In some embodiments, the transceiver / TX amplifier device 502 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit that includes silicon photonics and / or silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry. For example, the transceivers 514-1,..., 514-32 can be implemented in silicon photonics circuitry. The LO optical paths 505, 507, 517, 527, 537, 547 and the TX optical paths 506, 509, 508-1 through 508-4, 511, 512, 513, 523, 533, 543 can be implemented in silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry.

[0169] In some embodiments, the seed device 550 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit that includes III-V semiconductor circuits and / or micro-optical circuits. For example, the laser source 552, the modulator 556, and the pair of TPAs ​​557 can be implemented in III-V semiconductor circuits. The optical isolator 554 and the lenses 553, 555, 558, 559, 560, and 561 can be implemented in micro-optical circuits.

[0170] FIG. 6 illustrates another example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0171] 6 , the LIDAR sensor system 600 may include a TX amplifier device 601, a transceiver device 602, and a seed device 650. In some embodiments, the seed device 650 may include a first optical set including a laser source 652, a lens 653, and an optical isolator 654; a second optical set including a splitter 655, a lens 656, a modulator 657 (e.g., an I / Q modulator), and lenses 658 and 659; and a third optical set including a splitter 661, a lens 662, a TPA 663, and two lenses 664 and 665. The first optical set may form a common optical path. The second optical set may form an LO optical path, and the third optical set may form a TX optical path. With this configuration, the seed device 650 may generate an LO signal via the common optical path and the LO optical path based on the optical beam from the laser source 652 and provide the LO optical signal to the LO input path 605 of the transceiver device 602. The seed device 650 may generate a TX optical signal based on the optical beam from the laser source 652 via the common optical path and the TX optical path and provide the TX optical signal to the TX input path 606 of the TX amplifier device 601.

[0172] In some embodiments, the TX amplifier device 601 may include multiple TX amplifier arrays 610, 620, 630, and 640. Each TX amplifier array may include multiple apertures (not shown) at its input side to which the TX optical signal generated by the seed device 650 can be provided. The TX optical signal generated by the seed device 650 may be provided to the multiple TX amplifier arrays via one or more splitters 608-1, 608-2, 608-3, 608-4, and 609. The one or more splitters may be one or more optical fiber splitters. The splitters may be coupled to the input sides of the optical amplifiers using either butt coupling or lens coupling. In this way, the seed device 650 can seed multiple TX amplifiers with multiple apertures (e.g., tapered SOAs or tapered SOA arrays) with a single optical signal. A plurality of lens sets 615 , 625 , 635 , 645 may be coupled to the TX amplifier device 601 at portions corresponding to the output sides of the TX amplifier arrays 610 , 620 , 630 , 640 .

[0173] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 602 may include multiple transceivers 614-1, 614-2, ..., 614-32. Each of the multiple transceivers may have a configuration similar to the single-channel transceiver 480 of FIG. 4C. The multiple TX amplifier arrays 610, 620, 630, 640 may output amplified TX optical signals to each TX input terminal of the multiple transceivers via a waveguide circuit (e.g., waveguide circuit 611), multiple splitters (e.g., splitter 612), and multiple split TX optical paths 613, 623, 633, 643. Examples of the waveguide circuit 611 may include an optical fiber cable or an optical fiber array implemented in a silicon photonics circuit. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the multiple transceivers may include four sets of eight transceivers (M=4, N=8). With this configuration, a processor of the LIDAR sensor system (e.g., processor 340 of FIG. 3B ) can alternately (1) turn on seed device 550 and (2) turn on transceiver device 602 / TX amplifier device 601 to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment M times during a period of time. The processor can turn on seed device 650 with a first duty cycle during the period of time and turn on transceiver device 602 / TX amplifier device 601 with a second duty cycle to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can time multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time. The processor can determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and perform time sequencing according to the determined sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time according to the sequence.

[0174] In some embodiments, the LO signal generated by seed device 650 may be provided to each LO input terminal of multiple transceivers 614-1, 614-2, . . . , 614-32 via a splitter (e.g., splitter 607) and multiple split optical LO paths 617, 627, 637, 647. With this configuration, LIDAR sensor system 600 may be configured to generate and provide M×N LO signals to multiple transceivers. For example, the processor may (1) time-multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals at M different times during a period of time, or (2) determine a sequence of the M sets of N transceivers and time-sequence them according to the sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals according to the sequence at M different times during the period of time. In some embodiments, seed device 650 may provide the same LO signal to M sets of N transceivers substantially simultaneously.

[0175] In some embodiments, the TX amplifier device 601 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit including silicon photonics and / or silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuits. For example, the multiple TX amplifier arrays 610, 620, 630, and 640 can be implemented in III-V semiconductor circuits. The TX optical paths 606, 609, and 608-1 through 608-4 can be implemented in silicon photonics circuits including silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuits.

[0176] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 602 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit that includes silicon photonics and / or silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry. For example, the transceivers 614-1,..., 614-32 can be implemented in silicon photonics circuitry. The LO optical paths 605, 607, 617, 627, 637, 647 and the TX optical paths 611, 612, 613, 623, 633, 643 can be implemented in silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry.

[0177] In some embodiments, the seed device 650 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit that includes III-V semiconductor circuits and / or micro-optical circuits. For example, the laser source 652, the modulator 657, and the TPA 663 can be implemented in III-V semiconductor circuits. The optical isolator 654, the optical splitters 661, 655, and the lenses 653, 656, 658, 659, 662, 664, 665 can be implemented in micro-optical circuits.

[0178] FIG. 7 illustrates another example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0179] 7 , a LIDAR sensor system 700 may include a seed device 750 and a transceiver device 702. In some embodiments, the seed device 750 may include a laser source 752, an optical isolator 755, a TPA 757, and lenses 754, 756, 758, and 759 that form an LO optical path. With this configuration, the seed device 750 may generate an LO signal via the LO optical path based on an optical beam from the laser source 752 and provide the LO optical signal to an LO input path 705 of the transceiver device 702.

[0180] In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system 700 may include multiple TX amplifier arrays 710, 720, 730, 740, each including five TPAs. Each of the multiple TX amplifier arrays 710, 720, 730, 740 may be implemented on a U-turn chip having a configuration similar to chip 440 or 450 of FIG. 4B.

[0181] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 702 may include a splitter 701, a splitter 703, and a modulator 704. The modulator 704 may receive an LO optical signal from the seed device 750 via the splitter 701, generate a TX optical signal based on the LO optical signal, and provide the TX optical signal to a TX input path 706 of the transceiver device 702. Each of the multiple TX amplifier arrays 710, 720, 730, 740 may receive the TX optical signal on a respective TX input path 715, 725, 735, 745 via the splitter 703. In response to receiving the TX optical signal, each TX amplifier array can output amplified TX signals from four TPAs ​​in the array (e.g., the four left-most TPAs) to one of four sets of eight transceivers (M=4, N=8).

[0182] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 702 may include multiple transceivers 714-1, 714-2, ..., 714-32. Each of the multiple transceivers may have a configuration similar to the single-channel transceiver 480 of FIG. 4C. As described above, the multiple TX amplifier arrays 710, 720, 730, 740 may output amplified TX optical signals to each TX input terminal of the multiple transceivers via a waveguide circuit (e.g., waveguide circuit 711), multiple splitters (e.g., splitter 712), and multiple split TX optical paths 713, 723, 733, 743. Examples of the waveguide circuit 711 may include an optical fiber cable or an optical fiber array implemented in a silicon photonics circuit. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the multiple transceivers may include four sets of eight transceivers (M=4, N=8). With this configuration, a processor of the LIDAR sensor system (e.g., processor 340 of FIG. 3B ) can alternately turn on the seed device 750 and turn on the transceiver device 702 / multiple TX amplifier arrays M times during a period of time to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can turn on the seed device 750 with a first duty cycle during the period of time and turn on the transceiver device 702 / multiple TX amplifier arrays with a second duty cycle to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can time multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time. The processor can determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and perform time sequencing according to the determined sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time according to the sequence.

[0183] In some embodiments, the LO signal generated by the seed device may be provided to each LO input terminal of multiple transceivers 714-1, 714-2, ..., 714-32 via a splitter (e.g., splitter 707) and multiple split optical LO paths 717, 727, 737, 747. With this configuration, the LIDAR sensor system 700 may be configured to generate and provide M x N LO signals to the multiple transceivers. For example, the processor may (1) time-multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals at M different times during a period of time, or (2) determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and time-sequence them according to the sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals according to the sequence at M different times during the period of time. In some embodiments, seed device 750 may provide the same LO signal to M sets of N transceivers substantially simultaneously.

[0184] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 702 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit including silicon photonics and / or silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry. For example, the transceivers 714-1,..., 714-32 and the modulator 704 can be implemented in silicon photonics circuitry. The LO optical paths 701, 705, 707, 717, 727, 737, 747 and the TX optical paths 706, 703, 711, 712, 713, 723, 733, 743, 715, 725, 735, 745 can be implemented in silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuitry.

[0185] In some embodiments, seed device 750 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit that includes III-V semiconductor circuits and / or micro-optical circuits. For example, laser source 752 and TPA 757 can be implemented in III-V semiconductor circuits. Optical isolator 755 and lenses 754, 756, 758, 759 can be implemented in micro-optical circuits.

[0186] FIG. 8 illustrates another example of a LIDAR system according to some embodiments.

[0187] 8 , the LIDAR sensor system 800 includes a seed device 850 and a transceiver device 802. In some embodiments, the seed device 850 may include a laser source 852, a first optical set including a lens 853, an optical isolator 854, a lens 855, a modulator 856 (e.g., an I / Q modulator), a pair of tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs) 857, a second optical set including lenses 858 and 859, and a third optical set including lenses 860 and 861. The first optical set may form a common optical path. The upper TPA of the pair 857 and the second optical set may form an LO optical path, and the lower TPA of the pair 857 and the third optical set may form a TX optical path. With this configuration, the seed device 850 may generate an LO signal via the common optical path and the LO optical path based on the optical beam from the laser source 852 and provide the LO optical signal to the LO input path 805 of the transceiver device 802. The seed device 850 may generate a TX optical signal via the common optical path and the TX optical path based on the optical beam from the laser source 852 and provide the TX optical signal to the TX input path 806 of the transceiver device 802.

[0188] In some embodiments, the LIDAR sensor system 800 may include multiple TX amplifier arrays 810, 820, 830, 840, each including five TPAs. Each of the multiple TX amplifier arrays 810, 820, 830, 840 may be implemented in a U-turn chip having a configuration similar to chip 440 or 450 in FIG. 4B.

[0189] In some embodiments, each of the multiple TX amplifier arrays 810, 820, 830, 840 may receive a TX optical signal on a respective TX input path 815, 825, 835, 845 via splitter 809. In response to receiving the TX optical signal, each TX amplifier array may output amplified TX signals from four TPAs ​​in the array (e.g., the four left-most TPAs) to one of four sets of eight transceivers (M=4, N=8).

[0190] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 802 may include multiple transceivers 814-1, 814-2, ..., 814-32. Each of the multiple transceivers may have a configuration similar to the single-channel transceiver 480 of FIG. 4C. As described above, the multiple TX amplifier arrays 810, 820, 830, 840 may output amplified TX optical signals to each TX input terminal of the multiple transceivers via a waveguide circuit (e.g., waveguide circuit 811), multiple splitters (e.g., splitter 812), and multiple split TX optical paths 813, 823, 833, 843. Examples of the waveguide circuit 811 may include a fiber optic cable or an optical fiber array implemented in a silicon photonics circuit. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the multiple transceivers may include four sets of eight transceivers (M=4, N=8). With this configuration, a processor of the LIDAR sensor system (e.g., processor 340 of FIG. 3B ) can alternately turn on the seed device 850 and turn on the transceiver device 802 / multiple TX amplifier arrays M times during a period of time to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can turn on the seed device 850 with a first duty cycle during the period of time and turn on the transceiver device 802 / multiple TX amplifier arrays with a second duty cycle to transmit M×N TX optical signals into the environment. The processor can time multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) one of the N transceiver sets can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time. The processor can determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and perform time sequencing according to the determined sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can transmit N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during the period of time according to the sequence.

[0191] In some embodiments, the LO signal generated by the seed device may be provided to each LO input terminal of multiple transceivers 814-1, 814-2, . . . , 814-32 via a splitter (e.g., splitter 807) and multiple split optical LO paths 817, 827, 837, 847. With this configuration, the LIDAR sensor system 800 may be configured to generate and provide M×N LO signals to the multiple transceivers. For example, the processor may (1) time-multiplex the M sets of N transceivers such that a (selected) set of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals at M different times during a period of time, or (2) determine a sequence for the M sets of N transceivers and time-sequence them according to the sequence such that each of the M sets of N transceivers can receive the N LO signals according to the sequence at M different times during the period of time. In some embodiments, seed device 850 may provide the same LO signal to M sets of N transceivers substantially simultaneously.

[0192] In some embodiments, the transceiver device 802 can be implemented in a chip or integrated circuit including silicon photonics and / or silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuits. For example, the transceivers 814-1,..., 814-32 can be implemented in silicon photonics circuits. The LO optical paths 805, 807, 817, 827, 837, 847 and the TX optical paths 806, 811, 812, 813, 823, 833, 843, 815, 825, 835, 845 can be implemented in silicon nitride (Si3N4)-based circuits.

[0193] In some embodiments, seed device 850 can be implemented on a chip or integrated circuit including III-V semiconductor circuits and / or micro-optical circuits. For example, laser source 852, modulator 856, and pair of TPAs ​​857 can be implemented on III-V semiconductor circuits. Optical isolator 854 and lenses 853, 855, 858, 859, 860, 861 can be implemented on micro-optical circuits.

[0194] 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example methodology for controlling a LIDAR system (e.g., LIDAR sensor system 301, 350, 500, 600, 700, 800) according to some embodiments. The system may include a first device (e.g., photonics module 303, seed device 382, ​​550, 650, 750, 850) including a transceiver (e.g., transceiver 307, 367, 480, 502, 602, 702, 802), a laser source configured to generate a beam, and one or more optical components, a second device (e.g., LIDAR processing device 305, 370) including one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and a processor (e.g., processor 340, 390, 1000).

[0195] In some embodiments, the transceiver includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a photonic lightwave circuit (PLC), or a III-V semiconductor circuit. In some embodiments, the first device includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit. In some embodiments, the second device includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit.

[0196] In some embodiments, the transceiver may have a first group of N transmit (TX) channels (e.g., N-channel transmitter 320-1 when M=2), a second group of N TX channels (e.g., N-channel transmitter 320-2 when M=2), and 2N receive (RX) channels (e.g., N-channel receivers 322-1 and 322-2 when M=2), where N is an integer. The second device may have 2N channels. N may be 8 or greater. For example, N may range from 8 to 16.

[0197] In some embodiments, the LIDAR system may further include a plurality of optical amplifiers (e.g., optical amplifiers 306, 384, 422, 426, 440, 450, 510, 520, 530, 540, 610, 620, 630, 640, 710, 720, 730, 740, 810, 820, 830, 840) configured to provide amplified optical signals to the first group of N TX channels. The number of the plurality of optical amplifiers may be less than N. The plurality of optical amplifiers may include one or more tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs). The one or more TPAs ​​may include a tapered section that gradually increases the cross-sectional area of ​​the amplified beam. The one or more TPAs ​​may be one or more tapered semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs).

[0198] In some embodiments, the first device may be configured to provide a seed optical signal (e.g., a TX optical signal) to a plurality of optical amplifiers based on the beam. The LIDAR system may further include a splitter (e.g., splitters (509, 508-1, 508-2, 508-3, 508-4, 609, 608-1, 608-2, 608-3, 608-4, 701, 703, 809)). The first device may be configured to provide the seed optical signal to the plurality of optical amplifiers via the splitter. The splitter may be coupled to the input side of the optical amplifiers using either butt coupling or lens coupling.

[0199] In some embodiments, the transceiver may be an integrated circuit (e.g., transceiver chip 480, 602, 702, 802) including at least one of silicon photonics circuitry, PLC, or III-V semiconductor circuitry. In some embodiments, the transceiver may include a transmitter device (e.g., transmitters 320-1, . . . , 320-M) and a receiver device (e.g., receivers 322-1, . . . , 322-M). One of the transmitter or receiver devices is an integrated circuit including at least one of silicon photonics circuitry, PLC, or III-V semiconductor circuitry.

[0200] In this exemplary methodology, process 900 begins at step 910 with a processor alternately turning on a first device (e.g., seed device 382, ​​550, 650, 750, 850) and turning on a transceiver (e.g., transceiver 307, 367, 480, 502, 602, 702, 802). In some embodiments, the processor may be configured to periodically turn on the first device with a first duty cycle and turn on the transceiver with a second duty cycle.

[0201] For example, referring to FIG. 3B , the LIDAR sensor system 350 may be configured to (1) alternately turn on the photonics module 380 and turn on the TX / RX / optical device 360 ​​(or these N sets of transceivers) M times, or (2) time-multiplex the M sets of N transceivers to generate and transmit M×N optical signals (e.g., M≧2, N≧8), thereby transmitting the M×N optical signals into the environment. In response to transmitting the optical signals, the multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N single-channel transceivers or M N-channel transceivers) may receive return signals in the M×N channels, and the LIDAR processing device 350 can process the return optical signals in the M×N channels. In this way, the LIDAR processing device 370 (or ADC 373) can be efficiently shared among the multiple sets of transceivers (e.g., M sets of N single-channel transceivers or M N-channel transceivers).

[0202] In step 920, in some embodiments, the first device may be configured to generate an optical signal related to a local oscillator (LO) signal based on the beam.

[0203] In step 930, in some embodiments, the transceiver may be configured to transmit an optical signal into the environment, receive a return optical signal reflected from an object in the environment in response to transmitting the optical signal, and pair the return optical signal with the LO signal.

[0204] 3A , a first device (e.g., modulator 304B) may be configured to generate a first optical signal associated with a first LO signal. In response to the first device generating the first optical signal, a transceiver (e.g., transceiver 307) may be configured to transmit the first optical signal to the environment via a first group of N TX channels (e.g., transmitter 320-1, when M=2). In response to the transceiver transmitting the first optical signal, the first device may be configured to generate a second optical signal associated with a second LO signal. In response to the first device generating the second optical signal, the transceiver may be configured to transmit the second optical signal to the environment via a second group of N TX channels (e.g., transmitter 320-2, when M=2).

[0205] In some embodiments, in response to turning on the first device, the first device may be configured to selectively provide optical signals to one of the first group of N TX channels (e.g., transmitter 320-1 when M=2) or one of the second group of N TX channels (e.g., transmitter 320-2 when M=2). In response to turning on the transceiver, the transceiver may be configured to transmit optical signals to the environment via one of the first group of N TX channels or the second group of N TX channels, receive return optical signals via 2N RX channels (e.g., receivers 322-1 and 322-2 when M=2), and pair the return optical signals with the LO signal to generate an electrical signal.

[0206] In step 940, in some embodiments, a second device (e.g., LIDAR processing device 305 of FIG. 3A) may be configured to generate digital signals based on the electrical signals. For example, with reference to FIG. 3A, one or more ADCs 324 of LIDAR processing device 305 may be configured to generate first and second digital signals based on the first and second electrical signals received from TX / RX / optical device 307 via one or more amplifiers 314 and provide the first and second digital signals to autonomous vehicle control system 120.

[0207] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a computing system according to some embodiments.

[0208] 10, an illustrated computing system 1000 includes one or more processors 1010 in communication with memory 1060 via a communication system 1040 (e.g., a bus), at least one network interface controller 1030 having a network interface port for connecting to a network (not shown), and an input / output ("I / O") component interface connected to other components, such as a display (not shown) and input devices (not shown). Generally, the processor 1010 executes instructions (or computer programs) received from memory. The illustrated processor 1010 either integrates with or is directly connected to a cache memory 1020. In some cases, instructions are read from memory 1060 into the cache memory 1020 and executed by the processor 1010 from the cache memory 1020.

[0209] More particularly, the processor 1010 may be any logic circuitry that processes instructions, for example, instructions fetched from memory 1060 or cache 1020. In some embodiments, the processor 1010 is a microprocessor unit or a special purpose processor. The computing device 1000 may be based on any processor or set of processors capable of operating as described herein. The processor 1010 may be a single-core or multi-core processor. The processor 1010 may be multiple different processors.

[0210] The memory 1060 may be any device suitable for storing computer-readable data. The memory 1060 may be a device for reading fixed storage devices or removable storage media. For example, it may include all forms of non-volatile memory, media, and memory devices, semiconductor memory devices (e.g., EPROM, EEPROM, SDRAM, and flash memory devices), magnetic disks, magneto-optical disks, and optical disks (e.g., CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or Blu-Ray® disks). The computing system 1000 may have any number of memory devices as the memory 1060.

[0211] Cache memory 1020 is a type of computer memory that is typically located close to the processor 1010 for fast read times. In some embodiments, cache memory 1020 may be part of the processor 1010 or located on the same chip as the processor. In some embodiments, there may be multiple levels of cache 1020, for example, L2 and L3 cache layers.

[0212] The network interface controller 1030 manages data exchange through the network interfaces (also referred to as network interface ports). The network interface controller 1030 handles the physical and data link layers of the OSI model for network communication. In some embodiments, some of the network interface controller's tasks are handled by one or more processors 1010. In some embodiments, the network interface controller 1030 is part of the processor 1010. In some embodiments, the computing system 1000 has multiple network interfaces controlled by a single controller 1030. In some embodiments, the computing system 1000 has multiple network interface controllers 1030. In some embodiments, each network interface is a connection point for a physical network link (e.g., a cat-5 Ethernet link). In some embodiments, the network interface controller 1030 supports wireless network connectivity, and the interface ports are wireless (e.g., radio) receiver / transmitters (e.g., for any of the IEEE 802.11 protocols, near field communication "NFC," Bluetooth, ANT, or other wireless protocols). In some embodiments, the network interface controller 1030 implements one or more network protocols, such as Ethernet. Generally, the computing device 1000 exchanges data with other computing devices over a physical or wireless link via a network interface. The network interface may be directly connected to other devices or may be connected to other devices through an intermediary network device, such as a hub, bridge, switch, or router, that connects the computing device 1000 to a data network, such as the Internet.

[0213] Computing system 1000 may include or provide an interface to one or more input or output ("I / O") devices. Input devices include, but are not limited to, keyboards, microphones, touchscreens, foot pedals, sensors, MIDI devices, pointing devices such as mice or trackballs. Output devices include, but are not limited to, video displays, speakers, refreshable Braille terminals, lighting, MIDI devices, 2D or 3D printers, etc.

[0214] Other components may include I / O interfaces, external serial device ports, and any additional coprocessors. For example, computing system 1000 may include an interface (e.g., a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface) for connecting input devices, output devices, or additional memory devices (e.g., a portable flash drive or external media drive). In some embodiments, computing device 1000 includes additional devices such as coprocessors (e.g., a math coprocessor can support processor 1010 with high-precision or complex calculations).

[0215] The foregoing description is provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Accordingly, the claims are not limited to the aspects described herein but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the claim language. Reference to a component in the singular does not mean "one and only one," unless expressly stated otherwise, but rather "one or more." The term "some" means one or more, unless otherwise stated. All structural and functional equivalents known or later known to those skilled in the art to elements of the various aspects described herein are expressly incorporated by reference herein and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Furthermore, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be publicly available, regardless of whether it is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed as a means-plus-function claim unless expressly recited using the term "means."

[0216] It is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of the blocks in the disclosed processes is an example of a descriptive approach. Based on design preferences, it is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of the blocks in the processes can be rearranged within the scope of the foregoing description. The accompanying method claims present components of the various blocks in an example order and are not limited to the particular order or hierarchy presented.

[0217] The foregoing description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosed subject matter. Various modifications to such embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the foregoing description. Therefore, the foregoing description is not intended to be limited to the embodiments disclosed herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

[0218] The various embodiments shown and described are provided merely as examples to illustrate various features of the claims. However, features shown and described with respect to a particular embodiment are not necessarily limited to the associated embodiment, and may also be used or combined with other embodiments shown and described. Furthermore, the claims are not intended to be limited by any one embodiment.

[0219] The foregoing method descriptions and process flow charts are provided only as illustrative examples and do not require or imply that the blocks of the various embodiments be performed in the order presented. As one skilled in the art would understand, the order of the blocks of the foregoing embodiments may be performed in any order. Words such as "follows," "then," and "next" are not intended to limit the order of the blocks; such words are merely used to guide the reader through the method descriptions. Additionally, references to claim components referred to in the singular, for example, using "a," "an," or "the," should not be construed as limiting that element to the singular.

[0220] The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm blocks described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and blocks are described generally according to their functionality. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality for each particular application in various ways, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0221] The hardware used to implement the various exemplary logic, logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or performed by a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, individual gate or transistor logic, individual hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but the processor may alternatively be a conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented in a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or other similar configurations. Alternatively, some blocks or methods may be performed by circuitry adapted for a given function.

[0222] In some exemplary embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or code on a non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium. Blocks of methods or algorithms disclosed herein may be implemented in processor-executable software modules, which may reside on a non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium. A non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium may be any storage medium accessible by a computer or processor. For example, such non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media may include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage devices, magnetic disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. As used herein, disk and disc include compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically using lasers. Combinations of the foregoing are also included within the scope of non-transitory computer-readable and processor-readable media. Also, the operations of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of code and / or instructions in a non-transitory processor-readable and / or computer-readable storage medium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

[0223] The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to some embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments disclosed herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A vehicle LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) system, a plurality of transceivers; a device including a laser source configured to generate a beam and one or more optical components; a processor configured to operate the device to generate a plurality of optical signals associated with a plurality of local oscillator (LO) signals based on the beam and multiplex the plurality of transceivers to transmit the plurality of optical signals into an environment; 1. A LIDAR system comprising: a plurality of transceivers configured to receive a plurality of return optical signals reflected from objects in the environment in response to transmitting the plurality of optical signals; and a plurality of transceivers configured to pair the plurality of return optical signals with the plurality of LO signals.

2. 10. The LIDAR system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to multiplex the plurality of transceivers such that a selected transceiver transmits an optical signal into the environment at a plurality of different times during a period of time.

3. 10. The LIDAR system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to periodically turn on the device at a first duty cycle and turn on the plurality of transceivers at a second duty cycle.

4. 10. The LIDAR system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of transceivers include at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a photonic lightwave circuit (PLC), or a III-V semiconductor circuit.

5. 10. The LIDAR system of claim 1, wherein the device includes at least one of a silicon photonics circuit, a PLC, or a III-V semiconductor circuit.

6. the plurality of transceivers includes M transceivers, each an N-channel transceiver, where M and N are each integers; 10. The LIDAR system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to multiplex M transceivers such that a selected N-channel transceiver transmits N TX optical signals into the environment at M different times during a period of time.

7. 7. The LIDAR system of claim 6, wherein the plurality of transceivers are configured to receive the plurality of return signals on MxN channels.

8. further comprising a second device including one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs); the plurality of transceivers are configured to pair the plurality of return optical signals with the plurality of LO signals to generate M×N electrical signals; 7. The LIDAR system of claim 6, wherein the second device is configured to generate digital signals in MxN channels based on the MxN electrical signals.

9. 7. The LIDAR system of claim 6, wherein N is in the range of 8 to 16.

10. further comprising a plurality of optical amplifiers configured to provide amplified optical signals to the N-channel transceiver; 7. The LIDAR system of claim 6, wherein the number of optical amplifiers is less than N.

11. 11. The LIDAR system of claim 10, wherein the plurality of optical amplifiers comprises one or more tapered optical amplifiers (TPAs), the one or more TPAs ​​comprising a tapered section that gradually increases a cross-sectional area of ​​the amplified beam.

12. 12. The LIDAR system of claim 11, wherein the one or more TPAs ​​are one or more tapered Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers (SOAs).

13. 11. The LIDAR system of claim 10, wherein the device is configured to provide seed optical signals to the plurality of optical amplifiers based on the beam.

14. 1. An autonomous vehicle, comprising: at least one of a steering system or a braking system; a vehicle controller including one or more processors; Including, The one or more processors: operating a device including a laser source, generating a plurality of optical signals associated with a plurality of local oscillator (LO) signals based on a beam generated from the laser source, and multiplexing the plurality of transceivers to transmit the plurality of optical signals into an environment; in response to transmitting the plurality of optical signals, causing the plurality of transceivers to receive a plurality of return optical signals reflected from objects in the environment and pair the plurality of return optical signals with the plurality of LO signals to generate a plurality of electrical signals; An autonomous vehicle using the plurality of electrical signals to control at least one of the steering system or the braking system.

15. An autonomous vehicle control system comprising a LIDAR system according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

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