Grating-Coupled LiDAR Sensing for Accurate Range and Velocity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current LIDAR systems face challenges in accurately determining the range and velocity of objects, especially at varying distances, due to limitations in beam reception and processing, which can lead to interference and reduced accuracy in autonomous vehicle control systems.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a LIDAR sensor system that incorporates a transmitter with a first grating coupler and a receiver with multiple second grating couplers, allowing for efficient beam transmission and reception, and using frequency or phase modulations to determine object parameters, enabling more accurate range and velocity calculations while reducing system complexity and size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional microwave ranging systems are used, then system complexity is reduced, but range resolution and beam size are coarser
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional microwave ranging systems with optical LIDAR systems that use gratings to generate and detect laser beams. This substitution enables finer scale range resolution and smaller beam sizes while maintaining manageable system complexity through the use of integrated grating structures and photodetector arrays.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the optical detection system into multiple discrete gratings positioned at specific locations, each associated with particular range intervals. This segmentation allows the system to achieve fine range resolution by determining which grating detects the reflected light, while keeping each individual grating component relatively simple.
2Measurement precision
If LIDAR systems use multiple gratings for beam transmission and reception, then range and velocity determination accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs gratings that serve multiple functions: they act as both transmitters for generating outgoing laser beams and receivers for detecting reflected light. The same grating structures that modulate the outgoing beam also detect the returning light through diffraction, eliminating the need for separate transmitter and receiver components and reducing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the transmitter and receiver functions into a single integrated grating component. The grating both generates the modulated laser beam for transmission and detects the reflected light for reception, merging what would traditionally be separate subsystems into one multifunctional element.
3Length of stationary object
If LIDAR systems operate at greater distances, then detection range is extended, but interference and accuracy reduction occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies frequency or phase modulation to the outgoing laser beam before transmission using the grating. This preliminary modulation encodes range and velocity information into the beam characteristics, allowing the system to accurately distinguish target reflections from background interference even at extended detection ranges.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the reflected light detected by the grating to provide feedback about target range and velocity. By analyzing the phase or frequency shifts in the returned signal compared to the transmitted signal, the system can accurately determine object parameters while compensating for interference effects that accumulate over longer transmission distances.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enhances the accuracy and efficiency of LIDAR systems in determining object range and velocity, improving autonomous vehicle control by reducing interference and enabling more precise object detection at greater distances, thus enhancing safety and operational efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
A transmitter of the LIDAR sensor system can include a first grating coupler
Implementation Method 2
a scanner configured to receive the beam from the transmitter, direct the transmit beam to an environment
Implementation Method 3
receive a return beam from reflection of the transmit beam by an object
Data Source
AI summary
A light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensor system for a vehicle includes a transmitter, a receiver, and a scanner. The transmitter is configured to output a transmit beam. The transmitter includes a first grating coupler. The receiver includes a plurality of second grating couplers spaced apart from the first grating coupler.