LiDAR Headlight Line-Scan Gating for High-Resolution Sensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing LiDAR systems for vehicle headlights face challenges in achieving adequate angular resolution, high frame rate, and large field of view while maintaining reasonable cost, size, and power consumption.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of line-scan gated imaging in vehicle headlights, which uses a partially reflective element to direct either infrared detection radiation or visible light onto an object, allowing the object sensing subsystem to operate in a line-scan-gated mode.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional LiDAR systems use large apertures and high-power lasers to achieve high angular resolution and long-range detection, then measurement precision and detection range are improved, but device size, power consumption, and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the detection process into sequential line scans rather than capturing the entire field of view simultaneously. The line-scan camera captures one line at a time, and through scanning motion, builds up a complete 2D image. This segmentation allows achieving high angular resolution with a small linear array sensor instead of requiring a large 2D sensor array, thus reducing sensor area while maintaining measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces temporal scanning to compensate for the reduced spatial dimensions of the sensor. By adding the time dimension through sequential line scanning, the system achieves high angular resolution in both horizontal and vertical directions using a small 1D line-scan camera, effectively trading spatial extent for temporal processing.
2Measurement precision
If conventional LiDAR systems use large apertures and high-power lasers, then detection range and angular resolution are improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the illumination and detection into sequential line scans, using low-power infrared illumination for each line rather than high-power continuous illumination across the entire field of view. This reduces overall power consumption while maintaining angular resolution through the scanning process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses inexpensive infrared LEDs as light sources instead of high-power lasers. These infrared LEDs consume significantly less power and are cheaper, achieving adequate illumination for long-range detection when combined with the scanning approach and sensitive infrared detectors.
3Measurement precision
If conventional LiDAR systems use large apertures, then angular resolution is improved, but device size and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the LiDAR system with the vehicle's existing headlight structure, using the headlight housing and mounting infrastructure to support the LiDAR components. The infrared illumination and detection share the same physical platform as the visible headlight, reducing overall device complexity and facilitating easier integration into the vehicle.
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges the LiDAR optical path with the headlight structure, combining infrared illumination with visible headlight functions. The partial reflector integrates both visible and infrared optical paths within the same headlight assembly, reducing the number of separate components and simplifying system integration.
4Reliability
If conventional LiDAR systems use high-power lasers, then detection range is improved, but cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive high-power lasers with inexpensive infrared LEDs that have long lifetimes. These infrared LEDs provide adequate illumination for long-range detection when used in the scanning configuration, significantly reducing system cost while maintaining reliable detection range through the combination of scanning, sensitive detectors, and optical concentration.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses periodic scanning to achieve long-range detection capability. By concentrating the optical aperture area onto a small linear detector array through scanning, the system achieves the same photon collection efficiency as large-aperture systems would provide continuously, enabling long-range detection with low-cost components.
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 approach enables the achievement of high angular resolution and long-range detection with a relatively small sensor area, reducing the need for high-power lasers and large apertures, thus improving cost-effectiveness and integration with headlight systems.
Implementation Method 1
the partially reflective element being configured to pass one of the infrared detection radiation and the visible light and to reflect the other of the infrared detection radiation and the visible light
Data Source
AI summary
An object detection system and method for a vehicle headlight include a visible light emitter and an object sensing subsystem having an infrared line emitter for emitting infrared detection radiation and an infrared line detector. An optical subsystem receives the visible light and directs it into an external region to illuminate the external region and receives the infrared detection radiation and directs it onto an object in the external region. The optical subsystem includes a partially reflective element optically between the infrared line emitter and the external region and optically between the object sensing subsystem and the external region. The partially reflective element is configured to pass one of the infrared detection radiation and the visible light and to reflect the other of the infrared detection radiation and the visible light, such that the object sensing subsystem senses the object in a line-scan-gated mode.