Solid-State Lidar with Monolithic Receiver for Compact Scanning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current lidar systems are bulky, expensive, and unreliable due to mechanical spinning designs, with high costs and integration challenges for electronic components, and are prone to misalignment issues when used in moving vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A solid-state electronic lidar device with micro-electromechanical components, featuring a transmitter module, receiver monolithic module, and coordination circuit module, which reduces size, power consumption, and cost while providing high integration and reliability, enabling 3D visual space perception and AI computing applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If mechanical spinning design is used to achieve 360-degree surround information, then scanning coverage is improved, but device size and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical spinning system with a solid-state laser radar apparatus that uses electronic control and solid-state components to achieve scanning functionality. This eliminates heavy mechanical moving parts while maintaining the ability to capture 360-degree surround information through electronic beam steering and solid-state component arrays.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and removes the mechanical spinning components from the system, retaining only the essential solid-state elements needed for laser emission, detection, and electronic scanning control. This extraction eliminates the weight penalty associated with mechanical systems while preserving the core functionality.
2Adaptability or versatility
If mechanical spinning design is used to achieve 360-degree surround information, then scanning coverage is improved, but device cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive mechanical spinning mechanisms with cost-effective solid-state components and electronic control systems. This substitution significantly reduces manufacturing costs while maintaining or improving scanning coverage capabilities through electronic beam steering technology.
Solution Approach 2:
The solid-state laser radar apparatus is designed to perform multiple functions including laser emission, detection, timing, and scanning control using integrated solid-state components. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate mechanical subsystems, thereby lowering overall device cost.
3Adaptability or versatility
If mechanical spinning design is used to achieve 360-degree surround information, then scanning coverage is improved, but system reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical spinning components with solid-state elements that have no moving parts. This elimination of mechanical wear and vibration significantly improves system reliability while maintaining full 360-degree scanning coverage through electronic control mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent addresses potential alignment issues caused by vehicle vibration through solid-state design that is inherently resistant to such disturbances. The solid-state components maintain stable optical paths without the misalignment problems that plague mechanical systems in vibrating environments.
4Measurement precision
If multiple electronic components are integrated into each receiver, then detection sensitivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple electronic components including photodetectors, TIA, ADC, and timing circuits into an integrated solid-state receiver module. This consolidation maintains high detection sensitivity while reducing the overall device complexity by eliminating the need to manage separate discrete components and their interconnections.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated receiver module performs multiple functions including photon detection, signal amplification, analog-to-digital conversion, and timing measurements within a single solid-state unit. This multi-functionality reduces system complexity while preserving or enhancing detection capabilities.
5Measurement precision
If multiple electronic components are integrated into each receiver, then detection sensitivity is improved, but thermal dissipation challenge increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple heat-generating electronic components into a single integrated solid-state receiver module with unified thermal management. This consolidation allows for more efficient heat dissipation through centralized thermal pathways and heat sinks, rather than dealing with multiple separate heat sources distributed throughout the system.
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
The solid-state lidar device achieves compact size, low power consumption, and cost-effective high-performance laser detection, enhancing reliability and suitability for robotic applications and autonomous driving systems.
Implementation Method 1
The transmitter module comprises a laser diode and a laser driver connected to the laser diode, wherein the laser driver causes the laser diode to emit laser light to a target
Implementation Method 2
an ultra-sensitive photodetector pixel array and pixel control circuit, comprising a pixel array consisted of a plurality of pixels each containing one or more ultra-sensitive photodetectors for receiving laser echo reflected from the target
Implementation Method 3
a pixel-level time-to-digital converter array comprising a plurality of time-to-digital converters, each receiving the emission laser signal as a start signal, the corresponding trigger signal of the pixel control circuit as a termination signal, and a high-speed clock signal as a reference, and then generating time difference between the termination signal and the start signal
Data Source
AI summary
A lidar device (100), including: a transmitter module (120), a receiver monolithic module (150), and a coordination circuit module (110) connected to the transmitter module (120) and the receiver monolithic module (150), wherein components of the transmitter module (120), the receiver monolithic module (150) and the coordination circuit module (110) are all solid-state electronic components or micro-electro-mechanical components.