AMS, a leading supplier of high-performance sensor solutions, has signed an agreement to team up with Ibeo Auto-
motive Systems GmbH (www.ibeo-as.com) (the automotive LiDAR specialist) and ZF Friedrichshafen AG (a specialist in ‘mobility’) (www.zf.com) to advance solid-state LiDAR technology for use in autonomous driving and other applications.

The three companies will collaborate on R&D to ensure that this technology can be safely adopted by 2021.

LiDAR is an optical sensing technology that measures the distance and direction of surrounding objects by illuminating them with a laser beam and detecting the reflection.

Its range and resolution complement radar and camera solutions to enable the ‘Holy Grail’ of the self-driving car industry — SAE level 5 (fully autonomous driving).

AMS will provide automotive-grade VCSEL (Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser), which provides better reliability and stability than competing light sources, such as edge emitters and LED.

AMS is the ‘first to market’ with solid-state LiDAR illumination solutions that need no mechanical parts to steer the light beam direction, thereby improving reliability while reducing complexity, size, weight and cost.

Alexander Everke, CEO of AMS (www.ams.com), said: “Being the first to market with solid-state LiDAR means that AMS brings a unique capability to Ibeo and ZF.

“Together with Ibeo’s leading solutions and integration capability, coupled with its deep experience in LiDAR, we will provide an unmatched solution for automotive manufacturers in their quest to create the mission-critical reliability required for autonomous driving.”