Hyundai, Kia Partner KAIST To Develop LiDAR Sensors for Advanced Autonomous Vehicles

Hyundai Motor, Kia and KAIST Form Joint Research Laboratory to Develop Next–Generation Autonomous Driving Sensors

• Hyundai Motor Group–KAIST On–Chip LiDAR Joint Research Lab at the KAIST HQ in Daejeon to develop LiDAR sensors for advanced autonomous vehicles
• Lab aims to develop essential high–performance, compact on–chip sensors and new signal detection technology
• On–chip sensors to reduce the size of LiDAR system compared to conventional methods and secure price competitiveness through mass production using semiconductor fabrication processes

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation have announced that they are partnering with KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology), to develop next–generation autonomous driving sensors.

Established in 1971, by the Korean government, KAIST is Korea's first public, research-oriented science and engineering institution. It may be recalled that, in 2009, KAIST researchers unveiled an electric transport system where the vehicles get their power needs from cables underneath the surface of the road via non-contact magnetic charging.

It may be recalled that in 2018, researchers from 30 countries boycotted KAIST due to an allegation that KAIST was starting an AI weapons research project together with the Korean arms manufacturer Hanwa. The allegations were of developing lethal autonomous weapons. Later the institute denied the existence of such project.

Years later, now Hyundai Motor, Kia and KAIST are joining together to establish the ‘Hyundai Motor Group–KAIST On–Chip LiDAR Joint Research Lab’ at KAIST in Daejeon to develop LiDAR sensors for advanced autonomous vehicles.

The joint research lab aims to develop high–performance and compact on–chip sensors and new signal detection technology that are essential in the increasingly competitive autonomous driving market.

On-Chip LiDAR joint laboratory establishment and agreement ceremony

On–chip sensors, which utilize semiconductor manufacturing technology to add various functions, can reduce the size of LiDAR compared to conventional methods and secure price competitiveness through mass production using semiconductor fabrication processes.

In addition, the current LiDAR sensors measure the distance to objects by emitting and measuring the time it takes for light to return. However, the next–generation signal detection method, called Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW), emits light with a frequency that varies over time and analyzes the frequency shift of the returning light to detect distance.

Compared to existing methods, this technology has less signal noise, can calculate relative speed with objects, and can exclude interference from external light sources such as sunlight, making it relatively advantageous in severe weather conditions.

The joint research lab will consist of about 30 researchers, including the Hyundai–Kia Institute of Advanced Technology Development research team and KAIST professors Sang–Hyeon Kim, Sangsik Kim, Wanyeong Jung and Hamza Kurt from KAIST’s School of Electrical Engineering, and will be in operation for four years until 2028.

KAIST will be leading the specialized work of each research team, such as the development of silicon optoelectronic on–chip LiDAR components, fabrication of high–speed, high–power integrated circuits to run the LiDAR systems, and the optimization and verification of LiDAR systems.

Hyundai Motor and Kia, together with Hyundai NGV, a specialized industry–academia cooperation institution, will oversee the operation of the joint research lab and provide support, such as monitoring technological trends, suggesting research directions, deriving core ideas and recommending technologies and experts to enhance research capabilities.

LG Innotek Receives 3 EV Charging Specific International Essential Patents

LG Group affiliate, LG Innotek, has received three international standard essential patents on Electric Vehicles (EV) charging announced Jeong Cheol-dong, CEO of LG Innotek, on 19th of this month.

LG Innotek, which generates most of its revenue from selling camera modules for the iPhone, is now poised to compete in electric vehicle charging market with international standard essential patents on EV charger components.

The company was chosen by a standard patent licensing company (Via Licensing Alliance or Via LA) specialized in EV charging as a licensor.

A licensor refers to a person or a company that gives permission to another entity to use the patented technology and receives royalties in return. In May this year two licensing organizations — Via Licensing Corporation (Via) and MPEG LA — announced the merger to form Via Licensing Alliance LLC (Via LA), a new collaborative licensing organization with a rich portfolio of patents and intellectual property licensing programs, hundreds of licensors, and thousands of licensees.

Notably, General Electric, Philips and Mitsubishi Electric, which all had partial ownership in MPEG La, now have a stake in the new – Via LA.

Via LA has so far only registered 8 companies globally, including GE, Bosch, Siemens, and LG Innotek, as licensors in the EV charging sector.

The International standard essential patents LG Innotek was recognized for are charging control technologies (two patents) based on battery status data and a charging reservation technology (one patent). The registration has accelerated LG Innotek’s push to fully engage in the global EV component market.

LG Innotek is already fostering the future car business as a new growth driver for the company. The company is ramping up its R&D efforts in order to support control solutions of not only wired charging but also wireless charging, and to implement power conversion solutions for both parts of EVs and outdoor charging systems.

LG Innotek is taking out patents for not just essential EV technologies but also autonomous driving technologies.

In April this year, LG Innotek gained the industry attention for acquiring more than 180 patents from Argo AI, an American startup that develops autonomous vehicles and founded by veterans of the Google and Uber automated driving programs.

Many of the patents LG Innotek acquired are those for the LiDAR technology.

LiDAR is a sensing technology of detecting the target, distance and direction, etc. by sending the light and measuring the time taken to return. The technology is seen as a key autonomous driving system applied in Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS).

In a context to LiDAR, it may be recalled that in June this year, a Bengaluru-based and NVIDIA's senior executives-backed startup Minus Zero unveiled India's first autonomous/ driverless car that depends less on LiDAR and instead uses high-resolution cameras to analyse driving conditions including traffic. 

Back to LG Innotek, the Korean company is bolstering its patent portfolio envisioning the future as a leader of the automotive market driven by EVs and self-driving cars. In particular, LG Innotek is leveraging an AI patent data system capable of analyzing and using patents at a speed 900 times faster than that of humans.

The company evaluates big data on global patents with 3 million new patents added every year to get an insight into technology trends and the industry. LG Innotek then explores more areas of differentiation against the existing products and reflects findings in the product development strategy.

Kim Jin-hyun, the Head of Intellectual Property Division at LG Innotek, says, “It’s crucial that we secure the proprietary technology to become the top player in the industry, so we need to systematically manage and secure the intellectual property (IP) like patents. LG Innotek will continue to offer differentiated customer value through R&D based on original IP.”

ITS America Webinar Showcases How Lidar-Based Solutions Can Increase Pedestrian Safety

Velodyne Lidar, Inc. (Nasdaq: VLDR) today announced it is joining forces with the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America) to produce a webinar that will explore how lidar technology can drive intelligent mobility in smart city applications. Velodyne and ITS America are working together to advance progress in autonomous vehicles and smart city solutions with the goal of saving lives, improving mobility and promoting sustainability. 

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201106005084/en/

 

Velodyne’s lidar sensors provide high-definition, three-dimensional information to autonomous vehicles and smart city solutions with the goal of saving lives, improving mobility and promoting sustainability. (Photo: Business Wire)

The free webinar, called “A Lidar-Based Approach to Pedestrian Safety,” takes place on November 12, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. EST. To register, please go to the webinar website here.

 

Between 2009 and 2018, pedestrian fatalities increased by 53% according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that more than 6,000 pedestrians are killed every year in traffic-related crashes.

 

To address these problems, lidar-based technologies are being implemented across industries, including for autonomous vehicles, advanced driver assistance and intelligent infrastructure. The webinar panel will discuss how lidar-equipped solutions are being deployed with the goal of saving lives.

 

The panel is moderated by Amy Ford, Vice President, Policy Programs and Mobility on Demand at ITS America. Webinar panelists are:

 

• Nikhil Naikal – Vice President of Software Engineering, Velodyne Lidar
• Asad Lesani – CEO, Blue City Technology
• Olivier Le Cornec – CTO, NAVYA

“Lidar-based smart city and automated vehicle safety solutions can help save lives, improve mobility and promote sustainability. The panel discussion will share insights on how companies and government organizations are using lidar sensors to enable a new generation of intelligent infrastructure and deployment of autonomous vehicles,” said Ford.

 

“Webinar attendees can hear from the expert panel how Velodyne’s sensors are used today to advance pedestrian and vehicle safety on the roadways, and improve mobility and efficiency in our communities,” said Sally Frykman, Chief Communications Officer, Velodyne Lidar.

 

About Velodyne Lidar

 

Velodyne Lidar (NASDAQ: VLDR) ushered in a new era of autonomous technology with the invention of real-time surround view lidar sensors. Velodyne is the first public pure-play lidar company and is known worldwide for its broad portfolio of breakthrough lidar technologies. Velodyne’s revolutionary sensor and software solutions provide flexibility, quality and performance to meet the needs of a wide range of industries, including autonomous vehicles, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), robotics, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), smart cities and security. Through continuous innovation, Velodyne strives to transform lives and communities by advancing safer mobility for all. For more information, visit www.velodynelidar.com.

 

Forward Looking Statements

 

This press release contains "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 including, without limitation, all statements other than historical fact and include, without limitation, statements regarding Velodyne’s target markets, new products, development efforts, competition. When used in this press release, the words "estimates," "projected," "expects," "anticipates," "forecasts," "plans," "intends," "believes," "seeks," "may," "will," "should," "future," "propose" and variations of these words or similar expressions (or the negative versions of such words or expressions) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, conditions or results and involve a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other important factors, many of which are outside Velodyne's control, that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Important factors, among others, that may affect actual results or outcomes include Velodyne's ability to manage growth; Velodyne's ability to execute its business plan; uncertainties related to the ability of Velodyne's customers to commercialize their products and the ultimate market acceptance of these products; the uncertain impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Velodyne's and its customers' businesses; uncertainties related to Velodyne's estimates of the size of the markets for its products; the rate and degree of market acceptance of Velodyne's products; the success of other competing lidar and sensor-related products and services that exist or may become available; Velodyne's ability to identify and integrate acquisitions; uncertainties related to Velodyne's current litigation and potential litigation involving Velodyne or the validity or enforceability of Velodyne's intellectual property; and general economic and market conditions impacting demand for Velodyne's products and services. Velodyne undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

 

 

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