Phantom Intelligence Launches the First Compact Short-Range Digital LiDAR Sensor
The light and compact Guardian™ flash LiDAR sensor, powered by Phantom Intelligence digital processing, introduces a unique design that opens the door to new applications for LiDAR.
Québec, Canada, June 5, 2019—Phantom Intelligence, the leader in digital processing for safety sensors, is proud to announce the launch of Guardian, the first compact digital flash LiDAR sensor on the market. It will be officially unveiled at TU-Automotive Detroit.
The sensor is very small (78×37×48 mm / 3.1×1.5×1.9 in) thanks to flash LiDAR technology, which enables a completely solid-state architecture. Combined with a 40 m (131 ft) range and 25×1.5° horizontal×vertical field of view (FoV), Guardian is light and easy to use in applications where size and weight are concerns.
Guardian owes its sturdiness to its solid-state design. Sturdiness is essential to safety applications—no matter the field—where vibrations and sensor positioning are issues. Furthermore, the sensor’s architecture is easy to adapt to specific requirements.
Inside Guardian is the proprietary Phantom Intelligence digital technology, which enhances the sensor’s perceptive capabilities and reliability. The technology digitizes reflected light echoes from the laser flash and filters out background noise, making objects easier to detect from further away.
Signals from two close objects (analog on the left, Phantom Intelligence digital on the right)
Vehicles, for example, can benefit greatly from this technology, since space is at a premium and vibrations a major issue. To lessen the load on the onboard computer and enable sensor fusion, Guardian can also assess the behavior and classify detected echoes, effectively providing the computer with pre-qualified data. This means smaller communication cables and more effective decision making. In applications where every second counts, having reliable data from each sensor is paramount.
“We are extremely proud of this technical achievement. It takes us one step closer to commoditizing LiDAR for an array of applications and industries with a small, affordable, and highly customizable package,” said Éric Turenne, CEO of Phantom Intelligence. “Our proprietary digital technology enables range and reliability never before seen in a solid-state flash LiDAR until now. We believe that this is only the first step in propelling LiDAR to new, uncharted heights.”
Phantom Intelligence will market Guardian as a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) product, a reference design for custom integration, and licence the digital processing inside the sensor.
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