Lidar vendor Webasto and Canatu, a maker of car roof systems, are collaborating on a lidar-based fixed film heater that provides advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) functionality on the roof of a car.
Called roof sensor module (RSM), the sensors on the roof allow for an all-around view giving lidar the ability to provide long-range 3D mapping of the environment. Additionally, the RSM allows the vehicle to clean, cool, de-ice and anti-fog the window below it.
Under development from 2021, the RSM enhances the reliability of lidar and other cameras in harsh weather to make autonomous driving of vehicles safer and more commonplace, the companies said. The Canatu film heater is lidar transparent and completely wire-free meaning the heating of the window takes place on the whole surface without any optical distortion.
The film heater solves a challenge in harsh weather where sensors are covered by conditions such as ice, snow or fog. In autonomous vehicles, this presents a challenge when the lidar and other sensor systems are critical to operations. By integrating the sensors and lidar into a module with a film heater, the weather events are negated allowing detection of objects and distances to continue.
The companies will demonstrate the RSM at the Startup Autobahn Expo 2023 taking place in Stuttgart, Germany, on June 22.
