Since the release of ZVISION EZ6, the first product of the SPAD LiDAR series at the beginning of 24, the slogan of "LiDAR equality, entering the era of 1,000 yuan" has been recognized by the industry, and friends have also followed up and launched their own ultra-low-cost solutions. In fact, behind the demand for thousand-yuan machines, it is not only a strong demand for cost reduction in the self-driving market, but also a reflection of the industry and consumers' re-understanding of the value of lidar in the self-driving system: lidar can not only improve the application experience of the self-driving system, but also the safety bottom line of the entire self-driving system.
LiDAR equality is the starting point, and self-driving inclusiveness is our ultimate goal. At this auto show, Yijing Technology released the latest cost-effective new product, ZVISION EZ5, and firmly responded to "LiDAR equality" with another strength. The core of Yijing is not the low price, but to make customers feel that it is worth the money, so that thousands of car buyers can enjoy better high-end intelligent driving services at a lower cost, so that LiDAR has become the standard configuration of self-driving solutions and realizes the goal of self-driving inclusiveness. We also firmly believe that EZ5 must be a more capable product with better performance at the same price and lower price with the same performance.
EZ5 Sketch: The ultimate product definition
· 25mm slim: the vehicle is friendly in shape, helping to improve the appearance of the vehicle
· 120°*20° FOV：典型视场定义，算法适配最久
· Up to 220m ranging: the need to ensure safety - one inch long and one inch strong
· Up to 192 lines: 192 high lines, image-level point clouds
· Optimal resolution of 0.1°*0.1°: ultra-precise perception, small obstacles are one step faster
· SUPPORT 20HZ: HIGH FRAME RATE, FAST RESPONSE, SAFER
· High integration, digitalization, and platformization: extreme cost, advanced architecture
· The ultimate cost performance that is not afraid of comparison: better performance at the same price, lower price at the same performance
As shown in the chart above, the EZ5's product goal is to provide customers with superior LiDAR performance on the premise of achieving the ultimate cost and becoming the standard equipment for more low-priced models.
Simplified architecture, extreme cost
1. Platform design based on highly integrated SPAD chip
Compared with the traditional LiDAR architecture based on SiPM or APD, the design architecture of EZ series products replaces most of the discrete components of the previous photoelectric front-end →amplification link→ analog-to-digital conversion → digital signal processing, greatly simplifying the architectural complexity. At the same time, thanks to the fact that the core distance information acquisition has been completed in the SPAD SoC, the back-end only needs to be equipped with an ultra-low computing power processor to complete all the signal processing of the lidar.
The architecture of EZ6 is highly condensed to make it a general platform product architecture, and finally the core SPAD, VCSEL & processor can be reused to ensure the simplicity and cost advantage of the architecture. At the same time, in addition to the above-mentioned BOM cost, the potential platform maturity, development speed and quality, and trial-and-error iteration cost are also well guaranteed.
From the perspective of industry technology development trends, the selection of highly integrated SPAD chips can also help to get rid of the dependence on high-complexity proprietary chips. It is foreseeable that general-purpose chips can better promote industry standardization, thereby effectively improving the penetration rate of LiDAR.
2. Further simplification of LiDAR system design
In the new EZ5, the product definition has been reorganized, focusing on the realization of slim size and extreme cost performance while ensuring the upper limit of performance, and the design of the whole machine has been efficiently reconstructed based on the opto-mechanical system. As shown in the figure above, the core key components have been significantly optimized/simplified, including: the size of the rotating mirror has been reduced by 40%, the optical window area has been reduced by 44%, and the optical system components have been halved. It is through the rational and comprehensive optimization/simplification of the optomechanical system that the EZ5 finally achieves a further reduction in cost.
Easy to use: EZ-Key - the key to the application of EZ series products
One of the original intentions of the EZ series products is to be easy to use, and easy to use is also the key for customers to give full play to the utility of LiDAR and reduce development costs.
At this auto show, Yijing Technology launched a new LiDAR environmental adaptability kit EZ-Key for EZ platform series products, aiming to help customers solve the problem of LiDAR point cloud adaptability in various complex scenarios, so that customers can focus more on the application of LiDAR point clouds.
The EZ-Key suite includes: dirt detection, rain/fog/dust/exhaust gas detection, wire drawing algorithm, ghost removal algorithm, and expansion point suppression algorithm, which can effectively solve the impact of false point clouds on point cloud quality in various scenarios. The kit is a set of independent product forms, which will be independently of the LiDAR hardware for iteration and upgrade, which can be deployed on the LiDAR body or flexibly integrated into the client's domain control.
For example, dirt detection and alarm has always been an important function of LiDAR applications, and the EZ-Key suite supports this function through multi-level combination discrimination: signal-level dirt detection based on single-point raw data characteristics + point cloud-level dirt detection based on typical dirt distribution, which can not only directly provide dirt detection solutions, but also customize and adjust according to customers' requirements for dirt alarm sensitivity, and finally realize sensitive and accurate detection of water droplets, water film (continuous rainfall), transparent plastics, sludge, etc.
Technology-Driven Change Lidar is on the road to standardization
Yijing believes that the core of the next stage of LiDAR development, in addition to lower cost and better performance, sensor modularization must be the most important factor. Analogous to the camera system in the current self-driving system, the camera module is a highly standardized module, and the customized information processing part (such as ISP) has been moved to the autonomous driving domain control SoC with stronger computing power.
One view is that LiDAR based on SPAD architecture can support the above evolution path. Specifically, in the existing LiDAR → domain controller link, the core processor inside the LiDAR processes the original data to a certain extent and transmits it to the domain control SoC, which to a certain extent, is a waste of computing power and a loss of information dimension. One-path SPAD product architecture evolution route: LiDAR devices are further streamlined, only the photoelectric front-end is retained, and the original signal is directly transmitted to the domain controller, and the EZ-Key algorithm suite is deployed to the domain controller, that is, the computing power of the lidar is moved up to the domain controller (referred to as computing power up).
The LiDAR module has the following benefits:
· further reduce costs and get rid of dependence on ASICs;
· The modularization of the lidar photoelectric front-end is realized, and the power consumption of the module can also be minimized;
· LiDAR data is standardized, and massive corner case raw data can be used to iteratively upgrade the algorithm of laser point cloud.
In this direction, Yijing is working with leading OEMs and head chip suppliers to carry out early ecological construction and technological exploration. We believe that in the near future, our exploration results can promote the further development of the LiDAR industry.
The EZ product family has been further expanded
The advent of EZ5 further enriches the product matrix of Yijing SPAD digital lidar, and provides a combination for Yijing's slogan of "LiDAR equality, entering the era of 1,000 yuan": EZ6, as a cost-effective product that meets mainstream applications, takes the lead in initiating the trend of reducing the cost of "flagship machines" in the industry; As the ultimate cost-effective product, the EZ5 is expected to become the standard for more low-priced models with its ultimate cost advantage while ensuring superior performance, and ultimately support the vision of "inclusive self-driving".
The EZ5 was released at the Beijing Auto Show
During the Beijing Auto Show from April 25th to May 4th, Yijing Technology will grandly launch its latest masterpiece - ZVISION EZ5 on April 27. We sincerely invite industry experts and partners to come to the scene to witness this important moment and have in-depth exchanges. Our booth is located in Hall E2, No. W07, and we look forward to your visit.