Western Digital (Fremont), Inc.

Other

Lg Innotek Co., Ltd.

Argo Ai Gmbh

Siros Technologies, Inc.

Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Michael V Morelli

Hongxing Yuan

Matthew R Gibbons

Brad Vaughn Johnson

Jiangrong Cao

Sergei L Sochava

Zhong Shi

Peng Zhang

Yunfei Li

Laurens M Schouten-Evers

Ronald L Allen

Jianwei Mu

Zhigang Bai

Mark E McDonald

Andrew J Daiber

Minseok Oh

Zhongyan Wang

Samuel Weisan Yuan

Lisha Wang

Sanjoy Ghose

Shunichi Nishimura

Lei Wang

Jiro Yoshinari

Hideki Hirata

Zhanjie Li

Lambertus Hesselink

Robert L Thornton

Takuya Tsukagoshi

Shing Lee

Naoki Hayashida

Ge Yi

Wentao Yan

Paul Y Lin

Morgan M Wagner

Boping Xie

Christopher Nelson St John

Koji Gardiner

Douglas G Stinson

Arkadi B Goulakov

Michael John Henderson

Herman Ferrier

Matthew Lipson

Tokuyuki Honda

Duc H Vu

Thomas Kridl

LeRoy A Volz

Eric K Thong

Vipul Dutt Badoni

Weigang Wang

James R Amble

Rabee M Ikkawi

Alexandre V Demtchouk

Robert M Elkow

Patrick D O'Rourke

Tokyuki Honda

Lambrerrtus Hesselink

Michael Patrick Lenihan

Alan William Yip

Sheng Yang Tsui

Randy Goettsch

Systems and methods are provided herein for improved short range object detection in LIDAR systems. An example method may include providing, by a biasing voltage source, a first biasing voltage to a photodetector of a LIDAR system at a first time corresponding to a light emission from an emitter of the LIDAR system. The example method may also include providing, by the biasing voltage source, a second biasing voltage to the photodetector at a second time subsequent to the first time. The example method may also include receiving, by a pole/zero cancellation subcircuit of the LIDAR system, a first output signal from the photodetector. The example method may also include removing, by the pole/zero cancellation subcircuit, an undershoot or overshoot from the first output signal. The example method may also include receiving, by a first gain subcircuit, a second output signal from the pole/zero cancellation subcircuit.

Systems and methods for light detection in LIDAR systems

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are disclosed for characterizing LIDAR point cloud quality. An example method may involve capturing a first point cloud for a test target including a retroreflective object, the first point cloud including a first region. The example method may also involve capturing, by a LIDAR system, a second point cloud for the test target. The example method may also involve applying a penalty function to a first point in the second point cloud, wherein the first point is within an acceptable error threshold based on the first region. The example method may also involve applying a penalty function to a second point in the second point cloud, wherein the second point is outside of the acceptable error threshold based on the first region. The example method may also involve generating a first score for the first point and a second score for the second point based on the penalty function. The example method may also involve combining the first score and the second score to produce a point cloud quality metric for the second point cloud. The example method may also involve calibrating, based on the point cloud quality metric, the LIDAR system for the retroreflective object.

Method for characterizing lidar point cloud quality

Devices, systems, and methods are provided for sensor health and regression testing. A sensor testing system may include a first plurality of sensor testing targets positioned on a first side of a vehicle at a first distance from the vehicle, a second plurality of sensor testing targets positioned on a second side of the vehicle at the first distance, and a first sensor testing target positioned at a second distance from the vehicle, the second distance further from the vehicle than the first distance. The first and second pluralities of sensor testing targets both may include three or more sensor testing targets for testing cameras and light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensors of the vehicle. The first sensor testing target may be used to test at least one of camera or LIDAR data. The sensor testing system may identify degradation of sensor performance, triggering further analysis and/or repairs.

Enhanced sensor health and regression testing for vehicles

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are disclosed for a systems and methods for intra-shot dynamic LIDAR detector gain. One example method my include receiving first image data associated with a first image of an object illuminated at a first wavelength and captured by a camera at the first wavelength, the first image data including first pixel data for a first pixel of the first image and second pixel data for a second pixel of the first image. The example method may also include calculating a first reflectance value for the first pixel using the first pixel data. The example method may also include calculating a second reflectance value for the second pixel using the second pixel data. The example method may also include generating, using first reflectance value and the second reflectance value, a first reflectance distribution of the object.

Systems and methods for characterizing spectral reflectance of real world objects

An apparatus comprises a horizontal array of emitter/detector pairs; an array of lens pairs mounted above and aligned with emitter/detector pairs; and a first curved reflective surface positioned such that for each emitter/detector pair and corresponding lens pair, light from the emitter that passes through a lens of the lens pair is redirected into the far field, and light arriving from the far field is redirected through the other lens of the lens pair onto the detector. Light from each emitter is emitted upwards along a vertical axis, and light received by each detector is incident on the detector downwards along a vertical axis. If light emitted from the first array and reflected by the first surface into the far field reflects off an object in the far field and returns to the apparatus, the returning light is reflected off the first surface and detected by the first array.

Scanning LIDAR system using a curved rotating surface

A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write apparatus includes a laser for providing energy and resides in proximity to a media during use. The HAMR write apparatus includes a write pole that writes to a region of the media, coil(s) for energizing the write pole and a waveguide optically coupled with the laser. The waveguide includes at least one multi-mode interference (MMI) device. The MMI device has at least one input, a plurality of outputs, a propagation section and a multi-mode interference (MMI) section. Energy from the laser propagates through the propagation section before the MMI section. The propagation section expands the energy from the laser to a plurality of modes. A first portion of the outputs is output from the propagation section. The MMI section is between the propagation section and a second portion of the plurality of outputs.

Method and system for providing a HAMR writer including a multi-mode interference device

A heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write apparatus has a media-facing surface (MFS) and includes a pole, coil(s) and a waveguide. The waveguide is optically coupled with a laser and directs energy toward the MFS. The waveguide includes an entrance, a bottom and a mode converter having a core, an inner cladding, high index layer(s) and an outer cladding. The core has sides that diverge in width. The core has a first index of refraction. The outer cladding has a second index of refraction less than the first index of refraction. The inner cladding has a third index of refraction not greater than the second index of refraction. The inner cladding is between the high index layer(s) and the core. The high index layer(s) are between the inner and outer cladding. The high index layer(s) have a high index of refraction greater than the second index of refraction.

Heat assisted magnetic recording write apparatus having an inverse tapered waveguide

A heat assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write apparatus coupled with a laser is described. The HAMR write apparatus includes a pole, coil(s), a near-field transducer (NFT), and a dielectric gap. The pole writes to the media. The coil(s) energize the pole. The waveguide is optically coupled with the laser and directs energy toward the ABS. The NFT is optically coupled with the waveguide and includes a metal nose and a metal cap. Part of the metal cap adjoins part of the main pole. The dielectric gap is between a first portion of the NFT and the main pole. The dielectric gap has a media-facing surface and back, top, bottom and side surfaces. The top surface adjoins the main pole. The bottom surface adjoins the first portion of the NFT. The side surfaces adjoin a second portion of the NFT. The back surface adjoins a portion of the metal cap.

Heat assisted magnetic recording write apparatus having a dielectric gap

A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) write apparatus includes a laser and has an air-bearing surface (ABS) that resides in proximity to a media during use. The HAMR write apparatus includes a write pole that writes to the media, coil(s) for energizing the write pole and a waveguide optically coupled with the laser. The waveguide includes an entrance distal from the ABS and a bottom proximate to the ABS. The waveguide also includes a mode converter, a mode stripper optically coupled with the mode converter and an inverse tapered section optically coupled with the mode stripper. The mode converter has sides converging from a first width proximate to the entrance to a second width distal from the entrance and less than the first width. The mode stripper is between the inverse tapered section and the mode converter. The inverse tapered section has an entrance and an exit wider than the entrance.

Method and system for providing a HAMR writer having improved optical efficiency

A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) transducer is coupled with a laser for providing energy and has an air-bearing surface (ABS) configured to reside in proximity to a media during use. The HAMR transducer includes a write pole, at least one coil, and an inverse tapered waveguide optically coupled with the laser. The write pole is configured to write to a region of the media. The coil(s) energize the write pole. The inverse tapered waveguide includes an entrance distal from the ABS, a bottom proximate to the ABS, a first side and a second side opposite to the first side. The first side and the second side diverging such that at least a portion of the inverse tapered waveguide between the bottom and the top is wider than the entrance.

Inverse tapered waveguide for use in a heat assisted magnetic recording head

An apparatus for energy assisted magnetic recording of a storage disk includes a plurality of dielectric waveguide cores configured to receive incident light energy from an energy source and direct the incident light energy to a target, and a near field transducer (NFT) formed at an air bearing surface of a magnetic recording device. The NFT is configured to focus the light energy received from the plurality of waveguide cores and to transmit the focused light energy onto the storage disk surface to generate a heating spot on the storage disk. The NFT includes a plurality of propagating surface plasmon polariton (PSPP) elements configured as plasmonic metal ridges. Each of the PSPP elements has a width approximately equivalent to the width of the heating spot and is disposed above a surface of a single waveguide core in a longitudinal alignment.

Interfering near field transducer for energy assisted magnetic recording

The present disclosure generally relates to an EAMR head having a plasmonic bulk metal plate adjacent thereto. The waveguide core has a trapezoidal shaped cross-section, when viewed from the ABS, and the plasmonic bulk metal plate is disposed adjacent the short side of the trapezoid. The plasmonic bulk metal plate reduces the temperature of the NFT.

Flat NFT for heat assisted magnetic recording

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Michael V Morelli