Waymo LLC

Google Inc.

Waymo L Lc

Pierre-yves Droz

Gaetan Pennecot

David Neil Hutchison

Caner Onal

Luke Wachter

Blaise Gassend

Drew Eugene Ulrich

Samuel William Lenius

Simon Verghese

Ralph Hamilton Shepard

William McCann

Anthony Scott Levandowski

Daniel Gruver

Bernard G Fidric

Augusto Tazzoli

Zachary Morriss

Rahim Pardhan

Michael Marx

David Schleuning

Dorel Ionut Iordache

James C Dunphy

Benjamin T Ingram

Nathaniel Golshan

Min Wang

Brendan Hermalyn

Scott McCloskey

Adam S Brown

Mark Alexander Shand

Daniel L Rosenband

Peter Avram

Vadim Gutnik

Laila Mattos

Jamal Izadian

Alexander Patrick McCauley

Zhe Li

Yeh-Jiun Tung

Etai Bruhis

Simon Ellgas

Clayton Kunz

Zach Morriss

Timothy Campbell

William Grossman

Paul Karplus

Mingcheng Chen

David Gordon Duff

Hui Seong Son

Benjamin Pitzer

Edward Daniel McCloskey

Pieter Kapsenberg

Ryan Davis

John P Massey

David Sobel

Pablo Hopman

Srikanth Muroor

Pieter Kaspenberg

Kyla Purvis

Colin Andrew Braley

Jason Paul Watson

Kelvin Kwong

Robert J Lockwood

Ethan Stark

Chandra Kakani

Justin Matthew Andrade

Sabareeshkumar Ravikumar

Kaushik Kannan

Chris Urmson

Joshua Jones

Erin Eppard

Andrew Abo

Ionut Iordache

Michael Tom

Nathaniel Quillin

Michael R Matthews

Kanika Sachdev

John Lam

Daiwei Li

Described herein are methods and systems for protecting a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) device against external light that is originated at a light source other than a light source of the LIDAR device and that is being emitted towards the LIDAR device. In particular, the LIDAR device may be equipped with a mitigation system that includes an interference filter, an absorptive filter, an adaptive filter, and/or a spatial filter. Additionally or alternatively, the LIDAR device may be operated to carry out reactive and/or proactive mitigation operations. For example, the LIDAR device may be operated to vary over time characteristics with which light is being emitted and to only detect light having characteristics that match the characteristics with which light is being emitted. In another example, the LIDAR device may be operated to activate a shutter to block the external light from being detected by the LIDAR device.

Methods and systems for protecting a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) device

An optical receiver may include a plurality of photodetectors, a common processed data pipeline, and a plurality of processors. Outputs of the plurality of processors are communicatively coupled to the common processed data pipeline. Each processor is configured to accept input signals from a respective photodetector of the plurality of photodetectors. Each processor is also configured to process the input signals to provide processed data and output the processed data into a data stream of the common processed data pipeline according to one or more predetermined data locations. A method for using the optical receiver and a non-transitory computer readable medium are also described.

Multi-chip daisychain for output aggregation

Example embodiments relate to light detection and ranging (lidar) devices having a light-guide manifold. An example lidar device includes a transmit subsystem. The transmit subsystem includes a light emitter. The transmit subsystem also includes a light-guide manifold optically coupled to the light emitter. Further, the transmit subsystem includes a telecentric lens assembly optically coupled to the light-guide manifold. The lidar device also includes a receive subsystem. The receive subsystem includes the telecentric lens assembly. The receive subsystem also includes an aperture plate having an aperture defined therein. The aperture plate is positioned at a focal plane of the telecentric lens assembly. Further, the receive subsystem includes a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) positioned to receive light traveling through the aperture.

Light detection and ranging (lidar) device having a light-guide manifold

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods that facilitate light detection and ranging operations. An example transmit block includes at least one substrate with a plurality of angled facets. The plurality of angled facets provides a corresponding plurality of elevation angles. A set of angle differences between adjacent elevation angles includes at least two different angle difference values. A plurality of light-emitter devices is configured to emit light into an environment along the plurality of elevation angles toward respective target locations so as to provide a desired resolution and/or a respective elevation angle. The present disclosure also relates to adjusting shot power and a shot schedule based on the desired resolution and/or a respective elevation angle.

Variable beam spacing, timing, and power for vehicle sensors

A laser diode firing circuit for a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) device that includes an inductively coupled feedback system is disclosed. The firing circuit includes a laser diode coupled in series with a transistor, such that current through the laser diode is controlled by the transistor. The laser diode is configured to emit a pulse of light in response to current flowing through the laser diode. A feedback loop is positioned to be inductively coupled to a current path of the firing circuit that includes the laser diode. As such, a change in current flowing through the laser diode induces a voltage in the feedback loop. A change in voltage across the leads of the feedback loop can be detected and the timing of the voltage change can be used to determine the time that current begins flowing through the laser diode.

Laser diode timing feedback using trace loop

In one example, a LIDAR device includes a light sources that emits light and a transmit lens that directs the emitted light to illuminate a region of an environment with a field-of-view defined by the transmit lens. The LIDAR device also includes a receive lens that focuses at least a portion of incoming light propagating from the illuminated region of the environment along a predefined optical path. The LIDAR device also includes an array of light detectors positioned along the predefined optical path. The LIDAR device also includes an offset light detector positioned outside the predefined optical path. The LIDAR device also includes a controller that determines whether collected sensor data from the array of light detectors includes data associated with another light source different than the light source of the device based on output from the offset light detector.

Light detection and ranging (LIDAR) device with an off-axis receiver

The subject matter of this specification can be implemented in, among other things, systems and methods that enable lidar devices capable of detecting and processing multiple optical modes present in a beam reflected from a target object. Different received optical modes can be spatially separated and electronic signals can be generated that are representative of a coherence information contained in various optical modes. Multiple generated electronic signals can be amplified, phase-shifted, mixed, etc., to identify signals, individually or in a combination, that can be used for identification of a range and velocity of the target object with the highest accuracy.

Multimode lidar receiver for coherent distance and velocity measurements

A vehicle is provided that includes one or more wheels positioned at a bottom side of the vehicle. The vehicle also includes a first light detection and ranging device (LIDAR) positioned at a top side of the vehicle opposite to the bottom side. The first LIDAR is configured to scan an environment around the vehicle based on rotation of the first LIDAR about an axis. The first LIDAR has a first resolution. The vehicle also includes a second LIDAR configured to scan a field-of-view of the environment that extends away from the vehicle along a viewing direction of the second LIDAR. The second LIDAR has a second resolution. The vehicle also includes a controller configured to operate the vehicle based on the scans of the environment by the first LIDAR and the second LIDAR.

Vehicle with multiple light detection and ranging devices (LIDARs)

Example embodiments relate to range calibration of light detectors. An example method includes emitting a first light signal toward a first region of a calibration target having a first reflectivity and detecting a reflection of the first light signal. The detected reflection of the first light signal has a first intensity. The example method further includes emitting a second light signal toward a second region of the calibration target having a second reflectivity and detecting a reflection of the second light signal from the second region of the calibration target. The detected reflection of the second light signal has a second intensity. Still further, the example method includes determining a first apparent range based on the detected reflection of the first light signal, determining a second apparent range based on the detected reflection of the second light signal, and generating walk-error calibration data for the detector.

Range calibration of light detectors

The present disclosure relates to limitation of noise on light detectors using an aperture. One example embodiment includes a system. The system includes a lens disposed relative to a scene and configured to focus light from the scene onto a focal plane. The system also includes an aperture defined within an opaque material disposed at the focal plane of the lens. The aperture has a cross-sectional area. In addition, the system includes an array of light detectors disposed on a side of the focal plane opposite the lens and configured to intercept and detect diverging light focused by the lens and transmitted through the aperture. A cross-sectional area of the array of light detectors that intercepts the diverging light is greater than the cross-sectional area of the aperture.

Limitation of noise on light detectors using an aperture

A LIDAR device may transmit light pulses originating from one or more light sources and may receive reflected light pulses that are then detected by one or more detectors. The LIDAR device may include a lens that both (i) collimates the light from the one or more light sources to provide collimated light for transmission into an environment of the LIDAR device and (ii) focuses the reflected light onto the one or more detectors. The lens may define a curved focal surface in a transmit path of the light from the one or more light sources and a curved focal surface in a receive path of the one or more detectors. The one or more light sources may be arranged along the curved focal surface in the transmit path. The one or more detectors may be arranged along the curved focal surface in the receive path.

Devices and methods for a rotating LIDAR platform with a shared transmit/receive path

Communication links, computing systems, and methods for their use. The communication link includes a low-voltage differential signaling (LVDS) driver. The LVDS driver is configured to provide a differential signal that is based on a digital bit stream. The digital bit stream includes a series of digital bits that are temporally arranged based on a nominal bit period. The communication link also includes a controllable delay device. The controllable delay device is configured to provide a delay signal to the LVDS driver so as to cause a rising edge or a falling edge of respective digital bits to vary in time with respect to the nominal bit period based on a predetermined sequence of delay amounts. The delay amounts represent positive and negative differences in time from the nominal bit period.

Low-speed ring with controlled jitter

Systems and methods are disclosed to identify a presence of a volumetric medium in an environment associated with a LIDAR system. In some implementations, the LIDAR system may emit a light pulse into the environment, receive a return light pulse corresponding to reflection of the emitted light pulse by a surface in the environment, and determine a pulse width of the received light pulse. The LIDAR system may compare the determined pulse width with a reference pulse width, and determine an amount of pulse elongation of the received light pulse. The LIDAR system may classify the surface as either an object to be avoided by a vehicle or as air particulates associated with the volumetric medium based, at least in part, on the determined amount of pulse elongation.

LIDAR pulse elongation

An example circuit includes a plurality of light emitters connected in parallel between a first node and a second node. The circuit also includes a plurality of capacitors, with each capacitor corresponding to one of the light emitters, and a plurality of discharge-control switches, with each discharge-control switches corresponding to one of the capacitors. The circuit further includes a pulse-control switch connected to the plurality of light emitters. During a first period, the pulse-control switch restricts current flow, and each of the plurality of capacitors is charged via the first node. During a second period, one or more of the plurality of discharge-control switches allows current flow that discharges one or more corresponding capacitors. During a third period, the pulse-control switch allows current flow that discharges one or more undischarged capacitors of the plurality of capacitors through one or more corresponding light emitters.

Systems and methods for selecting light emitters for emitting light

Growing community of inventors

Los Altos, CA, United States of America

Pierre-yves Droz