New Scheme of MEMS-Based LiDAR by Synchronized Dual-Laser Beams for Detection Range Enhancement

• Published in: Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 24; no. 6; p. 1897
• Main Authors: Huang, Chien-Wei, Liu, Chun-Nien, Mao, Sheng-Chuan, Tsai, Wan-Shao, Pei, Zingway, Tu, Charles W., Cheng, Wood-Hi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 15.03.2024; MDPI
• Subjects: auxiliary laser; Laser beams; Lasers; Light; long detection range; MEMS LiDAR; Optical radar; Remote sensing; Signal processing; Taiwan; long detection range; MEMS LiDAR; auxiliary laser
• ISSN: 1424-8220; 1424-8220
• DOI: 10.3390/s24061897

A new scheme presents MEMS-based LiDAR with synchronized dual-laser beams for detection range enhancement and precise point-cloud data without using higher laser power. The novel MEMS-based LiDAR module uses the principal laser light to build point-cloud data. In addition, an auxiliary laser light amplifies the single-noise ratio to enhance the detection range. This LiDAR module exhibits the field of view (FOV), angular resolution, and maximum detection distance of 45° (H) × 25° (V), 0.11° (H) × 0.11° (V), and 124 m, respectively. The maximum detection distance is enhanced by 16% from 107 m to 124 m with a laser power of 1 W and an additional auxiliary laser power of 0.355 W. Furthermore, the simulation results show that the maximum detection distance can be up to 300 m with laser power of 8 W and only 6 W if the auxiliary laser light of 2.84 W is used, which is 35.5% of the laser power. This result indicates that the synchronized dual-laser beams can achieve long detection distance and reduce laser power 30%, hence saving on the overall laser system costs. Therefore, the proposed LiDAR module can be applied for a long detection range in autonomous vehicles without requiring higher laser power if it utilizes an auxiliary laser light.