Valeo’s third-generation lidar will equip multiple vehicle models across Stellantis’ brand portfolio, starting in 2024. The Valeo Scala 3 lidar will enable these vehicles to be certified for L3 automation.
Valeo have already sold more than 170,000 Scala units in the world; earlier Scala lidar sensors have seen wide adoption, for example the Scala 2 sensors in the Mercedes S-Class. Almost every automaker in the world agrees Lidar sensors are a crucial key component for safe and effective L3 automated driving; notoriously cocksure Tesla CEO Elon Musk has scorned lidar as a “fool’s errand”, even as numerous regulatory agencies increasingly object to Tesla vehicles’ alarming autonomous misbehaviour.
Valeo’s gen-3 Scala lidar can detect all types of objects, even those with very low reflectivity—even when an they are far ahead. It can identify small objects at more than 150 metres, such as flaps of tires lost by trucks on the road. These small obstacles are frequent but generally late to be detected by radars or cameras. This sensor synthesises a 3D image of the vehicle’s surroundings based on the point cloud detected ahead in a field of view of about 150° H × 25° V. This frontal point cloud can be used also to map the ground topology and to detect road markings. Through these data collection capabilities, this lidar will enable new services to be offered to Stellantis’ customers.
Valeo’s lidar also features embedded high-performance software based on artificial intelligence algorithms, which enables it to define the vehicle’s trajectory, anticipating obstacle-free zones on the road ahead. Like other types of lidars it can self-diagnose, and self-activates its cleaning system when its field of vision is obstructed.
DVN comment
In the European market—and to some extent in the U.S.—Valeo have built a leading position for lidar sensors as the first choice for a number of carmakers. This choice is not only driven by their sensors’ technology and performance but also by Valeo’s expertise. Their early industrial investment combined with adjacent market feedback now starts to pay dividends.