The first DVN Lidar Think Tank took place in Frankfurt in-person and online with 19 companies involved in lidar, 5 car makers and 14 lidar suppliers and integrators.
DVN CEO Hector Fratty opened the event: “I am happy to open the Think Tank dedicated to Lidar, because it is exactly what I did in lighting, 15 years ago, with around 15 companies, OEMs Audi, BMW, Ford, Opel; tier-1s Hella, AL, and Valeo; and few tier-2s and universities. At that time, I had just left Valeo Lighting as R&D director and my target was to create what it missed at that time: a lighting community. We are now keeping the same way with the Lidar Think Tank!”
The target of the Think Tank was to know how a lidar community could improve the lidar ecosystem. The groups answered to 3 questions:
• What are the benefits and the needs of a cooperative lidar community?
It should bring education, promotion, regulation, partnerships, align the chain of specifications.
• How the community could support standardization, use case definition?
Volume of production, shuttles deployment, where to invest, NCAP grades, pedestrian detection. Tesla accidents could inspire as a promotion of lidars.
• How to promote safety and convenience benefits of lidar enabled functions
Creation of a leading communication platform between the industry value chain, test houses, research institutes and regulators. Former GTB president Geoffrey Draper shared his experience of standardization and regulation concerning lighting. Very useful to follow the way.
Global suggestions from participants about the tasks of a lighting community:
• to take into account needs from end-consumers and promote lidar towards end-consumers through associated members like Automobile Clubs (ADAC, AAA…).
• to be a platform to create or enhance synergies among lidar actors
• to be a platform for sharable information
After the success of this first event, plans are in the works for another this May.
