Aurora Acquires Second LiDAR Company | Self-Driving Trucks

Aurora Acquires Lidar Startup OURS Technology

Aurora, a leading company in the development of autonomous vehicles, has recently completed the acquisition of OURS Technology. This follows their previous purchase of Uber’s self-driving subsidiary, further solidifying Aurora’s position in the industry.

Second Lidar Acquisition in Under Two Years

This acquisition marks Aurora’s second investment in a lidar startup within a two-year period. In May 2019, the company acquired Blackmore, a lidar specialist based in Montana. The financial details of the OURS Technology deal have not been disclosed by Aurora.

OURS Technology, founded in 2017 by researchers and PhDs from the University of California-Berkeley, consists of a team of 12 individuals. According to Aurora, the entire OURS team will be integrated into the Aurora organization.

Strategic Importance of Lidar Expertise

An Aurora spokesperson stated that the company is continually seeking ways to expedite progress. The expertise of OURS in lidar chip development complements Aurora’s existing capabilities and will accelerate their ongoing work.

The Role of Lidar in Autonomous Driving

Lidar, or light detection and ranging radar, is widely considered a crucial sensor for the safe and large-scale deployment of self-driving vehicles. While widespread adoption of autonomous vehicles remains years, potentially decades, away, numerous companies are actively developing lidar technologies to meet the anticipated future demand.

Time-of-Flight vs. FMCW Lidar

The majority of companies in the lidar industry are focused on developing time-of-flight lidar sensors. These sensors emit pulses of light and measure the time it takes for them to return, creating a 3D map by recording the distance and direction of each pulse.

However, some companies, including Blackmore and OURS Technology, are pursuing Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) lidar. FMCW lidar offers benefits such as a higher dynamic range for distance measurement and the ability to instantly determine the velocity of objects.

OURS Technology’s Innovation: Lidar-on-a-Chip

FMCW lidar is inherently complex, often requiring large mirrors and components to achieve a wide field of view. OURS Technology positions itself as a “lidar-on-a-chip” company, suggesting they have developed a method to integrate all necessary components into a solid-state scanning mechanism.

This innovation would significantly reduce the size of the sensor, addressing a key challenge associated with FMCW technology.

Aurora’s FirstLight Lidar and Future Scalability

Last summer, Aurora unveiled its FirstLight Lidar, a sensor based on Blackmore’s technology, designed for its fleet of self-driving trucks. Aurora highlighted OURS’s rapid development pace, noting the startup produced four generations of lidar in just three years.

The company intends to leverage OURS’s expertise to enhance the scalability of its sensor technology. Specifically, Aurora aims to utilize the team and their designs, including the solid-state scanning mechanism, to accelerate the development process.

As Aurora prepares to expand its fleet and commercialize its driverless trucks, the need for a scalable, smaller, and more cost-effective lidar solution is paramount.