Hesai Group last week announced that it is working with NVIDIA Corp. to integrate its lidar sensors with NVIDIA's DRIVE and Omniverse ecosystems.
“By combining our expertise in lidar technology with NVIDIA's world-class simulation and software-development platforms, we can provide developers with invaluable insights and resources for unlocking the full potential of lidar in autonomous driving applications,” said Bob in den Bosch, senior vice president of global sales at Hesai Technology Co., in a release.
Hesai said its products enable advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous vehicle (AV) fleets. The Shanghai-based company's technology also empowers robotics applications such as last-mile delivery robots and logistics robots in restricted areas. Yole Group last month ranked Hesai as the No. 1 global automotive lidar provider for the second year in a row.
Hesai supports ADAS, robots
Hesai Technology claimed that its commercially validated systems are backed by research and development in optics, mechanics, electronics, and software. The company said it integrates lidar designs with an in-house manufacturing process, facilitating rapid product development while ensuring high performance and consistent quality.
Hesai's AT128 is an automotive-grade, ultra-high resolution, long-range lidar. With 128 independent VCSEL laser transmitters, AT128 is able to achieve 1.53 million data points per second and a detection range of 200 m (656.1 ft.).
As of Dec. 31, 2022, Hesai reported that it has shipped a total of more than 100,000 lidar units. The company also said it has established strong relationships with leading automotive OEMs, AV, and robotics companies worldwide, covering over 90 cities in 40 countries.
Hesai is currently collaborating with 11 leading OEMs on multi-year ADAS contracts, including what it said is China's largest new energy vehicle manufacturer and leading auto companies. Among them, six OEMs will start mass production and delivery before the end of 2023.
NVIDIA simulations to aid AV developers
The NVIDIA DRIVE and Omniverse collaboration expands on Hesai's participation in the NVIDIA partner ecosystem since 2019. The companies said they will continue to work together to help end users and OEMs more easily integrate graphics processing unit (GPU) and lidar technology into self-driving vehicles.
NVIDIA said DriveWorks is the foundation for AV software development and a trusted platform for creating and deploying applications. “Developers building on DriveWorks will be able to effectively integrate Hesai's lidar sensors into their vehicles, leading to more efficient and reliable autonomous driving systems.”
“Simulation is a critical component to the sensor integration pipeline,” noted Hesai and NVIDIA. Built on Omniverse, NVIDIA DRIVE Sim provides a physically based virtual environment for validation and testing.
With the ability to access Hesai lidar sensor models in DRIVE Sim, developers can take advantage of enhanced capabilities for simulating real-world lidar data, enabling more robust and accurate testing of autonomous driving algorithms.
“This collaboration will provide autonomous vehicle developers with seamless tools and flexibility along the AV pipeline,” said Glenn Schuster, senior director of sensor ecosystems at NVIDIA. “Together, we aim to push the boundaries of lidar technology and accelerate the deployment of safe and efficient autonomous driving.”
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