On November 2, 2022, Hesai Technology officially unveiled the FT120, a fully solid-state near-range blind spot lidar designed for ADAS series production vehicles.
FT120 is a fully solid-state lidar with no moving parts inside. It is designed for near-range blind spots and has a 100° x 75° ultra-wide field of view (FOV). FT120 has won over one million units of expected volume from leading OEMs, and it will be mass-produced and delivered in the second half of 2023.
Fully Solid-State: No Moving Parts Inside
Compared with traditional lidar, the total number of components in FT120 is greatly reduced. With no moving parts inside, this design significantly improves product reliability, production efficiency, and consistency.
The explosion of FT120
Based on a highly integrated architecture, FT120 is compact while ensuring great performance. It can be embedded on both sides or around the vehicle’s body. With a minimum window size of 70 mm x 50 mm, the lidar fits seamlessly into the fender, grille, bumper, or other places (OEMs can customize horizontal or vertical placement).
Loading positions of FT120
Ultra-Wide FOV Provides Blind Spot Perception
FT120 features 100° x 75° ultra-wide FOV and zero blind spots. The maximum detection range is 100 meters. It can perceive surrounding objects such as street signs, railings, small animals, traffic cones, and crosswalks in real-time, providing essential blind spot perception for the vehicle. With a data rate of 192,000 points per second (in a single return) and an overall resolution of 160 (H) x 120 (V), FT120 can detect rich object details and gather information of the environment in real-time.
Ultra-Wide FOV of FT120 (simulated point cloud)
In mass-produced vehicles, the advantage of hybrid solid-state lidar is ranging capability. However, hybrid solid-state lidar usually has limited vertical FOV. If used for blind spots on both sides, there may be a lack of perception of near-range objects. Moreover, it takes multiple lidar units to fully cover blind spots around the vehicle, choosing hybrid solid-state lidar solution for blind spot detection may not be cost-effective.
Therefore, with a wide vertical field of view and a competitive price, FT120 is a better choice. Combined with the long-range hybrid solid-state lidar AT128, they make a complete automotive-grade lidar solution.
1 x AT128 + 2 x FT120 real point cloud concatenation
In scenarios such as turning at urban intersections, cutting in line, overtaking, and autonomous parking, FT120 can help smart cars “see” the road conditions in real-time.
Begin Mass Production in 2023
In the past, Hesai’s Pandar series gained nearly 60% of the global L4 autonomous driving lidar market. In California DMV’s 2021 Self-Driving Car Disengagements Report, 12 of 15 leading autonomous driving companies chose Hesai’s products as their main lidar.
Today, Hesai has led the market ADAS with its excellent product strength and mass production and delivery capabilities: Hesai’s AT128 has already been nominated by multiple ADAS programs with totaling several million units, such as Li Auto, Changan, JiDU, HiPhi, and Lotus. More than ten thousand units have been delivered in both September and October.
By the time FT120 was officially released, it had won over one million units of expected volume from leading OEMs, and it will be mass-produced and delivered in the second half of 2023.
Hesai’s “Maxwell” intelligent manufacturing center, with an annual production capacity of one million units, will enter operation next year. In the near future, more smart cars will be carried with Hesai’s lidar, bringing people a safer and smarter traveling experience.
Hesai Maxwell Intelligent Manufacturing Center, expected to enter operation in the first half of 2023
(1) According to the “Lidar for Automotive and Industrial Applications 2022 Market and Technology Report” released by Yole Intelligence in August this year https://www.yolegroup.com/product/report/lidar—market–technology-trends-2022/
(2) 2021 Self-Driving Car Disengagements Report, released by California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/vehicle-industry-services/autonomous-vehicles/disengagement-reports/
