Techniques for range and velocity measurements in a lidar system

US11927699B1 · kind B1 · utility

Assignee

• Aeva, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Oguzhan Avci · Cupertino, US
• Omer P. Kocaoglu · Fremont, US
• Neal N. Oza · Palo Alto, US
• Keith Gagne · Santa Clara, US
• Behsan Behzadi · Menlo Park, US
• Mina Rezk · Haymarket, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Apr 28, 2022
• Grant date: Mar 12, 2024
• Expiry date: Jun 2, 2042

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01S7/4817
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system includes optical sources to emit a continuous-wave (CW) optical beam and a frequency-modulated CW (FMCW) optical beam, a first and second optical coupler to generate a CW local oscillator (LO), and an FMCW LO signal. The system further includes a first optical component to combine the CW optical beam and the FMCW optical beam, a second optical component to transmit the combined optical beam toward a target, a third optical component to split a target return signal into a CW return signal and a FMCW return signal based on polarization or frequency, a first optical detector to detect a first beat frequency from a combination of the CW LO signal and the CW return signal, and a second optical detector to detect a second beat frequency from a combination of the FMCW LO and the FMCW return signal.