Lidar specialist Ouster has announced a solid-state lidar sensor designed for ADAS priced at $600. The company claims that its new ES2 will be the first ‘true’ solid-state hi-res long range digital lidar sensor. According to Ouster, its technology now puts a $100 lidar within striking distance.

The new sensor is an extension of Ouster’s existing digital lidar OS series spinning sensors. The same core technology has been employed to develop a completely solid-state lidar sensor with no moving parts.

The ES2 sensor uses “electronic scanning” to sequentially fire an array of over ten thousand lasers printed onto a single chip. These lasers are paired with a custom digital detector array capable of counting trillions of individual photons every second.

With tens of thousands of lasers on the chip, each fixed on a different point in the field of view, no moving parts are required to reach the range, field of view, and resolution targets of high-performance autonomy customers.

The company says that the similarity of Ouster’s product lines is a distinct advantage, as is their reliance on digital components shared by consumer electronic device supply chains. With manufacturing, calibration, and validation already running at scale for its OS series spinning sensors, Ouster’s ES2 solid-state sensor will be built on the same high-volume production line already operating at its overseas manufacturing facility.

Built to fit ADAS and higher-level autonomy performance targets, Ouster’s ES2 sensor will debut with a maximum range of over 200 meters on a 10% reflective surface.

“Releasing a true solid-state digital lidar sensor is the culmination of a plan Ouster embarked on five years ago to make life-improving lidar technology widely available at a $100 price point. The success of our OS line of spinning sensors has proven the many benefits of digital lidar technology and we are now confident in taking the next step with the ES2. The ES2 solid-state sensor is a game changer – a truly solid-state design that leverages standard CMOS manufacturing. This is how you build a solid-state lidar sensor that can disrupt the market.” said Angus Pacala, chief executive of Ouster.

“When you see a technology category turn from analog to digital, the transition can take some time, but the outcome is always the same. Analog products create markets, but digital products dominate them. Digital lidar is a clear path to inexpensive, widespread, and high-performance 3D imaging that is required for all types of autonomous solutions in automotive, robotics, and industrial automation,” said Pierrick Boulay, part of the Photonic & Sensing team at Yole Développement (Yole).