Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2024 - Sensor-24

Tech Briefs: Are there any workarounds to mitigate this issue?
Aguilar: The industry employs a variety of approaches. One
brute-force method involves moving only the mirror because
that is the smallest component in the LIDAR system. It reduces
the complexity of the alignment needs. The next step
is to put this mirror on a galvonometer (galvo) with a sophisticated
encoder. That approach is extremely robust, so it addresses
some of the reliability issues. But it's not compact or
cost-effective. It still costs $2,000-$5,000 to get that LIDAR out
the door, and that's too expensive for adoption to the vast
majority of automotive, drone, and robotics markets.
In addition to the high cost, you can still run into problems
with this method. At one of the companies where I
worked, we found that the LIDARs using these galvos only
lasted a few months before they got out of spec or simply
stopped working.
Tech Briefs: Where does Omnitron Sensors' technology fit
into the mix?
Aguilar: Based on my experience with OEMs integrating
LIDAR into their systems, we knew that our customers
would need a big, fast, robust mirror that does step scanning.
And we knew that our mirror would need to
comply with frequency modulated continuous waveform
(FMCW) technology.
FMCW LIDAR systems require precise, stable targeting to
accurately measure distances and velocities. Step scanning
allows the LIDAR to maintain focus on a specific region or
target for a sufficient period, termed " dwell time, " enabling
it to collect detailed data. In contrast, spinning mirrors,
due to their continuous motion, are unsuitable for the precise
measurements FMCW LiDAR aims to achieve.
Our topology enables us to build a large 15 mm-diameter
mirror with tens of degrees of motion and the ability to do
step scanning. Our advanced electrostatic, capacitive,
MEMS motor generates a significantly increased force,
which enables the motor to move the mirror systems with
the required speed and precision needed by modern
LIDAR technologies.
Electrostatic MEMS motors utilize a voltage differential to
create an attractive or repulsive force between charged elements.
This force causes the rotor to move or rotate, transforming
electrical energy into mechanical motion. The key
advantage of electrostatic motors, especially in MEMS applications,
is their ability to achieve fine, precise movements
with minimal power consumption.
With our MEMS topology, we've improved capacitance per
unit area by building a much bigger MEMS motor. Capacitance
per unit area is crucial in the design of MEMS devices, as it represents
the efficiency with which a device can store and utilize
electrical charge relative to its physical size. A higher capacitance
per unit area indicates a more efficient and compact design,
enabling the creation of denser, more powerful chips.
Tech Briefs: Can you provide more technical detail on your
step-scanning MEMS mirror?
Applications include
Watch now!
Hackensack, NJ 07601 USA * +1.201.343.8983 * main@masterbond.com
Figure 3. Omnitron's 15 mm-diameter mirror supports tens of degrees of
motion and the ability to do step scanning. (Image: Omnitron Sensors)
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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2024

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