Honeycomb (lidar)

2019: Announcement of sales

On March 6, 2019 Google announced the beginning of sales of lidars which the company uses in the unmanned vehicles. The sensor developed by automobile division Waymo is called Honeycomb and is used to define distances, to classify objects and to distinguish people and also to create three-dimensional maps of the area.

Our non-standard lidars promoted that Waymo became the first-ever company which released completely autonomous cars on public roads. Now we make these sensors available to the companies which are not engaged in pilotless management that they could reach own technology heights, says Waymo.

Leaders call eyes of UAVs as they allow them to be guided on roads and to conform to traffic regulations. Honeycomb plus to everything has wide angle of the overview (360 degrees in horizontal direction and 95 degrees in vertical direction instead of normal 30 degrees) and is intended first of all for elimination of blind zones near the vehicle. Where other developers need to install several devices for a covering of all viewing field at once, Waymo there is enough one, the producer claims. Besides, the technology differs in object recognition, being on very short distance to the machine.

Honeycomb sensors are addressed to the companies creating robots for work in warehouses, security systems and pilotless tractors. At this Google is not going to sell leaders to competitors in the field of the robotaxi.

According to Bloomberg, by March, 2019 Waymo conducts negotiations with "dozens" of potential clients and is going to begin mass production of lidars at several enterprises in the USA in the next weeks.^[1]

Robotics

Notes