Lidar Prices Could Slow Demand for Self-Driving Cars

The high cost of laser sensors needed by cars to detect objects around them suggests slow initial adoption of self-driving systems for cars, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The newspaper notes that today's so-called lidar arrays contain as many as 64 lasers and cost as much as $85,000. But some developers think they can cut the system price to $500 by about 2020.

Lidar works like radar. But because it operates at shorter wavelengths, it can identify distant objects more precisely. Self-driving cars use the technology to generate high-resolution 3-D imagery of their surroundings. Ford Motor Co. has said lidar can tell the difference between a small animal and a paper bag at 100 yards (91 meters).

Prototype autonomous cars combine lidar with cameras and other sensors. Developers say no single technology is sufficient to enable a car to navigate public roads without driver input.

The drive down costs, lidar makers are working on rotating lasers and broad-beam "flash" units that use sensors to construct images from the returning light. Others tell the Journal that as few as four lasers might be sufficient to guide a car at highway speeds.