ZF Buys Stake in Lidar Supplier
ZF Friedrichshafen AG has acquired a 40% stake in Ibeo Automotive Systems GmbH, a Hamburg, Germany-based supplier of lidar and other technologies aimed at self-driving vehicles.
ZF Friedrichshafen AG has acquired a 40% stake in Ibeo Automotive Systems GmbH, a Hamburg, Germany-based supplier of lidar and other technologies aimed at self-driving vehicles.
Ibeo’s lidar and systems integration expertise complements the camera and radar technologies ZF gained from last year’s acquisition of TRW Automotive.
The two companies also plan to work together to develop a next-generation solid-state lidar (light detection and ranging) system that promises to be smaller and more efficient than current lidar units. Several other suppliers and carmakers are developing similar solid-state sensors, which are expected to be a key enabler of fully autonomous vehicles.
Ibeo, which was founded in 2009, plans to open an Autonomous Driving Competence Center that will focus on products and processes aimed at volume production applications. And the company expects its workforce to grow from 50 to 250 people in coming years.
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