Aspects and implementations of the present disclosure address challenges of the existing technology by enabling lidar-assisted identification and characterization of visibility-reducing media (VRM) such as fog, rain, snow, dust in autonomous vehicle applications, using lidar sensing. VRM can be identified and characterized using a variety of techniques, including analyzing a spatial distribution of low-intensity lidar returns, detecting pulse elongation of VRM-returns associated with reflection from VRM, determining intensity of VRM-returns, determining reduction of intensity of returns from various reference objects, and other techniques.

Aspects and implementations of the present disclosure address challenges of the existing technology by enabling lidar-assisted identification and characterization of visibility-reducing media (VRM) such as fog, rain, snow, dust in autonomous vehicle applications, using lidar sensing. VRM can be identified and characterized using a variety of techniques, including analyzing a spatial distribution of low-intensity lidar returns, detecting pulse elongation of VRM-returns associated with reflection from VRM, determining intensity of VRM-returns, determining reduction of intensity of returns from various reference objects, and other techniques.

An apparatus and a method for controlling an autonomous vehicle depending on weather are provided. The apparatus obtains information including at least one of an image around the autonomous vehicle, sensing information of a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) of the autonomous vehicle, sensing information of a rain sensor of the autonomous vehicle, an operation state of a windshield wiper of the autonomous vehicle, climate information through vehicle to everything (V2X) communication, an acceleration of the autonomous vehicle, or wheel sensor information of the autonomous vehicle and determines whether the climate state is an inclement weather state, based on the information including the at least one of the image around the autonomous vehicle, the sensing information of the LIDAR, the sensing information of the rain sensor, the operation state of the windshield wiper, the climate information through the V2X communication, the acceleration, or the wheel sensor information.

An apparatus and a method for controlling an autonomous vehicle depending on weather are provided. The apparatus obtains information including at least one of an image around the autonomous vehicle, sensing information of a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) of the autonomous vehicle, sensing information of a rain sensor of the autonomous vehicle, an operation state of a windshield wiper of the autonomous vehicle, climate information through vehicle to everything (V2X) communication, an acceleration of the autonomous vehicle, or wheel sensor information of the autonomous vehicle and determines whether the climate state is an inclement weather state, based on the information including the at least one of the image around the autonomous vehicle, the sensing information of the LIDAR, the sensing information of the rain sensor, the operation state of the windshield wiper, the climate information through the V2X communication, the acceleration, or the wheel sensor information.

A method of measuring the concentration of a gas in a target environment using a laser lidar system, comprises directing a laser beam towards an environment containing the gas, tuning the laser wavelength over a wavelength range including the absorption line of the gas, and measuring intensity of laser light returned from the environment containing the gas, as a result of scattering as a function of time. The intensity vs time is then converted into gas absorption vs wavelength, and the gas absorption vs wavelength is used to determine the concentration of the gas in the target environment

The invention is a method for detecting aberrant values of an incident wind field in a space located upstream of a lidar sensor. The method comprises acquiring and modelling a measurement rws(k) with the lidar sensor of an incident wind field, by estimating a median mr(k) and a mean absolute deviation dr(k) in real time of measurements of the incident wind field and detecting aberrant values in real time using the estimated median mr(k) and the mean absolute deviation dr(k).

The invention is a method for detecting aberrant values of an incident wind field in a space located upstream of a lidar sensor. The method comprises acquiring and modelling a measurement rws(k) with the lidar sensor of an incident wind field, by estimating a median mr(k) and a mean absolute deviation dr(k) in real time of measurements of the incident wind field and detecting aberrant values in real time using the estimated median mr(k) and the mean absolute deviation dr(k).

An optical instrument for determining the distance to a target. The instrument includes a light source for emitting a pulsed light beam and a lens responsive to the light beam and projecting the light beam on the target. The instrument also includes an imaging lens responsive to a reflected beam from the projected light beam on the target and a TOF sensor including a photodetector array having an array of detector elements, where each detector element includes an FET switch and a capacitor for storing charge, and where the imaging lens focusing an image of the projected light beam on a group of the detector elements in the array. Processing electronics control the light source and processing of the image of the projected beam on the array, where the processing electronics determine a time from when the light beam is emitted and the image of the projected beam is created.

An optical instrument for determining the distance to a target. The instrument includes a light source for emitting a pulsed light beam and a lens responsive to the light beam and projecting the light beam on the target. The instrument also includes an imaging lens responsive to a reflected beam from the projected light beam on the target and a TOF sensor including a photodetector array having an array of detector elements, where each detector element includes an FET switch and a capacitor for storing charge, and where the imaging lens focusing an image of the projected light beam on a group of the detector elements in the array. Processing electronics control the light source and processing of the image of the projected beam on the array, where the processing electronics determine a time from when the light beam is emitted and the image of the projected beam is created.

An apparatus for generating backscatter histogram data for determining a diffuse backscatter during an optical runtime measurement, comprising:

At least one histogram accumulation unit, which has several signal inputs, so as to receive time-correlated histogram data; and wherein the histogram accumulation unit is set up to generate backscatter histogram data based upon the time-correlated histogram data received at the signal inputs.