Stellantis to use Valeo's third-generation Scala lidar

According to foreign media reports, Valeo will supply its third-generation Scala lidar to Stellantis so that the latter can achieve L3 autonomous driving in its models starting in 2024.

Valeo and Stellantis did not provide financial details of the contract or specify which models will be equipped with the system, but Stellantis said it will appear on "multiple models" across its brands. The second-generation Scala system is already used in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, the first model to receive a Level 3 autonomous driving license for European highways.

When using a Level 3 autonomous driving system, the driver can shift their attention from the driving task to other activities, such as checking email or watching a movie, but they must be prepared to take back control of the vehicle when the vehicle needs to take over.

Image source: Valeo

Most self-driving systems use a combination of radar, cameras, and lidar. Lidar sends pulses of light from a laser millions of times per second, which bounce off objects and return to the sensor. The onboard computer can use these pulses to create a three-dimensional map of the vehicle's surroundings. It has certain advantages over cameras, especially faster processing speeds. And it is not affected by surface materials, shadows, sunlight, or lights from nearby vehicles like cameras are.

Stellantis previously stated that they will work with BMW to provide "hands-off, eyes-off" L3 autonomous driving, which the company calls "STLA AutoDrive" by 2024. After 2024, Stellantis will provide L4 and L5 autonomous driving systems, which will be used in "mobility as a service" scenarios, such as autonomous driving ride-hailing services.

Valeo said it is the largest supplier of automotive 3D scanning lidar systems, having produced and sold 170,000 integrated units to date. The company will produce the third-generation Scala system at its plant in Wemding, Germany, near Munich. Valeo can provide the system's hardware, software and supporting artificial intelligence.

Valeo said that the next-generation Scala lidar will be commercialized in 2024. It has a 12-fold improvement in resolution and a 3-fold increase in range, can observe objects 200 meters away, and has a viewing angle 2.5 times wider than the current system.

Valeo expects advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving to develop rapidly in the coming years, and said the automotive lidar market will triple between 2025 and 2030, eventually reaching a global market size of 50 billion euros.