US 11,927,696 B2
LiDAR systems with fiber optic coupling
Rui Zhang, Palo Alto, CA (US); Yimin Li, Cupertino, CA (US); and Junwei Bao, Los Altos, CA (US)
Assigned to Innovusion, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA (US)
Filed by INNOVUSION IRELAND LIMITED, Los Altos, CA (US)
Filed on Feb. 20, 2019, as Appl. No. 16/280,604.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/633,366, filed on Feb. 21, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2019/0257926 A1, Aug. 22, 2019
Int. Cl. G01S 7/481 (2006.01); G01S 17/89 (2020.01); G01S 17/931 (2020.01)
CPC G01S 7/4818 (2013.01) [G01S 7/4815 (2013.01); G01S 7/4817 (2013.01); G01S 17/89 (2013.01); G01S 17/931 (2020.01)] 30 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A light detection and ranging (LiDAR) system, comprising:
a control system constructed to be contained within an interior portion of a vehicle, the control system comprising:
control circuitry; and
a multi-diode laser and optical fiber coupling (MDOFC) coupled to the control circuitry and operative to generate an integrated light beam derived from a plurality of light beams;
a scanning system constructed to be mounted to an exterior portion of the vehicle; and
a fiber optic cable coupled to the MDOFC and the scanning system, wherein the fiber optic cable transmits the integrated light beam to the scanning system,
wherein the scanning system comprises fiber optic cable mounting hardware that aligns two or more fiber optic tips so that beams from the two or more fiber optic tips converge and pass through a reflective mirror, and
wherein the scanning system further comprises steering optics configured to direct the beams passed through the reflective mirror toward outside of the LiDAR system and to direct light returned to the LiDAR system toward the reflective mirror, and the steering optics move relative to the fiber optic tips providing the beams.