Velodyne LiDAR has announced an ‘up to 50% cost reduction’ for its VLP-16 Puck sensor due to expanded volume and lower unit costs.
“Demand for our VLP-16s grew tremendously in 2017. As a result, we increased capacity and now can pass along savings as cost reduction to our customers,” said David Hall, Founder and CEO, Velodyne LiDAR. “We want to make 2018 a year of optimism for the autonomous vehicle, especially as the first waves of robocabs hit the road. Our goal is the democratisation of transportation safety by making it accessible to every man, woman, and child in the world as quickly as possible.”
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Velodyne said its sensors are rolling off the assembly line as a result of large-scale automated manufacturing at its San Jose ‘Megafactory’. Established last year, the Megafactory leverages advanced and streamlined manufacturing techniques to build a range of Velodyne LiDAR sensors, including the Ultra Puck VLP-32C and the recently announced VLS-128.
The Megafactory employs hundreds of people who fulfil engineering, manufacturing, and corporate functions for Velodyne, which has more than doubled its full-time employees over the past six months. As noted by Hall, the Megafactory has established a business case for US-based production, because even as automation has increased, so has hiring as the company invests heavily in automation and the skilled support staff that it requires.
“Since its launch, customers have been lining up to purchase the VLP-16 and we’ve been able to meet that growing demand by expanding production and developing automated manufacturing for LiDAR sensors at the Megafactory,” said Hall. “With this cost reduction, we’ll be able to get more Pucks into the hands of more customers, support the growing number of autonomous vehicle development fleets around the world, and start creating a better tomorrow.”
The VLP-16 was launched in 2016 and had an immediate impact on multiple industries, most notably automotive. Velodyne says it delivers a ‘small, accurate, reliable, and affordable sensor for real-time 3D vision with 100 meters of range and a 360-degree surround field-of-view’. The company claims the VLP-16 is ‘one of the most widely adopted LiDAR sensors ever made, with use cases that span a multitude of industries, including automotive, freight, 3D mapping, unmanned aerial vehicles, industrial, and robotics.’
“The VLP-16 opened the door for advanced LiDAR technology in several industries that benefit from real-time 3D data in a small form factor,” said Mike Jellen, President, Velodyne LiDAR. “As interest in LiDAR technology grows around the world, we’re gratified to know that the Puck will be one of the most widely used and accessible sensors available.”
Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Silicon Valley, Velodyne is a technology company specialising in real-time 3D LiDAR computing and software platforms.
