FAW-backed Zhito Technology to purchase LiDARs from RoboSense

Beijing (Gasgoo)- FAW Jiefang-backed Zhito Technology has inked a pre-assembly mass-production procurement agreement with China’s LiDAR developer RoboSense.

Photo credit: Zhito Technology

Per the agreement, Zhito Technology will purchase RoboSense’s second-generation intelligent solid LiDAR, the RS-LiDAR-M1 (M1), to power FAW Jiefang’s mass-produced intelligent driving heavy-duty trucks.

According to the company, RoboSense has delivered over ten batches of the said M1 products to several automakers, including GAC Aion, since delivery started in June this year.

Photo credit: RoboSense

Generally, commercial vehicles set a higher bar for sensors than passenger vehicles. Due to the vehicle size, commercial vehicles require a more sensitive LiDAR with a vertical FOV angle to cover their close-in blind spots. Secondly, compared to passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles are often operated in longer hours under rougher situations, with dust, strong vibration, and salt spray.

The average transit time of a typical commercial vehicle amounted to 10-15 hours per day, which equals 21,900 hours every five years. However, most LiDARs on the market only have a life span of 7,300 hours.

That’s why Zhito Technology picked RoboSense. The latter’s M1 LiDAR was developed strictly under heavy-duty vehicle standards, passing a series of reliability tests, including mechanical shock, random vibration, high-pressure water induction, temperature/humidity tests, chemical/salt spray preservation tests. The M1 will help improve FAW Jiefang’s intelligent driving heavy-duty trucks' autonomous driving adaptivity and safety under various scenarios.

In addition, RoboSense has partnered with multiple companies from the automotive supply chain, such as Luxshare, TI, VisionNavRobotics, and Alibaba Damo Academy.