Dongwoon Anatech Starts Supplying Korea's First Custom Semiconductor 'Lidar ASIC'

Equipped with 10-20 LiDAR Chips, Contributing to the Advancement of Autonomous Driving and Robot Systems

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] Dongwoon Anatech announced on the 22nd that it has delivered the first domestically developed ASIC engineering sample for Lidar to its customers. Accordingly, full-scale supply is expected to begin this year.

Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) is a technology that measures the reflected light from laser emission to analyze the distance and characteristics of objects at long range. Lidar consists of a laser, laser driving controller, scanner, optical sensor, and navigator. Dongwoon Anatech develops the laser driving controller among these components.

Dr. Lee Jae-sik, CTO of Dongwoon Anatech, stated, “The product developed this time is an 8-channel laser driving controller IC that uses a 100V CMOS power device with a direct circuit method, significantly enhancing competitiveness in price and size for Lidar products.” He added, “The ASIC developed by Dongwoon Anatech will be mass-installed in partner companies’ Lidar products and is currently undergoing performance and reliability evaluations. Product supply to customers is expected to be possible in the fourth quarter of this year.” He further noted, “Additionally, we are in further discussions with customers regarding the design and development of the next version, which can increase light intensity and improve reliability.”

With growing interest and importance in autonomous driving technology, Lidar is receiving attention as an essential technology for levels 4 to 5, which do not require driving, beyond level 3. It is crucial for safely enabling autonomous driving on highways and general roads. Especially, since it converts location information directly into 3D for wide measurement distances, it is evaluated as a superior technology compared to cameras or radar because it facilitates easier situation judgment by artificial intelligence.

This technology is also expected to be widely used in drones and robots, and is recognized as a technology that delivers excellent performance in advanced product factory automation and safety accident detection in semiconductors and other fields. According to the well-known overseas research firm Yole Development, the Lidar market is projected to grow into a large market worth about 5 trillion KRW by 2024, including autonomous driving and ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.