Patent ID: 11874400
Assignee: DENSO CORPORATION
Field: Measurement (Instruments)
Classification: CPC G | IPC G

Claim 11:
12. A cruise assist system comprising:
a lidar device comprising:
a phototransmitter including at least first and second light sources, each of the first and second light sources being configured to transmit a light beam having an optical axis, each of the first and second light sources having at least two light emitting areas, each of the at least two light emitting areas of the first light source transmitting, as the light beam, a first light beam, each of the at least two light emitting areas of the second light source transmitting, as the light beam, a second light beam;
a photoreceiver configured to receive light arriving from a predetermined direction;
a scanner that has a rotational axis and a plurality of reflection surfaces that are parallel to a direction of the rotational axis, the scanner being configured to:
rotate the plurality of reflection surfaces about the rotational axis;
change a direction of each of the first and second light beams transmitted from the phototransmitter and incident on the scanner to thereby output changed light beams in a main scanning direction that is orthogonal to the direction of the rotational axis; and
reflect light beams arriving from a target object based on reflection of the changed light beams to thereby cause the light beams to be directed toward the photoreceiver,

the first and second light sources being arranged such that the optical axis of at least one of the first and second light beams transmitted from the first and second light sources is obliquely inclined with respect to a reference plane that is orthogonal to the rotational axis,
the first light beams transmitted from the first light source having gaps therebetween,
at least one of the second light beams transmitted from the second light source being arranged to cover a corresponding at least one of the gaps.