ZF has acquired a 40 per cent stake in the Hamburg-based company Ibeo Automotive Systems GmbH, a market leader in lidar technology. Ibeo is also in the development of environmental recognition software with a particular focus on applications for autonomous driving. To provide access to core technology for environmental and object recognition according to Dr.Stefan Sommer, ZF’s chief executive officer, Ibeo’s customers include several major global vehicle manufacturers. Ibeo’s lidar technology is expected to expand ZF’s current sensor portfolio of radar and camera technologies. Ibeo’s fusion of these three sensor technologies provides outstanding results in environmental awareness and forms the basis for autonomous driving. Lidar is an optical method for measuring distance and speed using a light pulse. It is very similar to radar, except that laser pulses are used instead of radio waves. “With lidar technology and sensor fusion, we are able to strengthen the eyes and brain of future generations of vehicles and thus move a step closer to realising the vision of accident-free driving,” Sommer added.