The Great Industry Events We Attended In May 2022 and What We Learned

May 2022 has been a busy month filled with industry events and interesting insights from top OEMs, T1s, and thought leaders. Bright Way Vision was invited for keynote talks at several events showcasing its latest night and all-weather sensing technology and its critical use cases for AVs, trucks, and ADAS business continuity.

We attended:

• Ecomotion, Tel Aviv: This summit included some of the world’s leading smart mobility innovators, giving attendees the opportunity to exchange ideas and network. We exhibited our GatedVision camera at the event and our CEO, Ofer David Ph.D., participated in the “State of AV” panel alongside Simon Fürst - Cooperation Manager Automated Driving at BMW Group, Charlotte Eisner - Head of Business Development at CEVT, Menno Kleingeld - CIO at CDL Groep, and Shahar Bin-Nun - CEO of Tactile Mobility.
  
  
• AutoSens Detroit: AutoSens played host to various automotive vision and safety experts. We exhibited and presented our revolutionary night and all-weather ADAS and AV camera and test drove it with multiple US-based OEMs, T1s, and platform startups to jaw-dropping reactions.
  
  

• VDI: Hosted by the Association of German Engineers, VDI provides engineers with an opportunity to network, form professional connections, and discuss the future of AV and ADAS trucks. Our CEO, Ofer David Ph.D., spoke about "Trucks at Night and in Any Weather," where he discussed business continuity enabled with technology, L2-L4 truck use cases, and how to address all vehicle perception requirements for forward and rear scene views in limited visibility conditions.
  
  
• Automotive AI: The event showcases some of the latest tech innovations (perception, sensing, security, and more) that make automated driving possible. Our VP R&D, Daniel Kriger, spoke about the "AV Camera for Nighttime and All Weather Conditions" but didn’t stop there; he presented multiple daytime use-cases such as glare, tunnel entry and exit, and more. 

Here are the major insights and takeaways we’d like to share from our talks with smart mobility innovators, researchers, safety and automotive experts, and more.

Insights from Events

The Future of Mobility Challenge

Each event included the active exchange of ideas through private meetings and presentations, and our team gained valuable insights. One of the main topics of discussion was the future of mobility. Many organizations shared their expectations for the future of the smart mobility market going forward. A key challenge mentioned repeatedly was the need for more sophisticated and efficient image sensors.

The Journey to Full Autonomy

In their presentation at this year’s AutoSens event, Woodside Capital revealed that currently, 63% of cars sold in the US include lane-keep assist, but only 10% of cars in use around the globe have any form of ADAS. Although the use of automation in vehicles is increasing, manufacturers are hesitant to make the leap to full automation until they can fully guarantee safety. Current visibility solutions (e.g., LiDAR, radar, thermal, etc.) and even deep learning computer vision approaches can’t guarantee user safety in all situations (i.e., nighttime, snow, rain, fog)causing the industry to plateau.

The consensus reached is that most of today’s visibility systems have limited capabilities and hold the industry back. Current camera solutions as well as sensors like LiDAR, thermal, and radar become partially ineffective in certain compromising visibility conditions, such as limited lighting or poor weather conditions (e.g., rain, snow, fog) as well as in some daytime use cases. The consensus is that a fusion of sensors will prevail, either via a camera-only approach (as we have been advocating for some time with our two-camera sensor suite approach) or by adding non-visual sensors into the mix as redundancies and backups, as well as use-case specific sensors. 

There’s a Solution - GatedVision

For a driverless future to be a reality, a solution for limited visibility conditions is a must. This month, we’ve been visited by some of the greatest automotive companies in the world, new customers, and previous connections - all of which realize that it’s the right time to re-address and solve the weather and night challenges. We’re excited and humbled by all of the flattering interest and partnership invitations.

Many event attendees concluded that the ideal solution would be camera technology for all day, night, and weather conditions, a redundancy sensor, and advanced visual perception software. 

Trucks and Aftermarket (retrofit) 

Truck brands and T1s shared their immediate need (on stage and with us) for L2 vision at night and limited visibility conditions, as there are fleets with thousands of trucks driving in challenging conditions around the world. These fleets could greatly benefit from a retrofit of a camera system.

New trucks and L4s present an almost “low hanging fruit” opportunity and are a solid economical case for driverless, 24/7 trucking, day and night, year-round.

Bright Way Vision’s GatedVision Technology

Some event attendees were not yet familiar with our technology and its uniqueness. As we explained and demonstrated, it is the only visibility solution currently on the market capable of providing a clear image through darkness, glare, adverse weather conditions, and their combinations (e.g., rain at night). 

Powered by GatedVision technology, VISDOM is a camera system that combines high-contrast images collected by a camera with variable range slices collected from varying depths into a single clear frame that can detect both small and large objects in all lighting conditions, even at high speeds.

VISDOM provides the ideal solution to many of the industry’s current challenges. 

Our mission is to continue “driving clarity”, educating engineers, decision-makers, and investors that nothing stands in the way of full autonomy reaching our roads in the near future.

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