DENSO Invests in U.S. Startup Metawave to Deliver Smart Radar for Autonomous Cars

May 17, 2018 15:33 JST

Source: Denso

- DENSO will leverage Metawave's technologies to accelerate the development and improve performance of in-vehicle millimeter-wave radar sensors -

KARIYA, JAPAN, May 17, 2018 - (JCN Newswire) - DENSO Corporation has taken a stake in Metawave Corporation, a U.S. startup company that develops cutting-edge, millimeter-wave radar sensing technologies to detect vehicles and pedestrians. Metawave announced on May 15, 2018, it raised an additional $10 million from DENSO, Toyota AI Ventures, Hyundai Motor Company, and other strategic investors.

DENSO will harness Metawave's technologies to accelerate the development of a smart automotive radar system for autonomous cars. Metawave has the core technologies for expanding radar detection range, improving recognition performance and reducing size.

To create a safe future of mobility, DENSO has been working to develop sensors that serve as vehicles' "eyes." Radar, a critical component found in nearly all autonomous cars, drastically improves the vehicle's ability to recognize near-by conditions and objects.

A millimeter-wave radar sensor detects surrounding conditions using radio waves in the millimeter-wave band. The sensors are used in the radar systems to apply the brakes when a collision is unavoidable, and keep a certain distance from a preceding vehicle when driving. DENSO's millimeter-wave radar sensors are used in Toyota's Alphard and Vellfire models, which were released in January 2018 in combination with a vision sensor for recognizing vehicles and pedestrians.

DENSO develops technologies and products to build a safe and secure future of transportation for all people around the world. The goal is to create a society free from traffic accidents.

Contact:

Sadayoshi Yokoyama, Toshiko Watanabe 
DENSO CORPORATION 
Phone: 81-566-25-5594 
Fax: 81-566-25-4509 
sadayoshi_yokoyama@denso.co.jp 
toshiko_watanabe@denso.co.jp

Source: Denso
Sectors: Automotive