As 2022 comes to an end, we’re taking a moment to reflect on all the major events and milestones we’ve experienced throughout the year.

At Baraja, we saw tremendous breakthroughs in technological developments, accelerating the path towards Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR sensors being integrated into autonomous vehicles.

Although 2022 came with challenges affecting the entire LiDAR and autonomous vehicle industry, the perseverance and determination of our team and community is what made it a memorable year. Here’s a look back on all the work we accomplished together as we look ahead to 2023.

• Earlier in the year we announced a new collaboration with open-source autonomous driving leader, Tier IV, to research and develop a new software-defined sensor suite. Together we are combining our Baraja HD LiDAR and HDR cameras to create a perception solution designed for optimal performance in the widest range of situations and environments for autonomous vehicles.

• Baraja is redefining LiDAR technology for autonomous vehicles. Sky News TV profiled the company, interviewing Founder and CEO Federico Collarte as he spoke about Baraja’s place in the manufacturing industry and its path towards miniaturizing LiDAR down to a chip. Watch the segment here.

• While not without its own limitations, LiDAR is the preferred sensor for the majority of autonomy teams around the world. Highlighted in an article written by Founder and CTO, Cibby Pulikkaseril, is the rationale for LiDAR to be the primary sensor for full autonomy, as it gives a true measure of distance and has the angular resolution needed to faithfully identify objects in the environment. Read the full article here

Golden Gate Bridge taken by Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR

• At AutoSens Detroit we demonstrated Baraja’s exciting progress toward becoming the first Random Modulation Continuous Wave (RMCW) LiDAR to deliver Doppler capabilities embedded in the hardware. We were encouraged to see the public interest in Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR continue to grow, with a number of features in media publications. Read the Forbes write-up here and the WardsAuto article here.

Federico Collarte (Founder & CEO) with Joseph Notaro (CCO) at AutoSens Detroit

• How can automation help mining operations boost employee safety, improve productivity, and increase profit margins? The answers lie in the article Baraja wrote for Global Mining Review, with contributions from our customer Hitachi Construction Machinery.

• At Veoneer’s North America Ride & Drive in Michigan, Baraja demonstrated Spectrum-Scan™ technology, designed to integrate seamlessly into the vehicle. Watch the video here to see how Spectrum-Scan™ technology is setting new benchmarks for precision, range, and reliability for LiDAR.

• With our strong overall performance, Baraja earned Frost & Sullivan’s 2022 Global New Product Innovation Award in the automotive LiDAR industry. Check out the full award write-up. In addition, we were featured on the Forbes Asia 100 to Watch List and shortlisted in the ‘LiDAR Development of the Year’ category for the AutoSens Awards. Read about our accolades here.

• RMCW LiDAR is often confused with FMCW LiDAR, perhaps unsurprisingly since they both have “continuous wave” in the description. Nevertheless, they are fundamentally different modulation techniques. Cibby Pulikkaseril wrote an article clearing up the confusion between the two ranging techniques.

• Highlights from AutoSens Brussels in September this year included Baraja CCO Joseph Notaro’s presentation on ‘The future of LiDAR and autonomous driving – Lessons from the past 5 years testing in sensor hell’, a round table discussion hosted by Baraja, being shortlisted for the AutoSens Awards, and capturing the beautiful sites of the city with our Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR, such as the ones in this video!

• We entered into an advanced development agreement with a major automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM), alongside our Tier-1 partner, Veoneer, to develop our next-generation Spectrum HD25 LiDAR product specifically for automotive integration. Read the full press release here.

• Our partner Monash Motorsport made the trip up to Sydney to show how our LiDAR system looks on their new race car! We were pleased to hear from the team that the pointcloud data produced by the Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR greatly improved the range and accuracy of the race car’s perception systems. Check out some of the results in their blog.

• VP of People & Culture Reshmi Buthello joined Baraja four years ago, attracted by the impact she could make on people’s lives, and has since helped build an inclusive and intentional company culture that spans across its global offices. She describes what it’s like to work for Baraja in this article.

• Baraja joined the LiDAR Coalition to advocate as a collective for policies promoting LiDAR’s role in enhancing safety on US roads. Read the press release here.

• This year we reached a significant IP milestone of securing 100 patent assets worldwide. Baraja's patent protection now spans eight jurisdictions and four continents to cover major automotive markets and origins. Read the press release here.

We could not have achieved any of this without our dedicated and talented Barajans, and our incredible customers. A big thank you to all who joined us on this journey as we continue to help make autonomous vehicles more reliable with Baraja Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR.