Velodyne Lidar
Velodyne is engaged in the production of lidar technologies. Credit: Velodyne Lidar.

American multinational automaker Ford Motor Company has reportedly dissolved its 7.6% stake in lidar technology company Velodyne Lidar.

The 7.6% stake in Velodyne is equivalent to 13.07 million shares in the company.

Based in Silicon Valley, California, Velodyne is engaged in the production of lidar, a sensor that creates a 3D map of roads ahead.

Ford is said to have held a passive stake in Velodyne as of 30 September, reported Reuters.

In August 2016, Velodyne Lidar received a combined $150m investment from Ford Motor Company and Baidu.

The company had said that it would use the investment to enhance its design and production of automotive lidar sensors, thereby accelerating their mass adoption in autonomous vehicle and ADAS applications.

Velodyne is reported to have designed and developed four generations of hybrid solid-state lidar systems using its proprietary software and algorithms.

Last December, Velodyne partnered with Ford Otosan for the product development and testing of autonomous heavy commercial trucks.

Ford Otosan, which is a commercial vehicle production centre of Ford in Europe, was expected to test the products and had announced its plan to use Velodyne’s Velarray H800 LiDAR sensors in its next-generation vehicles for safe navigation and collision avoidance.

Velodyne claims that its Velarray H800 has the potential to improve automated safety and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).

The company added that its sensor technology would help Ford Otosan create autonomous driving technology and address driving situations such as curvy roads, potholes, intersections, on / off ramps, and roadways with unclear lane markings.