Ionbond coatings for next-generation autonomous driving

Did you know that PVD coatings might play an important role in bringing self-driving automobiles to market? Read more in our article, and come see us at IZB 2024 in Germany!

Transforming the future of autonomous vehicles with advanced coatings

At Ionbond, we have longstanding experience in coating all kinds of components for the automotive industry, from parts of the engine to exterior or interior design elements. Recently, however, we have expanded into coatings for high-resolution radar sensors, which are increasingly required in car designs and will be a key enabling technology for fully autonomous driving.

Developing next-generation radar sensors

To reach the highest level of driving automation, where the passengers are not even able to steer the vehicle themselves anymore, cars need roughly 7 to 11 high-resolution radar sensors. Today, most new vehicles are already equipped with some radar sensors, for features such as adaptive cruise control, lane assist, parking assistance and blind spot detection. Many of these features are already mandatory in the European Union, to improve road safety. Radar sensors are a more effective and cost-effective solution than lasers or cameras, and their use will only increase once the resolution improves.

The basic design of radar devices is very similar: a stack of plastic antennae with a metallized surface, some insulating layers in between, plus a structure for emitting and receiving the radar signal. For higher levels of automation, increasing the resolution of the next generation of radar sensors is crucial – a self-driving car needs to see if a blip on the radar is a tree, a person or a traffic sign.

PVD coatings are an ideal fit for radar sensor design

Higher-resolution radar sensors require higher frequencies of the radar signal to improve the resolution. At these resolutions, the precision of the metallized and insulating layers becomes critical – the more homogeneous the layer thickness, the better the resulting data.

Ionbond’s PVD coating technology is an excellent fit for designing and producing these high-resolution radars. We have the capacity and experience to make very precise, thin and homogeneous coating layers, of less than 1 µm thick. In addition, we have a broad range of tested coating recipes in our portfolio. We are already in the sampling stage with radar device manufacturers to test these coatings in practice.

About PVD Technology Automotive coating portfolio

Want to work with Ionbond? Get in touch

We would love to work with you on your next-generation radar sensor design. Both for the metallic and the nonconductive layers, we offer several coating options and materials that are suitable for a range of radar antenna designs. Depending on the specific design, we can adjust and finetune our coatings to meet your requirements.

Our engineers will look at your design specifications in detail to find the right coating solution, whether for high or low volumes of components. We always offer sampling and finetuning in our coating solution development process, so you can see how our coatings perform in real life. Interested? Get in touch!

Get in touch

Come find us at IZB 2024

Are you attending the IZB trade show in Wolfsburg (Germany) next week? Feel free to come talk to us about this topic and others. Ionbond is a long-term supplier for the automotive industry, for a wide range of decorative and functional coatings. Drop by in Hall 5, Booth 5304 any day of the show to talk to our experts.

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Discuss your challenges with André Hieke

André Hieke, Global Segment Manager Automotive, will be glad to support you.

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André Hieke

Global Segment Manager Automotive

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