May 24 (Reuters) - A U.S. defense spending bill advanced

by the House of Representatives this week contains a measure

that would bar the use of Chinese-made lidar sensors in U.S.

military systems.

The measure, introduced by Rep. Elise Stefanik, a Republican

from New York, would block the U.S. Defense Department from

buying or using the Chinese-made version of the technology,

which is a type of light sensor that is widely used in both

autonomous vehicles and drones to help the machines gain a

three-dimensional view of the world around them.

"As the U.S. military increases its use of autonomous

unmanned systems, my amendment sends a clear signal that the

U.S. cannot rely on untrusted lidar that jeopardizes our

national security and undermines the competitiveness of American

companies," Stefanik said in a statement.

If passed into law, the measure would add to growing U.S.

unease with Chinese-made lidar sensors. In January, the Defense

Department added China's Hesai Group, one of the

biggest makers of lidar systems, to a list of companies with

alleged ties to Beijing's military.

Hesai has sued the Defense Department, arguing that the

Chinese military does not exert any influence or control over

the group and alleging that the designation harmed its

reputation.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told Reuters

last year his agency has national security concerns about such

technologies and that there was a need to better understand "the

true ownership of the different enterprises that are supplying

different elements of our transportation systems."