Laser triangulation range finder available under direct sunlight

The authors have developed a laser range finder (LRF) which enables a mobile robot to measure the distance to a natural object located 1-5 m ahead with an error less than 2%. The system uses a laser as weak as 1 mW, a safe level for human eyes, and is workable under bright daytime sunlight of about 100000 lx. This LRF can quickly process data and makes real-time measurements of objects located ahead. It features plural redundant range-measuring systems and a novel real-time signal. The effectiveness of the LRF system has been demonstrated under direct sunlight by an experimental model mounted with two CCD cameras and a semiconductor laser with output power of 1 mW (830 nm)