Design and development of a fast and precise low-cost 3D laser rangefinder

Many applications demand acquiring dense, wide ranging, accurate 3D data with low-cost, lightweight, and low power demanding sensors. This paper describes a new compact 3D laser scanner, based on pitching a commercial 2D rangefinder. The design of this mechatronic system accomplishes the following specifications: i) the optical center of the scanner coincides with that of the 2D device, ii) the mechanism does not interfere with the measurement planes for a wide sweep of pitch angles, iii) low 3D scan acquisition time through continuous pitch motion, and iv) the device is interfaced as a compact full 3D sensor. Additionally, the pitch angle controller allows selection of scan resolution, establishing scanning limits, or locking into a specific angle. The paper describes the mechanical system, the motion controller, and the high-level interface of the device. Moreover, results from indoor and outdoor experiments are also given. This sensor has been made commercially available under the name of UNOlaser.