We would like to introduce you to the LIDAR-Lite Laser Rangefinder [RB-Pli-01] from PulsedLight. This affordable and compact laser range finder is all the robotics enthusiast with ranging needs could want! It features laser range finding for distances of up to 40m
Arduino Sketch of a 180 Degree is used mainly in compact robot kits to know test the sensing and obstacle detecting . Well this blog give more information about sensors . Thanks for sharing keep on updating.
Hi,
This work looks great and may enable many to upgrade their obstacle sensing ability. Moreover, I would like to know how fast you can read the measurement and position data. I look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks
@Isa: The measurements (distance) are reported to take at most 20 ms by the manufacturer (with default settings), so the example code can be tweaked to make readings from the LIDAR-Lite faster. You can find more information about this in the datasheet and operation manual, both available on the product page under “Useful Links”.
Would there be any problems implementing this vertically, from floor to ceiling for example? Also could the steps in angle be made smaller? Thanks!
@Federico: There should be no issue using this sensor vertically as long as the ceiling is within the maximum range and is reflective enough. Concerning the steps, we used degrees for simplicity in the example, but you can change the command “myservo.write” for “myservo.writeMicroseconds” which allows finer control of the position in microseconds instead of degrees (usually around 5.5 times more points over 180 degrees).
Can we increase the range to say 1000m. What would that involve?
@rocky: The maximum range of the RB-Pli-01 is 40 m. The range may be extended under some circumstances (no interference, highly reflective material on target, etc.), but you shouldn’t expect much increase. A range of 1000 m would require different optics, electronics and power source and is therefore not achievable with this product. Most of the professional grade LIDARs we sell offer at most ranges of ~80 m.
Thanks.
Hi Sebastien,
First of all, I’m prety new on this DIY thing. I’ve some acknowledge of electronic and I’ve scripted for some time so I understand most of the theory but I’ve never put my hands in any of this boards/devices. I’ve been doing some research and I think the Lidar laser rage finder might be the answer I’m looking for. I basically need to build a device that can track and store relative position and rotation data in real time. So I thought that may be the lidar laser plus a 9dof board and an arduino board (I have no idea which one) might do the thing. What do you thing or what would you recommend me buying for getting started with my project?
Thanks in advance.
Jorge.-
If the max range is approximately 40m and a precision of approximately 1 .0025m, does the precision increase at all the closer the object. i.e. would reflecting off of a surface 2m away increase the .0025m precision to .0010 or less?
@J~: The accuracy of 2.5 cm is usually the worst case scenario with this product. In most cases, you should get better accuracy. Please check this link for more details.
@Jorge: Concerning the 9 DoF IMU, we recommend you browse our Inertia Measurement Units category. Make sure to scroll down the product pages to check the longer description and documentation (under Useful Links). Most of these devices can be used with any basic Arduino board. The choice really depends on your design. We recommend that you post about your project design on our forum here to obtain more detailed help from the RobotShop community.
What is the MINIMUM range? I can’t find that information anywhere. Also, what gets reported when something is closer than minimum range?
@Joe: The manufacturer does mention that while the minimum range is effectively zero, the distance measured at ranges under 30 cm may vary in quality due to the alignment of the components inside the case. Some users have reported good measurements as close as 10 cm while others only get good readings after 20-30 cm. Therefore, we recommend that you consider ~30 cm as a safe (but conservative) minimum distance. You may want to check your individual sensors as they may have a lower minimum distance due to tolerance in part placement/assembly.
Great project! I’d like to set this up, but using an Arduino Uno board. Are there any changes I need to make to the code to use an Uno? And can you tell me what pins I should wire up to the Uno to match what you did on the BotBoard?
@Vinter: There are no changes to the code (unless you change to different pins!) or the connections required but a few minor differences on where the pins actually are. For reference, the servo motor channel 5 on the right-hand side of the Lynxmotion BotBoarduino is the same as digital pin 5 at the top of an Arduino.
You can view this wiring diagram from the manufacturer of the LIDAR-Lite here for the Arduino Uno. Obviously, the Uno does not have extra pins for a servo motor connection, so you will need to wire those differently. The servo motor signal pin (usually yellow/orange/white) will go to one of the PWM-able pins and the VCC/GND will need to be powered outside of the Arduino since most motors use too much current for what it can provide. Please make sure to have a common ground though, to prevent signal issues.
Thanks for clearing that up for me. I was having some issues running the above set up, and I wasn’t sure why. I was using the newer version of LidarLite, and It turns out the new LIdarLite V2 (blue label) handles I2C differently from version 1. Thanks again!
@Vinter: Ok, that makes a lot of sense then! As an side note, we are preparing a new blog post concerning the LIDAR-Lite v2 specifically to help users complete a basic setup. We do not have a time frame yet but it will certainly help many users with the basics of using this new product.
Hi! My son is looking to build a lidar based obstacle avoidance rover, he has done other with basic type of sensors… would there be sample arduino code he can look at, he said he is interested in figuring out distance? We bought the version 2 of the lidar, should we have bought version 1? Thanks!!
