Most of you, by now, are likely aware of the RPLIDAR 360° Laser Scanner. This amazing product gave hobbyists everywhere the chance to get started on SLAM-based projects at an affordable cost and with a piece of equipment of good quality. Of course, improvements to this product were possible and RoboPeak did just that, by bringing us the RPLidar A2.
Whether this is compatible to ROS support, and any ROS package available like with previous version, please confirm.
@Vikram: Here is information concerning the RPLidar and ROS:
RPLidar ROS package (ROS wiki)
RPLidar ROS package (Robopeak GitHub)
You can find plenty of tutorials with a quick online search.
Are there any casings available to enclose the USB adapter? It seems rather fragile if left in the open
@Rayner: No, it does not come with a casing. The adapter board is meant to be placed inside a container of some kind (usually with the other electronics of the project it is on), protected from ESD and other things. Also, in some cases, some users replace the adapter board with their own controller board.
What’s the dimensions on it?
@Jerry: You can find more details about the RPLidar A2 on its product page under Useful Links. Here is a direct link to the dimensional drawing.
Do you have the library for RPLIDAR A2 in python and how to use it in raspberry pi ?
@mabo We unfortunately don’t have a library in Python for the RPLIDAR A2. Here is the SDK and the SDK Manual.
Hi, i am try to work with UART port of RPLIDAR, but it not response me, do you have examples whit this?
@sergio: It is possible that you are not receiving any communication from the UART if the device is not adequately powered. As you can see from the datasheet (page 13), the start current is quite high (1.2 - 1.5 A). We recommend that you open make a post on our forum here, as the blog comments are not meant for technical issues. Make sure to offer as many details as possible, including pictures of your setup clearly showing all components (RPLidar, power source, adapter board, etc.).
I have this laser for my turtlebot, and the product looks and feels rock solid. Have started to do some tests with it.
I had some issues to detect USB. This is what I did. Ubuntu 14.04
lsusb
Find the RPlidar device
Bus 001 Device 014: ID 10c4:ea60 Cygnal Integrated Products, Inc. CP210x UART Bridge / myAVR mySmartUSB light
set udev rules
sudoedit /etc/udev/rules.d/52-ftdi.rules
and save
echo ‘SUBSYSTEMS==“usb”, KERNEL==“ttyUSB[0-9]*”, ATTRS{idVendor}==“10c4”, ATTRS{idProduct}==“ea60”, SYMLINK+=“sensors/ftdi_%s{serial}”’
Then run “./simple_grabber” or “./ultra_simple” from the “cd rplidar_sdk_v1.5.7/sdk/output/Linux/Release”
@GlorThoren: Thank you for the information! This will certainly be helpful to the RobotShop community, especially since this is a particularly popular product. Since you are experimenting with this product, if you have more information about it, we recommend that you post it in our forum here. This would be easier to post complex information or include attachments, such as diagrams, links and libraries. Also, if you wish to show others your current projects, you can do so here. Good luck and thanks again! 
I have received the RPlidar A2, and with windows (10) and Arduino it works (great resp quite well). As I want to incorporate it in a robot I want to connect it to my raspberry pi (python).
In Installed the RPlidar module, and am able to see the device. Sending get_health() and get_info() gives good results.
But:
Any suggestions how I make it spinning?
Kind regards,
Bart
@Bart: For technical issues and troubleshooting, we recommend that you instead post on our forum here as the blog comments are not appropriate for in-depth technical support (cannot post images, add attachments, etc.). Concerning the device not spinning, it is most likely a power issue. If your power supply it connected to the RPi (and not the RPLidar directly), then you will not receive enough power for the RPLidar, since it needs 1.2-1.5 A @ 5 V DC directly. The USB ports on the RPi most likely cannot provide this much and thus the RPLidar does not initialize properly.
Hi,
We order a Rplidar a2 to use for our aoutnomous vacuum cleaner. As we misunderstood that the slam application was already implemented into this lidar. However, after a little research, we found out that we can use Hector slam. Just a question, will we need to use IMU with this application? Will be thankfull for all the help we can get as slam is an important application for our system.
Regards
Rayan
@Ray: A IMU is not necessary for all types of SLAM and depends on your requirement, setup, etc. That being said, if you want or need an IMU, you can find some here. As to which one you need, it really depends on your detailed requirements. If you need more technical help, please open a new topic on the forum here as mentioned at the top of this article.
Hey, I’m looking to create templates of rooms. Would the RPLIDAR A2 or A2M6 be able to map the coordinates into something AutoCAD can read? I’m seeing on the A2M6 there is a spot to plug in a USB cable and a spot for what looks like a power supply. Would I need to wire in a battery for that or will the power from the USB be enough?
@Mark: Both products (RB-Rpk-02 and RB-Rpk-05) provide raw data (distance & angle) of each measurement. This can be stored as a point cloud. To obtain solid objects/shapes from it (such as walls, obstacles, etc.), the data needs to be processed. Therefore, you would need to convert the data to a format that AutoCAD can read before you can use it. You can read more about the protocol here. The manufacturer’s SDK also contains many examples on using this data. You may also want to look at point cloud libraries, such as PCL.
As for the connections, the device can be powered by USB alone. That being said, there are still many devices (typical of laptops) that do not provide enough power through the USB port to properly power this device (up-to 1.5 A @ peak/start-up current) without the voltage dropping too low. Therefore, the power input port (tiny barrel connector port, details here) is helpful for those situations. By default, the RB-Rpk-02 and RB-Rpk-05 now come with an appropriate power supply. If you need to be mobile and will be using a battery pack, you will need to regulate the power source to provide exactly 5 V DC (see the specs for power voltage here). You can get a small barrel connector assembly here. You would need to solder this to the output of your 5 V DC power regulator. You can find some 5 V DC regulator here. Make sure it can provide at least 2 A (just to be on the safe side) and check the input voltage (nominal of your battery pack) will work with the chosen regulator.
In general, you can find more details about any product on its product page under Useful Links, such as datasheets, user manual, protocol info, etc.
