High speed range finder for object recognition

We have developed a high speed range finder capable of precise 3-D measurement which uses a multiple laser light source and a rotating mirror. Objects are illuminated by projected planes of light and the resulting pattern is recorded using a CCD camera. The system includes a special optical system; a hardware pre-processor for signal preprocessing; a sub-computer for light pattern decoding; and a host computer for range data triangulation. The system has been carefully designed to optimise the data processing in order to obtain the highest speeds possible. We describe the system, our novel calibration technique and also present some examples.