What is LiDAR and What is it Used For?

By ·Categories: Tech Explained·Published On: September 12th, 2023·4.8 min read·

If you’ve spent time researching or talking about automation, quality control, or any range of other machine vision applications, you’ve probably come across the term “LiDAR”. So what is LiDAR, and how is it used? Check out our Tech Edge video on the subject and keep reading to learn more.

What is LiDAR?

LiDAR is an acronym for “light direction and ranging”. It’s a powerful, remote-sensing technology for measuring relative distance, and has been an increasingly common element in a wide range of IoT and Industry 4.0 projects. LiDAR is used to create accurate, 3D representations of a given environment, also called “point clouds”.

How does LiDAR work?

A LiDAR system bounces eye-safe laser pulses off of objects to locate and measure them. A laser beam transmitter emits the light, which is then returned to a receiver. 

LiDAR systems share many common elements with traditional radar, but the wavelength of light used is thousands of times shorter than the shortest radar wavelengths. This allows super accurate results to be delivered very quickly.

LiDAR relies on the Time of Flight (ToF) principle. Laser light is emitted at time t-0, hits an object, and the reflected light is then measured at time t-1. Because the speed of light is a known quantity, the measured interval can be converted into a precise distance. In addition, by calculating how much light returns to the sensors, the size and shape of objects can also be determined.

At that point, calculations are made by a LiDAR Processing Unit (LPU), like the ones created by OnLogic customer, Flasheye.

LiDAR vs radar

In many ways, LiDAR and radar are similar. Both are used to detect objects by emitting signals and waiting for those signals to bounce off of objects and back to the sensors. While LiDAR is used to map environments, radar is generally used for object tracking. This is especially useful for air traffic control and military applications.

Unlike LiDAR which uses lasers to identify the distance of a given object, radar uses radio waves. Because of this, radar is typically less accurate since light has a shorter wavelength than radio waves. The shorter the wavelength, the more accurate the results.

Types of LiDAR

While there are many types of LiDAR systems that all have various use-cases, two of the most common types of LiDAR are airborne and terrestrial. 

Airborne

Airborne LiDAR utilizes an aircraft (such as a helicopter, airplane, or drone) with an attached laser scanner to capture the landscape during flight. There are two main subtypes under airborne; topographic and bathymetric.

Topographic LiDAR is used to create models of the land, and usually uses near-infrared light. Bathymetric LiDAR, on the other hand, utilizes green light to measure the seafloor in shallow waters.

Terrestrial 

Terrestrial LiDAR is used to map landscapes, and encompasses mobile and static LiDAR. In mobile LiDAR, scanners are mounted to a vehicle and are used to map land areas (such as forests and highways). Static LiDAR captures data from a fixed point using a tripod, and can be used in a wide variety of applications ranging from archeology all the way to crime scene preservation in forensics.

What does it measure?

LPUs use the information they gather from LiDAR sensors to calculate distance, size, and shape to create 3D maps or inform actions in a process. In the case of Flasheye, their solution monitors conveyor belts in the mining industry. Using optimal performance models as a reference, their devices can identify deviations in conveyor performance and alert operators. These alerts can be used to generate maintenance plans, protecting workers from potentially dangerous conditions and optimizing operational output.

LiDAR is becoming a popular solution for automated measurement applications that don’t need, or don’t want to capture full resolution image or video data. Because it only measures relative distance, users concerned about personal privacy and anonymity can collect actionable data without also capturing identifying information. As a result, security and surveillance applications using LiDAR are becoming increasingly popular. This is particularly true in Europe where GDPR privacy laws impact some types of traditional security monitoring

What is it used for?

"What

The automotive industry has driven (no pun intended) much of the interest in LiDAR in the last decade or so. Many modern safety features found in cars and trucks rely on it. In addition, autonomous vehicles utilize the technology to identify and avoid obstructions, other vehicles, and people. 

There are a host of other applications that are finding ways to benefit from super-fast, hyper-accurate measurement data. According to ABI Research, the number of LiDAR sensors used outside of the automotive industry is expected to reach 16 million by 2030. Some of these use cases include:

  • Architecture/Construction: Building Information Modeling (BIM)
  • Smart Agriculture: Precision Farming and Autonomous Equipment
  • Smart Cities: Mobile devices for Managing City Infrastructure/Assets
  • Energy: Tree Encroachment Detection for Power Transmission Lines
  • Manufacturing: Quality Assurance Defect Detection
  • Mining: Hazard Detection, Mineral Exploration, and Extraction Monitoring

Looking forward

LiDAR’s appeal across industry has led to continued development and expansion upon its capabilities. In addition to measuring 3D position, emerging 4D LiDAR technology will also provide simultaneous velocity data, opening up new application possibilities. Those installations, and those already being deployed, will increasingly require LPUs to be installed outside of climate controlled areas. 

With optional M12 LAN expansion and the ability to be mounted in a vehicle, the Karbon 800 series from OnLogic is an ideal fit for LiDAR applications. Our line of industrial and rugged computers are built to stand up to challenging conditions. If you’re working on implementing a LiDAR solution, connect with our team today to see how we can help.

Note: This post was originally posted on November 1st, 2022. It was updated on September 12th, 2023.

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About the Author: Darek Fanton

Darek is the Communications Manager at OnLogic. His passion for both journalism and technology has led him from the newsrooms of local papers to the manufacturing floor of IBM. His background in news gathering has him always on the lookout for the latest in emerging tech and the best ways to share that information with readers. In addition to his affinity for words, Darek is a music lover, juggler and huge fan of terrible jokes.