University of Pennsylvania

ScholarlyCommons

Technical Reports (CIS) Department of Computer & Information Science

6-28-1999

Laser Scanner Technology

Elli Angelopoulou
University of Pennsylvania, elli.angelopoulou@cs.fau.de

John R. Wright Jr.

University of Pennsylvania, john.wright@millersville.edu

Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/cis_reports

Part of the Other Computer Sciences Commons

Recommended Citation
Elli Angelopoulou and John R. Wright Jr., "Laser Scanner Technology", . June 1999.

University of Pennsylvania Department of Computer and Information Science Technical Report No. MS-CIS-99-16.

This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/cis_reports/74

For more information, please contact repository@pobox.upenn.edu.
Laser Scanner Technology

Abstract
This paper addresses the basic principles, performance measures and applications associated with laser
scanner technologies. The objective of this report is to communicate and disseminate pertinent
information related to state-of-the-art laser measurement systems that are currently available through
commercial and research means. This paper should serve two-fold: (1) as a basic tutorial to laser
scanning technology and (2) as a guide to current manufacturers and researchers of this technology.

Disciplines
Other Computer Sciences

Comments
University of Pennsylvania Department of Computer and Information Science Technical Report No. MS-
CIS-99-16.

This technical report is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/cis_reports/74

 LASER SCANNER TECHNOLOGY
Technical Report MS-CIS-99-16

Elli Angelopoulou and John R. Wright, Jr.∗

GRASP Laboratory
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6228

June 28, 1999

Abstract
This paper addresses the basic principles, performance measures and applications associated with laser
scanner technologies. The objective of this report is to communicate and disseminate pertinent information
related to state-of-the-art laser measurement systems that are currently available through commercial and
research means. This paper should serve two-fold: (1) as a basic tutorial to laser scanning technology and
(2) as a guide to current manufacturers and researchers of this technology.

1. Optics

1.1. Light
1.1.1 Generation of light
An atom is composed of a nucleus, which contains protons, and electrons that are orbiting that nucleus (think of
a microscopic solar system). The orbiting electrons can occupy only certain orbits. When energy is added to an
atom, electrons jump to a new orbit farther away from the nucleus. The number and choice of electrons that
jump, and the size of the jump (how many orbits and which ones) depends on the amount of energy applied to
the atom. Conversely, when electrons jump to orbits closer to the nucleus they release energy. One of the most
convenient ways to release energy is as a quantum of electromagnetic energy, a photon. The energy carried by
that photon equals the transition energy. Photons of different wavelengths carry a different amount of energy.
(The shorter the wavelength, the higher the amount of energy a photon carries.) Thus, the wavelength(s) of light
emitted by an atom depends on the amount of energy associated with each possible electron jump.

Generated
photon

Electron jumping to a
lower energy orbit

Fig. 1. Schematic representation of an atom releasing energy in the form of a photon

∗
This paper was submitted to Lt. Col. John Blitch as part of the Tactical Mobile Robotics initiative through a
MURI grant (ARO #DAAH04-96-0007) funded by the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA).

1
The control of photon emission is critical for lasers. There are two types of emissions: spontaneous and
stimulated. Spontaneous emission occurs all by itself and is the source of virtually all light we see in nature: the
sun, the stars, the television monitor, the incandescent as well as the fluorescent bulbs. In spontaneous emission,
if the electrons of an atom are in an energy level above the lowest possible one, they can drop to a lower energy
level, releasing energy (often in the form of light), without outside intervention. Atoms by default prefer to be in
the lowest possible energy state, also known as the ground state.

1.1.2 Stimulated emission

In stimulated emission, we start with atoms whose electrons are in a higher energy state. These excited atoms are
triggered to release their energy in the form of light. One way of doing that is by shining light on the excited
atom. Think of the light that is falling on the atoms as a collection of photons. At least one of these photons
carries the same amount of energy, as the one that will be released by an excited atom when it goes to the lower
energy state. When that photon hits an excited atom, it will stimulate it to release energy in the form of light. The
provoked emission of light has the same wavelength and is precisely in phase with the photon that generated it.
In other words, the photon that hits the atom causes the generation of a second identical photon. The new photon
will then hit another excited atom causing the release of another photon, which will in turn stimulate a new
emission. Thus, the “starter” photon triggers a cascade of stimulated emissions (see Fig. 2). This cascading effect
is called Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation (LASER).

“Starter” spontaneous emission

Subsequent stimulated emissions

Fig. 2. Cascading stimulated emission

As mentioned before, only a portion of the photons that comprise the “starter” light have the proper amount of
energy to start the cascading effect. The remaining photons are absorbed and/or converted to other forms of
energy, typically heat. The proportion of the photons that have the proper characteristics to trigger stimulated
emission is directly related to the efficiency of lasers (for more details see section 4.3.6).

1.1.3 Light and electromagnetic waves

Before we proceed further into more details about the behavior of light and lasers, it is important to clarify that,
no matter what range of wavelengths we are operating in, we are always talking about electromagnetic waves.
Electromagnetic (EM) waves are grouped in different categories according to their wavelength (see figure 3).

2
 Electromagnetic energy increases

gamma ultraviolet visible near infrared microwaves radio

rays x-rays light light infrared light light waves

1pm 1nm 400nm 700nm 2µm 1mm 10cm

Wavelength increases

Fig. 3. The electromagnetic spectrum

Table 1 shows in more detail the various types of electromagnetic radiation. Although the nature of radiation is
the same over the whole spectrum, EM waves in one category behave somewhat different from EM waves in
other categories. The range of wavelengths that compose the near infrared spectrum (IR) is not clearly defined.
Some researchers refer to the range of EM waves between 30mm to 10cm as far IR.

Table 1. Types of Electromagnetic Waves

Electromagnetic Waves Range of Wavelengths

Gamma rays < 1pm or 10-12m
X-rays 1pm to 1nm or 10-12m to 10-9m
Ultraviolet light 1nm to 400nm or 10-9m to 400x10-9m
Visible Light 400nm to 700nm or 400x10-9m to 700x10-9m
Near Infrared light 700nm to 2µm or 700x10-9m to 2x10-6m
Infrared light 2µm to 1mm or 2x10-6m to 10-3m
Microwave 1mm to 10cm or 10-3m to 10-1m
Weather Radar around 10cm
FM Radio 2.8m to 3.4m
Short Wave 10m to 100m
AM Radio 200m to 500m

3
1.2. Light Propagation
The application of lasers is closely tied with the behavior of light as it travels through various materials. When
light is transmitted through gases, liquids, or solids, a combination of the following propagation phenomena
takes place:

• Refraction: Part of the light falling on a surface propagates through the material. The beam of light changes
directions (i.e. bends) at the point of entrance to the new medium (example: light travelling through water).
This phenomenon is called refraction. The observed deflections are typically a function of wavelength.

• Reflectance: Part of the light falling on a surface is reflected back, away from the surface.

• Absorption: Part of the light falling on a surface is absorbed as it propagates through the material. The
electromagnetic energy of the beam is converted into other forms, usually into heat.

• Scattering: When light falls on particles of random distribution, like smoke or fog particles, it gets diffused
in many directions.

• Polarization: When light falls on a surface, the plane of oscillation of the light beam may change.
The aforementioned phenomena may alter the intensity, wavelength, direction of propagation, and plane of
oscillation of a light beam. Different materials exhibit different combinations of propagation effects. GRASP has
a specialized photometry laboratory where researchers study the behavior of light in different materials.

The two phenomena that are of higher interest to us are refraction and reflectance. Refraction is directly related
with the speed of light as it travels through various materials. Light travels faster through vacuum (roughly
186,000 miles/sec, or 300,000 kilometers/sec). When light travels through any material, for example air, it slows
down to approximately 185,950 miles/sec, or 299,920 km/sec in one atmospheric pressure. An important
measure is the index of refraction, n:
n = speed of light in vacuum / speed of light in material

The index of refraction is always larger than 1.0. The wavelength of light, λ, the frequency of the light wave, v,
and the velocity by which it travels, c, are related:

λ=c/v

When the light travels through different media, its frequency, v, remains the same. Since the velocity, c, changes,
the wavelength, λ, changes too:

λmaterial = λvacuum / nmaterial

As a ray of light passes from one transparent medium (for instance, air) to another (for instance, water) it
“ bends” . The angle of “ bending” , called angle of refraction, is directly related to the index of refraction of the
two materials. If and when the light passes back out to the first material, the reverse refraction takes place.
Depending on the homogeneity of the material and it geometry, the 2nd refraction may not necessarily cancel the
first one (for example, prism effect).

4
Reflectance also alters the direction in which light travels. When light falls on a surface, part of it will be
redirected away from the surface. There are two types of reflectance, depending on how the light gets redirected:
specular and diffuse. Specular, or mirror-like, reflectance is the type of light that we get reflected from a surface
like glass, or polished metals, surfaces that are smooth on the scale of the wavelength of the light. Such smooth
surfaces (specular surfaces) reflect the light back in a single direction (just like a mirror does). The direction of
the reflected beam depends on the shape of the surface and the direction of the light that fell on the surface.
Diffuse reflectance on the other hand is produced by matte surfaces, like a piece of paper, that are rough on the
scale of the wavelength of light. The light that is falling on a diffuse surface is scattered in all possible directions.
Most surfaces exhibit a combination of diffuse and specular reflectance. All surfaces reflect a portion of the light
that is falling on them, unless they are covered by special anti-reflection coatings.

2. Lasers

2.1. Building a Laser

2.1.1 Population Inversion
The bottleneck of stimulated emission is that it requires that the majority of the atoms should be in a high-energy
state. Unfortunately, this is not the default energy state under thermodynamic equilibrium. Thus, a prerequisite
for the generation of Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation (LASER) is that the
distribution of atoms be altered so that there are more excited atoms, ready to emit energy, than low-energy
atoms, ready to absorb it. The process of altering the energy distribution of atoms so that most of them will be in
a high energy state is called population inversion. Lasers did not become a reality, until methods to achieve
population inversion became feasible in the 1950s.

The first step is to produce a population inversion by selectively exciting atoms to particular energy levels. The
most common laser excitation techniques are light and electrons. In the very first laser, Theodore Maiman used
flashlamp pulses to excite the atoms of a red ruby. The resulting laser beam was a pulsed beam of 694nm. Such
primitive excitation techniques require an intense burst of energy. Modern lasers use much more complicated
excitation methods. Often population inversion creates sublevels of high and low energy levels resulting in lasers
that can emit in multiple wavelengths simultaneously (multiline lasers). The medium that is being excited (and
frees the photons that collectively form the laser beam) can be a combination of two or more materials, like
helium and neon. Through population inversion the laser medium gets excited and is capable of producing
stimulated light when it is hit by a photon.

2.1.2 Light Amplification

Once the population of a laser material has been inverted, a “ starter” photon will trigger a cascade of stimulated
emissions. The magnitude of the cascading effect increases sharply with the distance the light travels through the
laser material. Thus, in order to build brighter lasers, light is emitted along an elongated rod of laser material.
The intensity of the beam can be further increased, by placing mirrors at opposite ends of the laser rod. This
forces the stimulated light to travel back and forth between the ends of the rod, increasing the distance the light
travels before it exits the laser medium. Figure 4 (adapted from Hecht’s [5] book) shows a schematic
representation of a laser’s basic principle of operation.

5
 l

d θ

Light escaping from

the back end (a) without mirrors

d θ

(b) with a single mirror

Fig. 4. Stimulated emission in a laser rod

The oscillation of light back and forth in the laser cavity causes the formation of a narrow laser beam. The radius
of the beam depends on the length the light has to travel within the laser medium. For example, the light emitted
from a laser with no mirrors is concentrated in an angle θ, defined by:

θ = sin-1 ((d x n) / (2 x l))

where d = rod diameter, l = rod (cavity) length, n = index of refraction of the laser material. If a single mirror is
used, the diameter of the beam becomes:

θ = sin-1 ((d x n) / (4 x l))

The goal of these examples is to show the direct effect that mirrors have on the beam diameter. The relationship
between the shape of the beam and the number of mirrors, their shape and their position is quite complex. We
have glossed over many design details.
The optics used in the laser cavity are related to the wavelength of the laser beam. In general, the mirror(s) used
in the back end of the rod reflect all incident light, while the mirror(s) in the front reflect only part of the light
and transmit the rest. Both mirrors are usually curved to better focus the beams towards each other.

2.1.3 Beam characteristics

The distribution of light intensity is not uniform along the cross-section of a laser beam. Typically, the beam is
brighter in the middle with the intensity dropping off gradually at the sides. Another characteristic of the beam is
its divergence, i.e. the fact that it spreads out as it moves away from the laser cavity. The angle of divergence, ϕ,
depends on the wavelength of the laser, λ, the beam diameter at its source, D, and the intensity distribution of the
beam:

ϕ = sin-1 (K x λ / D)

where K is a constant near 1.0 that depends on the distribution of light intensity in a cross-section of the laser
beam.

6
2.1.4 Wavelength
There are several factors that determine the wavelength a laser emits. Foremost, the emitted wavelength depends
on the laser material and its quantum properties. The procedure used in achieving population inversion directly
affects the wavelength of the stimulated emission. Finally, the optics of the laser cavity can alter the emitted
wavelength by selectively oscillating either just a subset of the stimulated emission wavelengths, or by selecting
the emitted wavelength through the inclusion of a prism (or diffraction grating) in the laser cavity.

2.2. Laser Types

Depending on the material used as the laser medium, lasers can be grouped in three major categories: gas lasers,
solid-state lasers, and semiconductor lasers. Gas lasers form a very big group, partly because it is very easy to
test a gas for laser capabilities. They are typically excited via an electric discharge. They range from weak lasers
emitting just 0.001 Watts of light, to very powerful ones emitting thousands of Watts. Some emit continuously,
while others emit pulses of light. Most gas lasers contain a mixture of gases. Some of the most common gas
mixtures can be found in Table 2. An important variant of the gas lasers is far-infrared lasers (emitting between
30mm and 1000mm) that are powered by a shorter-wavelength infrared gas laser beam.

Table 2. Gas Lasers

Laser Medium: Gas Main Wavelength Other Wavelengths

Nitrogen 337nm
Helium-Cadmium (He-Cd) – a metal vapor 441.6nm 325nm (UV)
Argon ion – a rare-gas ion 488-514.5nm 351.1nm (UV)
Copper vapor – a metal vapor 511nm 578nm
Gold vapor – a metal vapor 628nm
Helium-Neon (He-Ne) 632.8nm 543nm
Krypton ion – a rare-gas ion 647.1nm 350.7nm (UV)
Hydrogen fluoride (HF) – a chemical laser 2600-3000nm (IR)
Deuterium fluoride (DF) – a chemical laser 3600-4000nm (IR)
Carbon monoxide (CO) 5000-7000nm (IR)
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 9000-11000nm (IR)

In a solid-state laser (not to be confused with semiconductors) the atoms that emit light are dispersed in a crystal
or glassy material that contains many other elements. The solid-state lasers are different from semiconductor
lasers, although both are crystalline materials. Solid-state lasers unlike semiconductors are electrically
nonconductive. In solid state lasers, the light-emitting material (i.e. chromium, neodymium, cobalt, etc.) is just a
dopant added to a compound that acts as a crystalline agent. Typically only 1% of the total laser material is light
emitting. Solid state lasers are usually shaped in small diameter rods, about the shape of a short pencil. This
shape is ideal for generating a bright laser beam while at the same time dissipating the heat produced from the
laser process as efficiently as practically possible. Because solid state lasers are electrically nonconductive, they
must be excited optically by light from an external light source, like a flashlight for example. The variety of
solid-state lasers is not as big as in gas lasers. Solid state lasers can operate in either pulsed or continuous mode.
The most common solid-state lasers can be found in Table 3.

7
 Table 3. Solid-state Lasers

Laser Medium: Solid-state Main Wavelength Other Wavelengths

Ruby 694.3nm
Alexandrite – a vibronic solid-state laser 700-830nm (IR) 325nm (UV)
Neodymium-YAG (Nd-YAG) 1064nm (IR) 266nm (UV), 355nm (UV)
(YAG = Yttrium Aluminum Garnet) and 532nm
Neodymium-glass (Nd-glass) 1080nm (IR) 1054nm and 1062nm (IR)
Erbium 1540nm (IR) 850nm (IR), 1230nm (IR),
1730nm (IR), 2900nm (IR)

Semiconductor lasers (also known as diode or injection lasers) emit light when current flows through a junction
between two semiconductor materials. This family of lasers is the target of most current research in the
development of new lasers. Many of the diode lasers, as can be seen in Table 4, operate in the infrared range. It
was not until 1988 that the first visible diode lasers became commercially available. The preferred mode of
operation is pulsed, because of heat dissipation concerns.

Table 4. Semiconductor Lasers

Laser Medium: Semiconductor Main Wavelength Other Wavelengths

GaN/SiC 423nm 405–425nm
GaInPAs/GaAs 670-680nm
GaAlAs/GaAs 720-900nm (IR)
GaAs/GaAs (pure) 904nm (IR)
InGaAsP/InP 1000-1700nm (IR)
PbSnSe – a lead salt diode laser 8000-30000nm (IR)

There are some additional types of lasers, which are worth mentioning that do not fit in any of the
aforementioned categories. The need for tunable wavelength lasers has motivated the creation of dye lasers. They
use organic dyes dissolved in liquid solvents as their laser material. Another family of tunable lasers is free-
electron lasers. The principle of operation is having a beam of “ free” electrons, which are unattached to any
atom, pass through a special magnetic field. The movement of the electrons causes the release of light. Finally,
there is ongoing work in developing lasers in even shorter wavelengths (x-rays, gamma rays, and nuclear-
pumped lasers). In such shorter wavelengths, the physics of electromagnetic rays change and the techniques used
to stimulate emission of radiation are very different.

Another important laser classification method is with respect to safety. The highly concentrated beam of light
can cause permanent eye damage. All lasers are classified as belonging to one of six possible categories,
depending on how hazardous they are (see table 5). The health risk associated with a laser is directly related to
the energy output of the laser, which in turn depends on the wavelength, the average output power in Watts, the
total energy per pulse, the pulse duration and the pulse frequency.

8
 Table 5. Laser Classes

Class Description
Class I Not hazardous for continuous viewing, or access to radiation is prohibited.
Class II Visible light lasers that can cause damage if viewed directly for extended periods of time.
Class IIa Visible light lasers not intended for viewing.
Eye damage can be caused if viewed directly for more than 1000secs (16.67 min).
Class IIIa Not hazardous if viewed momentarily. Damaging if viewed through collecting lenses.
Class IIIb Hazardous to eyes and skin if viewed directly.
Class IV Hazardous to eyes if viewed in any way. Fire hazard. Could cause skin burn.

2.3. Laser Light Detection

Many applications of lasers involve the detection and measurement of the light produced by a laser. Special
instruments, called for historical reasons photodiode receivers, are used in the detection of light. These
instruments are made out of special materials (typically semiconductors), which have the ability to convert to
electricity the light that is falling on them. The amount of electricity that is generated is directly proportional to
the amount of light that is hitting the photosensitive material. Video cameras are an example of such receivers.
Different photodetectors are sensitive to different ranges of wavelengths, depending on the material out of which
they are made (see Table 6).

Table 6. Laser Detectors

Detector Medium Wavelengths

Silicon 400-1000nm (visible light)
Germanium 600-1800nm (visible and infrared light)
Indium arsenide 1500-3000nm (infrared light)
Lead selenide 1500-6000nm (infrared light)

3. Applications

3.1. General Applications

Laser technology today is applied in many diverse areas ranging from items we use on a daily basis, to medical
and military applications. Lasers have become part of our life. Compact disk (CD) players use lasers, instead of a
needle, to “ read” the music (or data) stored in a CD. Photocopiers and laser printers use lasers to transfer
information to a photoconductive material, which prints the document. Bar code scanners use lasers to illuminate
the bar code and read the special stripes. The holograms seen on some credit cards or bank notes are produced
using lasers. Telecommunications data is transferred through fiber optic cables in the form of pulses of laser
beams.

The speed, precision and resolution of lasers have made them particularly attractive to the medical community.
Corrective eye surgery is achieved by quickly and precisely burning the tissue of the lens of the eye, correcting

9
deformities that cause myopia, astigmatism etc. Lasers can also stop bleeding by penetrating deep in the tissue
and coagulating the area. Other types of lasers are used for precise and “ clean” incisions. Dermatologists use
lasers to remove (potentially) harmful skin blemishes. Lasers are also used for non-invasive diagnosis of tumors.
Recently (May 1997) the Federal Drug Administration approved the use of lasers as a replacement to the dental
drill.

Similar applications of lasers can be found in the industrial sector, where lasers are employed in cutting, welding,
hardening, melting and evaporating. Of particular interest to us (we will explore this topic later in the paper) is
the use of lasers in obtaining accurate distance measurements. The collection of such measurements provides
information about the three-dimensional shape of an object, which can be used to form high-resolution accurate
3-D models of the objects.

The controlled wavelength and high resolution of lasers make them particularly suitable for spectroscopy, i.e. the
analysis of materials through the study of reflectance and absorption of light. (An interesting use of laser
spectroscopy is in the field of forensic science for the identification of trace residuals). Other applications of
lasers are in interferometric measurements, in optical gyroscopes, in photolithography, in Fourier optics, in laser
light shows etc.

3.2. Military Applications

A big percentage of the aforementioned applications were technologies that were initially developed for military
purposes. Nowadays, the military is seeking to use off-the shelf laser equipment. To this end, the Ballistic
Missile Defense Organization is cooperating with CoreTek in Boston, Massachusetts. CoreTek is selling tunable
lasers, called VCSEL (Vertical Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser). The current VCSELs have a "tune range" of
30nm centered on 850nm and 980nm (both near IR). In the next 5-6 months the new VCSEL lasers will be out.
They will have a "tune range" of 50nm centered on 1550nm (near IR). The next goal for CoreTek, according to
Parviz Tayebati, CoreTek’ s president, is to expand the "tune range" to 120nm [7]. The tunability feature of these
lasers makes them particularly attractive for high-speed local area communications.

The military is also interested in the capabilities of lasers to destroy short and medium-range tactical missiles in
the air, before they hit the ground. Lasers are the defense weapons of preference because of their fast re-targeting
and the speed by which they can impact projectiles traveling at Mach velocities. The US Navy initiated the work
in that area. As a result, in 1989, a Vandal missile, simulating the flight of a cruise missile, was shot down by
Miracl. Miracl, which stands for mid-infra-red advanced chemical laser, was developed by TRW Inc., of
Redondo Beach, California. Currently, the US Navy is funding the development of a high-energy free-electron
laser developed at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, a US Department of Energy laboratory in
Newport News, Virginia. The latest achievement of research supported by the Office of Naval Research was the
creation of a 500W laser emitting at mid IR, 4.9µm, or 4900nm. Lt. Douglas Small, a researcher at the Naval
Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Virginia, is actively involved in the development of this free-electron laser.

The US Army Space Command is also interested in using lasers as tactical missiles. They assumed stewardship
of the Miracl equipment in 1990. Currently, the US Army and Laser Command is working with researchers in
the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, California. Their goal is the development of a solid-
state laser that could be used as a missile. According to George Albrecht [7], a physicist at the laser division of
the lab, they are concentrating their efforts in building a near IR, 1.05µm or 1050nm, laser. Since 1996, there is
ongoing effort to take the lasers airborne. Boeing in Seattle is working on fitting a laser into a 747-400.
Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space in Sunnyvale, California is providing the target acquisition and beam and
jitter control for the system. TRW is working on the laser itself, which is again a chemical laser that is emitting
in the near IR, at 1.3µm, or 1300nm.

10
4. Laser Measurement Systems

4.1. Principle of operation

There are many different ways to use lasers for measuring the distance of an object point to a laser. All of them
take advantage of three basic attributes of laser light: unobscured light travels in straight lines; the velocity of
light when travelling in space is known; the light produced by a laser is typically only a single wavelength light
and is thus easy to detect. There are two traditional approaches in measuring distance with lasers (range-finding):
time-of-flight and triangulation.

4.1.1 Time of Flight

The principle behind all time-of-flight (TOF) implementations is to measure the amount of time, t, a light pulse
takes to travel to the object and return. Since the speed of light, c, is known, it is possible to determine the
distance traveled. The object’ s distance, d, from the laser would then be equal to approximately one half of the
distance the laser pulse traveled:

d=cxt/2

In time-of-flight measuring systems, a scanner typically emits pulses of laser electromagnetic radiation (ER).
The emitted radiation is focused to a narrow collimated beam and pointed towards a target object. That object
reflects a portion of the pulsed laser ER back to a photosensitive sensor (i.e. a photodiode receiver) that is
mounted on the scanner. An internal clock measures the time that elapsed between the transmission and
reception of the pulse. A built-in microprocessor performs the aforementioned time-of-flight measurement(s) and
reports the distance of the target object relative to the laser scanner. Figure 5 illustrates how a time of flight laser
scanner works in block diagram form. For all practical purposes, the angle θ in figure 5 is very small and has
thus no effect on the accuracy of the TOF distance measurement. The high velocity of light allows TOF scanner
to take hundreds, or thousands of measurements per second (rates of 50,000 samples/sec are not unusual). Often,
multiple pulses are used and used in a least squares fitting to improve reliability. A variation of TOF is the phase
shift method for determining distance measurements. Distance is computed by comparing the phase shift
between emitted wavelength and the received light.

Lens
Obstacle

Laser Beam Emitter θ

Photodiode Receiver

Fig. 5. Time of flight illustration

11
4.1.2 Triangulation
The idea behind triangulation is to have two laser beams instead of one. The two beams can be produced by
either two separate lasers, or by splitting the beam of a single laser. The two beams intersect at the target object.
The position of the two laser sources is known. By measuring the angle formed by the intersection of the two
beams, one can compute the distance to the target object. This principle is used with LEDs in autofocusing
35mm cameras. A very common variation of triangulation-based range-finders involves the replacement of one
of the laser beams with a video camera.

4.2. Sensor setup and configuration

4.2.1 2D measurements
The setups described in the previous section provide distance measurements for a single point. By aiming the
scanner setup to a new point on the target object, a second distance measurement to another point of the target
can be computed. One can repeat this process multiple times, by pointing the laser scanner at different directions.
When all these directions lie on a plane, the collected data provides the two-dimensional profile of the shape of
the target object at that plane. The process of altering the position of the laser emitter-receiver setup is done
automatically either by mounting the setup on a rotating platform, or, more compactly, through the use of a
rotating mirror that can re-aim the emitter-receiver. Such devices are usually called line scanners, since they scan
a line, instead of measuring the distance to a single point.

4.2.2 3D measurements
A natural extension to the 2D scanners is the collection of multiple parallel line scans. After “ sweeping” the laser
along a plane, we can proceed collecting more data, by “ sweeping” the laser scanner along a parallel plane,
resulting in the measurement of a second two-dimensional profile. We can proceed in this manner, “ sweeping”
several planes, one after the other. The stack of two-dimensional profiles generates a 3D model of the target
object. Again, this process can be automated through the use of either a rotation stage, or a rotating mirror.

There are commercially available systems (i.e. SICK LMS, Acuity AR4000, and RIEGL LMS-Z210) which
include the software that controls the “ sweeping” motion, the data capture and analysis, as well as the distance
measurement representation. Most of the laser scanners in the market use semiconductor lasers.

4.3. Overview of performance criteria

4.3.1 Wavelength
Each type of laser emits a characteristic wavelength or range of wavelengths, depending on the laser material, its
optical system and the employed excitation method. Some lasers emit light at different wavelengths under
different conditions. For example, helium-neon (He-Ne) lasers typically produce light at 632.8nm. However,
under different optics, the same gas mixture emits at 534nm and under yet another set of optics, it can emit in
infrared. Other lasers emit in two or more wavelengths simultaneously (multiline lasers).

4.3.2 Output power

The output power, P, refers to the strength of the laser beam. It is the amount of light energy produced by the
laser per unit of time:
P = dE / dt

where dE / dt is the derivative of output energy with respect to time.

12
As in light bulbs, the output power, P, is measured in Watts and it varies from mW to kW. It depends on the type
of material that emits the light and the emitted wavelength (the shorter the wavelength, the higher the energy
carried by the beam).

4.3.3 Duration of emission

Lasers can emit either a steady beam of light, or pulses of light. The duration (or length) of a pulse can range
from milliseconds (10-3sec) to femtoseconds (10-15sec). The pulses can be repeated once a minute, or even
millions of times per second. There are important fundamental relationships among length, energy, repetition
rate, and power. For example, the energy per pulse, Ep, is the integral of the output power over the time duration
of the pulse.

E P = ∫ P (t )dt
t2

t1

The pulse energy, Ep, is measured in Joules. It can be approximated by:

Pulse Energy = Peak Power x Pulse Length

The average power in a pulsed laser beam differs from the peak power since it is a measure of the average energy
flow per second:

Average Power = (Number of Pulses in time ∆t x Pulse Energy) / ∆t

where ∆t is the period of time over which we are measuring the average power.

4.3.4 Beam divergence and size

Beam characteristics, such as size, light distribution and divergence, depend on the design of the laser cavity and
the output optics. Beam size refers to the diameter of the beam at the point of exit from the laser cavity (see fig.
4). Beam divergence, is a measure of how rapidly the beam is spreading as we move away from the laser (see fig.
6). Divergence is typically measured in milliradians. Beam divergence allows one to calculate the radius of a
laser spot:
r = L x sin (ϕ)

where r is the radius of the laser spot, L is the distance from the laser to the spot and ϕ is the beam divergence.

ϕ
r

Fig. 6. Laser beam divergence

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Unlike gas (i.e. He-Ne) and solid state (i.e. Ruby) lasers, which produce an approximately circular beam,
semiconductor lasers produce, by construction, an oblong beam. In diode lasers the small size of the laser cavity
together with the unusual shape of the emitting area, produce a non-circular beam. The two dimensions, which
define the elliptical shape, do not necessarily diverge equally. More complex optics can be added to alter and
reduce beam divergence. For example, if a laser is shot through the small end of a telescope, it will have a
converging beam over a set distance.

4.3.5 Coherence
Light waves are said to be coherent if they are in phase with one another, i.e. the peaks and valleys are all lined
up. Laser light is coherent as opposed to light from the sun, or incadescent or fluorescent light. Monochromatic
light need not be coherent, but light that is not monochromatic can not stay coherent over long distances.

(a)

(b)

Fig. 7. (a) Coherent versus (b) Non-coherent light

4.3.6 Efficiency and power requirements

Lasers convert input energy, usually electricity, to light energy. Typically, only 20% of the input energy is
converted to light. Some lasers are quite inefficient converting only 0.01% or even 0.001% of the input energy to
light. Usually, the remaining energy is dissipated as heat.

5. Available Systems

5.1. Commercial
Commercially available laser scanner systems are rather limited. Laser scanners are sometimes called laser
RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging) systems, since they provide similar information to RADAR but via
laser means. Another commonly used term is LIDAR, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging. Table 7
summarizes selected laser scanner manufacturers by product, applications and some general specifications.

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 Table 7. Laser Scanner Systems

Vendor Product Application(s) Specifications

Acuity Research AccuRange Line Scans and collects • 780nm (near IR) laser
www.acuityresearch.com Scanner distance data over a • 0.25mm resolution
and AccuRange 4000 full circle. High-speed
interface available. • 0 to 165m range
Distance Measurement
Sensor • ±2.5mm accuracy
• Class I laser
• Highest resolution

RIEGL LMS-Z210 Scene acquisition for • 900nm (near IR) laser

Laser Measurement Systems virtual reality • 25.4mm resolution
modeling applications,
www.riegl.co.at
3D imaging of • 0.5 to 300m range
buildings, topographic • ±25.4mm accuracy
mapping, and • Class I laser
dimensional
measurements. • Last Pulse feature
(see section 6.2.2)

RMD Laser RADAR 3D imaging of • 900nm (near IR) laser

Radiation Monitoring (in research stage) surroundings, • N/A resolution
Devices measurement of
objects. • 0 to 410m range
www.rmdic.com
• N/A accuracy
• Class I laser
• One line at a time

SICK Optic-Electronic Laser Measurement For measurement of • Near IR laser

www.sickoptic.com System (LMS) Scanner objects and position • 10mm resolution
determination,
monitoring areas and • 0 to 30m range
vehicle guidance and • ±15mm accuracy
collision control. • Class I laser
• Used in Antarctic
exploration

Systems that provide a single distance measurement (i.e. range-finders) are much more common. These systems
do not scan an environment. They are designed to measure distance when aimed at a particular object. All the
vendors presented in Table 7 carry laser range-finders as well, since range-finders are just “ stripped-down”
versions of laser scanners. Table 8 shows some additional commercial companies that market laser distance
meters.

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 Table 8. Laser Range-finders

Vendor Product Application(s) Specifications

Gateway Information Impulse GIS/GPS mapping, timber • Up to 500m range
Systems Inc. cruising, utility/asset • ±40mm accuracy
www.inetex.com/gateway mapping, mine face
profiling, space planning, • Class I laser
landscape design, traffic • Handheld
engineering, construction
site measurements.
Laser Measurement Inc. SharpShot 2000 Surveying, general • 900nm (near IR) laser
www.lasertech.com measurement, forestry, • Class I laser
utility/asset mapping,
mining, speed enforcement, • Handheld
GIS/GPS mapping

Swarovski Optik K.G. RF-1 Laser Range Birding • Up to 1000m range

www.tyrol.at/optik/birding/s Finder • ±1m accuracy
ona_brf.htm
• Class I laser
• Handheld

5.2. Research
As it can be seen from Table 8, laser range-finders are very widely applicable, ranging from Global Positioning
Systems (GPS) to pass-times like birding. Laser scanners on the other hand are quite sophisticated systems that
are mainly used as an aid to autonomous navigation systems. Table 9 lists some researchers that are using laser
RADAR in their robotics research.

Table 9. Researchers using Laser Scanners

Institution/Organization Contact
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Larry Matthies
Machine Vision and Tracking Sensors Group Larry.matthies@jpl.nasa.gov
robotics.jpl.nasa.gov/groups/mvts/homepage.html
Oak Ridge National Laboratory Lynne Parker
www.ornl.gov ParkerLE@Ornl.gov
SRI International Kurt Konolige
www.sri.com Konolige@ai.sri.com
Stanford University Jean-Claude Latombe
Autonomous Observers Stanford CS Robotics Lab Latombe@cs.stanford.edu
underdog.stanford.edu
Yale University Darius Burschka
www.cs.yale.edu Burschka@cs.yale.edu

16
Locating research on laser scanning systems has proved to be a difficult task. Most of the research that is
currently being performed relates to the laser technologies themselves and their possible applications. Table 10
summarizes those institutions, which appear to be pursuing research related to laser scanner technologies.

Table 10. Laser Scanner Research

Institution/Organization Research Area

AFIT C3EM Research Team • Command, Control, Communications,
www.afit.af.mil/Schools/EN/ENG/LABS/C3EMRT/c3 Electromagnetic, and their applications to solving
emrt.htm problems on the modern battlefield
Carnegie Mellon University’ s Robotics Institute, • SICK Laser Scanners/Mobile Robots
University of Pittsburgh, and NASA Ames Research
Center
www.ri.cmu.edu
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), • RASCAL – RAster Scanning Airborne Lidar
Laboratory for Terrestrial Physics (LTP),
Laser Remote Sensing Branch (LRSB)
denali.gsfc.nasa.gov/research/laser/rascal

Table 11 lists some major research organizations and their research areas. This table is by no means
comprehensive, but it does show the diversity of research currently being pursued.

Table 11. Laser Research

Institution/Organization Research Area

American Institute of Physics • Laser-Induced Fission
www.aip.org/physnews/graphics/html/lfission.htm
Beckman Laser Institute & Medical Clinic • Mechanisms of Light Interaction with Biological
www.bli.uci.edu/research/reseacrh.html Systems
• Use of Light to Study Fundamental Problems in
Cell Biology
Center for Laser and Photonics Research • THz Optoelectronics and Ultrafast Laser Science
www.okstate.edu/laser-center/clr_main.html • Preparation and Laser Processing of Optical
Materials
• Laser and Nonlinear Systems
• Solid State Laser Materials for Remote Sensing
Applications
• Optical Device Modeling
Coherent Technologies, Inc. And CLR Photonics, Inc. • Weather/Particle Detection
www.ctilidar.com

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Heriot-Watt University • High Power Pulsed IR/UV
www.phy.hw.ac.uk/resrev/HighP.html
Kyushu University, Institute for Ionized Gas and Laser • Laser Aided Plasma Diagnostics (LAPD)
Research
denrisv.ence.kyushu-u.ac.jp/www-ion
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory • Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF)
lasers.llnl.gov/lasers • Atomic Vapor Laser Isotope (AVLIS)
• Strategic Materials Applications Program (SMAP)
• Advanced Microtechnology
Laser Research Center, Russian Academy of Sciences • Laser Materials Processing
www.infoline.ru/g23/9749/nict1/activity_1.html • Industrial Lasers
• Laser Microtechnologies
• Laser Biomedicine
Lasers Research Group – University of Hull • Laser Ablation, Patterning and Annealing
www.enc.hull.ac.uk/AP/lasers/lasers_homepage.html • Medical Applications of Lasers
• Laser Ablation Deposition and Patterning of Films
• Laser Generated Ultrasound and Non-Destructive
Testing
University of California, Irvine • Ferroelectric & Laser Research
www.eng.uci.edu/ferro.htm
University of Victoria • Fiber Lasers for Sensors and Telecommunications
www.me.uvic.ca/~cbr/fibrelaser.html
Xerox PARC • Blue lasers
www.xerox.com

6. Atmospheric Obscurants

6.1. Obscurants
All laser measurements systems assume that part of the light that is emitted by the laser will be reflected back to
the sensor. Different materials reflect different percentages of the light that is falling on them. The higher the
percentage of light that a material reflects, the stronger the signal that is “ bounced” back to the receiver of the
laser scanning system. It is possible that the light that is reflected back is not strong enough to be detected. It is
also possible that poor visibility conditions (smoke, fog) can cause the light to scatter or to seize travelling in
straight paths. In these cases the basic assumptions/principles of the laser measurement systems are violated, and
the distance computations become invalid.

Many commercial systems handle the “ weak signal” problem by amplifying the light that falls on the receiver.
The problem of atmospheric obscurants is more difficult to compensate for. Fine particles in the air, like those
that compose smoke, snow, rain or fog, cause the narrow laser beam to scatter. As the photons that compose the
laser beam hit a particle of smoke, they may get absorbed or refracted (i.e. the direction of the path, along which

18
the photon was travelling, got altered). It is almost impossible to precisely calculate (and thus correct) how
smoke or fog will affect the laser beam. The type of the smoke (size of smoke particles, chemical composition,
optical behavior of the particles) as well as the density and distribution of the obscurant directly affect how the
laser beam will be altered.

Light behaves like a wave:

When there is no obstacle,

light is transmitted in a straight line:

If there is an obstacle (i.e. smoke particle) which is larger than the width of
the wave, the wave will hit it and change direction and/or frequency:

or

Fig. 8. Schematic representation of the smoke particle problem

6.2. Potential Approaches

6.2.1 Longer Wavelength

One possible solution to the atmospheric obscurants problem is to try to “ bypass” the interfering particles. This
can be achieved by using laser scanners that emit laser at longer wavelengths. Intuitively, once can imagine that
at longer wavelengths (i.e. larger waves) the waves should be able to move around the particles (see figure 8).
Autonomous vehicles used in mining operations already use this solution. These vehicles have to operate in all
types of weather and in a very dusty environment. Their distance measurement system uses electromagnetic
waves, which are 5 to 6 orders of magnitude longer than most lasers, i.e. they are in the mm (microwave) range
[3]. Lasers can be made to emit in the millimeter range. The basic principles of lasers are valid through much of
the electromagnetic spectrum. In fact, the first stimulated emission was in the microwave range of the
electromagnetic spectrum.

19
 At longer wavelengths, the light will “ go through” the obstacle, as long as
its wavelength is longer than the size of the obstacle:

or

Fig. 9. Schematic representation of the “ bypassing” solution

The concept of using longer wavelengths to see through smoke is already being used by firefighters nationwide.
They use infrared “ night vision” goggles to navigate through rooms filled with smoke. The type of products the
use can detect and display electromagnetic waves up to 0.14mm, or 14000nm (mid to far IR). For example,
NightSight, a product of Raytheon in Lexington, Massachusetts, is advertised as being weather proof in detecting
IR emissions.

6.2.2 Last Pulse Signal

Some commercially available laser measurement systems (i.e. RIEGL) have addressed the visibility problem by
using the last pulse technique. The idea behind last pulse systems is that the distance meter provides the
measurement from the very last target its beam hit. The assumption is that as the beam travels through smoke it
will hit the smoke particles before reaching the desired target. The last strong signal that will bounce back will be
the one coming from the true target and not the smoke particles. Initial testing by RIEGL of this technique with
simulated snowfall was very promising. One concern of this practical solution is that the beam reflected from the
target may be scattered on its way from the target to the receiver.

20
6.2.3 Donut Solution
Another possibility that has not been implemented yet is to use a powerful laser to burn through the obscurant.
The laser beam used by the measuring system will be engulfed in a torus (i.e. donut) shaped beam that is capable
of burning though the smoke. A high-energy laser beam that is hollow in the middle will be continuously
emitted. Such a laser beam will create a tunnel of clean, unobscured path. The pulsed laser beam of a standard
laser measurement system will then travel through that tunnel.

6.2.4 Coherent vs. non-coherent light

A more theoretical solution is to take advantage of the unique nature of laser light. As mentioned before, laser
light is coherent. However, the repeated scattering caused by the beam bouncing around in the smoke will make
the light non-coherent. A test for light-coherence will allow the measuring system to discriminate between a
valid signal that has not been altered by smoke, and a signal that has undergone multiple scattering.

References
[1] Bass, Michael, ed. Handbook of Optics: Fundamentals, Techniques and Design. 2nd ed., Vol. I, McGraw-
Hill, 1995.

[2] Born, Max and Wolf, Emil. Principles of Optics: Electromagnetic Theory of Propagation, Interference and
Diffraction of Light. 5th ed., Pergamon Press, 1975.

[3] Durant-Whyte, Hugh. “ An Autonomous Guided Vehicle for Cargo Handling Applications.” The
International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 15, No. 5, October 1996.

[4] Garbuny, Max. Optical Physics. Academic Press, 1965.

[5] Hecht, Jeff. Understanding Lasers: An Entry-Level Guide. IEEE Press, 1992.

[6] Svelto, Orazio. Principles of Lasers. David C. Hanna, ed. Plenum Press, 1998.

[7] Wheeler, Michael D. and McCarthy, Daniel C. “ Photonics on the Battlefield.” Photonics Spectra, Vol. 33,
No. 4, April 1999.

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