What does a lidar camera see?

Lidar “sees in 3D, a big advantage when precision and precision are paramount. Laser-based technology produces 3D maps, or point clouds, in real time and high-resolution of the environment, demonstrating an unparalleled level of distance accuracy for cameras, even those with stereoscopic vision. The Lidar is a type of time-of-flight camera. Other smartphones measure depth with a single pulse of light, while a smartphone with this type of LIDAR technology sends waves of light pulses in the form of infrared dots and can measure each of them with its sensor, creating a point field that maps distances and can combine the dimensions of a space and the objects it contains.

Light pulses are invisible to the human eye, but can be seen with a night vision camera. LiDAR is an acronym for Light Detection and Ranging. In LiDAR, laser light is sent from a source (transmitter) and is reflected from objects in the scene. The system receiver detects reflected light and the time of flight (TOF) is used to develop a distance map of the objects in the scene.

iPhones can now use LiDAR to detect how far away people or objects are and then use that data to automatically focus more quickly and precisely. In fact, Apple claims that iPhones with LiDAR can focus up to six times faster, even in low light conditions. Apple's LIDAR scanner is said to be able to scan objects at a distance of up to five meters. Because the laser works at the photon level, it can work at night or during the day, inside or out.

However, it cannot “see” through objects, so rain, people passing by, etc., could confuse the system. Nowadays, LiDAR is frequently used to create a three-dimensional model of the world surrounding the LiDAR sensor. In addition, topographic LiDAR uses a near-infrared laser to map terrain and buildings, and bathymetric LiDAR uses green light that penetrates water to map the seabed and riverbeds. Virtually all manufacturers seeking autonomous driving consider LiDAR to be a key enabling technology, and some LiDAR systems are now available for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).