Device for optically scanning and measuring an environment

• US 9,074,883 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2010
• Issued: 07/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Faro Technologies Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Faro Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Schumann, Philipp, Becker, Reinhard, Ossig, Martin, Gittinger, Jrgen
• Primary Examiner(s): Ratcliffe, Luke
• Assistant Examiner(s): RODRIGUEZ, VICENTE M
• Application Number:
  US13/259,446
• Publication Number:
  US 20120069325A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,933 Days
• Field of Search: 356/51, 356/610
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/002 Active optical surveying means optical plumbing G01C15/105
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 3/02 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/36 with phase comparison between the received signal and the contemporaneously transmitted signal
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/42 Simultaneous measurement of distance and other co-ordinates indirect measurement G01S17/46
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/89 for mapping or imaging

Abstract

With a device for optically scanning and measuring an environment which is designed as a laser scanner, with a light emitter, which emits an emission light beam, with a light receiver which receives a reception light beam which is reflected by an object in the surroundings of the laser scanner or scattered otherwise, with a control and evaluation unit which determines the distance to the object for a multitude of measuring points, wherein the emission light beam is a superposition of three laser beams having different wave lengths, which define the three-dimensional color space.

Claims

1. A device for optically scanning and measuring an environment, comprising:

a laser scanner having a light emitter that emits an emission light beam, having a collimator that collimates the emission light beam, having a light receiver that receives a reception light beam which is reflected by an object in the surroundings of the laser scanner or scattered otherwise, and having a mirror with a reflective surface that both deflects the emission light beam into the environment and deflects the reception light beam onto the light receiver;

wherein the laser scanner has a control and evaluation unit that determines a distance to, and color and brightness information of, the object for a multitude of measuring points, and wherein the emission light beam is a superposition of three laser beams having different wavelengths which define a three-dimensional color space, wherein, among the three laser beams, one of the laser beams has a higher intensity than the two other laser beams and is modulated;

wherein the laser scanner further has a measuring head that rotates around a vertical axis, and wherein the mirror rotates around a horizontal axis, wherein an intersection point of the vertical axis of rotation and the horizontal axis of rotation defines a stationary reference frame of the laser scanner proximate to which both the emission light beam is deflected into the environment and the reception light beam is deflected onto the light receiver;

wherein all three laser beams together serve for determining the color and brightness information for the measuring points; and

wherein only the one laser beam having the higher intensity and being modulated is sufficient by itself for determining the distance to the object by determination and evaluation of a phase shift between the emission light beam and the reception light beam of the one laser beam having the higher intensity and being modulated.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the light emitter has three laser diodes or other lasers which generate one of the three laser beams each.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the superposition of the three laser beams takes place by feeding the three laser beams into a collimator of the light emitter or by feeding them into a common optic fiber, which is then fed to the collimator of the light emitter.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein, among the three laser beams, the laser beam which serves to determine the distance, has a wavelength which is shorter than 400 nm.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the light emitter is configured such that the three laser beams can be switched on and off independently of each other and their intensity can be controlled.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the light emitter is configured such that the laser diodes or other lasers for generating the three laser beams can be mounted and dismounted independently of each other.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the two other laser beams are modulated and used for eliminating ambient light, for gaining additional distance information, or for error corrections.