Laser radar

Abstract

The invention discloses a laser radar, and the laser radar comprises the components of light emitters which comprise a first light emitter and a second light emitter; light receivers including a first light receiver and a second light receiver; the polyhedron comprises a first reflecting surface and a second reflecting surface; light emitted by the first light emitter is emitted to the first reflecting surface and is reflected to the external environment by the first reflecting surface, and return light of the light emitted by the first light emitter is reflected to the first light receiver by the first reflecting surface and is received by the first light receiver; the light emitted by the second light emitter is emitted to the second reflecting surface and is reflected to the external environment by the second reflecting surface, and the return light of the light emitted by the second light emitter is reflected to the second light receiver by the second reflecting surface and is received by the second light receiver, so that the altitude output of the laser radar can be realized; therefore, the detection density is increased, the coverage rate during detection is improved, and the detection capability is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of radar technology, and in particular to a laser radar. Background Art

[0002] The line count of a laser radar is the number of laser beams that the laser radar can emit and receive in the vertical direction. The line count is an important parameter to measure the performance of the laser radar, which directly affects the measurement accuracy, resolution and coverage of the laser radar.

[0003] How to increase the number of laser radar lines is an urgent problem to be solved in this field. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a laser radar, which can increase the number of laser radar lines.

[0005] The laser radar of the embodiment of the present application includes: a light transmitter, wherein the light transmitter includes a first light transmitter and a second light transmitter; a light receiver, wherein the light receiver includes a first light receiver and a second light receiver; a polyhedron, wherein the polyhedron includes a first reflecting surface and a second reflecting surface; the light emitted by the first light transmitter is emitted toward the first reflecting surface, and is reflected by the first reflecting surface to the external environment, and the return light of the light emitted by the first light transmitter is reflected by the first reflecting surface to the first light receiver, and is received by the first light receiver; the light emitted by the second light transmitter is emitted toward the second reflecting surface, and is reflected by the second reflecting surface to the external environment, and the return light of the light emitted by the second light transmitter is reflected by the second reflecting surface to the second light receiver, and is received by the second light receiver.

[0006] In some embodiments, the light emitter includes: a substrate; a plurality of light emitting units, the light emitting units including one or more columns, the light emitting units in each column are arranged along the height direction of the substrate, and among the multiple columns of the light emitting units of the first light emitter and / or the second light emitter, any two of the light emitting units in the same row have different heights.

[0007] In some embodiments, the column spacing between the light emitting units in two adjacent columns of the light emitters is the same; and / or, the row spacing between the light emitting units in two adjacent rows of the light emitters is the same.

[0008] In some embodiments, the row pitch of the light emitters is determined based on a line resolution, a number of columns of the light emitting units, and a size of the light emitters.

[0009] In some embodiments, the row spacing of the light emitters is greater than a preset row spacing, and after the emitted light of the light emitters is collimated based on the preset row spacing, the divergence of the collimated light beam is less than a preset divergence.

[0010] In some embodiments, the row spacing of the light emitters is greater than or equal to a dimension of the light emitting unit in the height direction.

[0011] In some embodiments, among the multiple columns of light emitting units of the light emitter, the height difference between any two light emitting units that are in the same row and adjacent to each other in the height direction is the same.

[0012] In some embodiments, the height difference is determined based on the number of columns of the light emitting units and the row spacing.

[0013] In some embodiments, the height difference is determined based on the following formula: Δd=D / N; wherein Δd is the height difference, D is the row spacing, and N is the number of columns of the light emitting units.

[0014] In some embodiments, the number of light emitting units of the light emitting units in different columns of the light emitter is the same or different.

[0015] In some embodiments, the light emitting unit of the light emitter includes a vertical cavity surface emitting laser or a laser diode chip.

[0016] In some embodiments, the vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes a plurality of light emitting holes.

[0017] In some embodiments, the plurality of light-emitting holes include a central light-emitting hole and edge light-emitting holes, the edge light-emitting holes are arranged around the central light-emitting hole, the plurality of edge light-emitting holes are divided into a plurality of groups, and the edge light-emitting holes in each group are arranged in a ring shape.

[0018] In some embodiments, each of the light emitting units includes a plurality of the laser diode chips.

[0019] In some embodiments, each of the light-emitting units emits light independently; or, the plurality of light-emitting units are divided into a plurality of groups, and each group of light-emitting units emits light independently.

[0020] In some embodiments, the number of columns of the light emitting units of the light emitter includes 2 columns or 3 columns.

[0021] In some embodiments, along the height direction of the laser radar, the light transmitter and the light receiver are arranged in sequence; or, the light receiver and the light transmitter are arranged in sequence.

[0022] In some embodiments, it also includes: a reflector, the reflector includes a first reflector and a second reflector, the first reflector is used to guide the light emitted from the first light emitter to the first reflecting surface of the polyhedron and to guide the return light reflected by the first reflecting surface to the first light receiver, and the second reflector is used to guide the light emitted from the second light emitter to the second reflecting surface of the polyhedron and to guide the return light reflected by the second reflecting surface to the second light receiver.

[0023] In some embodiments, the invention further includes: a collimating device for collimating the light emitted by the light emitter; and a lens module for focusing the light returned from the external environment.

[0024] In some embodiments, the optical receiver includes a plurality of receiving units, and the receiving units are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the light emitting units of the optical transmitter.

[0025] In some embodiments, a first ratio of the column spacing between two adjacent columns of the light emitting units and the column spacing between two adjacent columns of the receiving units is the same as a second ratio of the row spacing between two adjacent rows of the light emitting units and the row spacing between two adjacent rows of the receiving units.

[0026] In some embodiments, the first ratio and the second ratio are equal to the focal length ratio of a collimation module used to collimate the light transmitter and a lens module corresponding to the light receiver.

[0027] The laser radar of the present application is provided with a light transmitter, a light receiver and a polyhedron, wherein the light transmitter includes a first light transmitter and a second light transmitter, the light receiver includes a first light receiver and a second light receiver, and the polyhedron includes a first reflecting surface and a second reflecting surface. The light emitted by the first light transmitter is emitted toward the first reflecting surface and is reflected by the first reflecting surface to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the first light transmitter is reflected by the first reflecting surface to the first light receiver and is received by the first light receiver. The light emitted by the second light transmitter is emitted toward the second reflecting surface and is reflected by the second reflecting surface to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the second light transmitter is reflected by the second reflecting surface to the second reflecting surface. The laser radar is a laser radar that transmits light to a first light source and receives light from a second light receiver, that is, two sets of independent light transmitters and light receivers are arranged in the same laser radar (the first light transmitter and the first light receiver are regarded as one set; the second light transmitter and the second light receiver are regarded as another set), and each set of independent light transmitters and light receivers can perform detection and scanning to realize the function of the laser radar; through the two independent sets of light transmitters and light receivers, light is simultaneously transmitted and received based on the two reflecting surfaces of the polyhedron (to realize the function of the laser radar) to realize the high line number output of the laser radar, thereby increasing the detection density, improving the coverage rate during detection, and then improving the detection capability.

[0028] Additional aspects and advantages of the embodiments of the present application will be given in part in the description below, and in part will become apparent from the description below, or will be learned through the practice of the embodiments of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the embodiments of the present application will become apparent and easily understood from the description of the embodiments in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0030] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a laser radar in some embodiments of the present application;

[0031] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a laser radar in some embodiments of the present application;

[0032] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a laser radar in some embodiments of the present application;

[0033] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an optical transmitter in certain embodiments of the present application;

[0034] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an optical transmitter in certain embodiments of the present application;

[0035] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the light-emitting unit of the first light emitter and the light-emitting unit of the second light emitter of the laser radar in some embodiments of the present application;

[0036] Figure 7 is a schematic structural diagram of a light emitting unit of a light emitter in certain embodiments of the present application;

[0037] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an optical receiver in certain embodiments of the present application;

[0038] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an optical receiver in certain embodiments of the present application;

[0039] Fig.10 is a schematic diagram of a scene of a laser radar in certain embodiments of the present application;

[0040] Fig.11 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the receiving unit of the first light receiver and the receiving unit of the second light receiver of the laser radar in certain embodiments of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] The following further describes the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The same or similar reference numerals in the accompanying drawings represent the same or similar elements or elements with the same or similar functions.

[0042] In addition, the embodiments of the present application described below in conjunction with the drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the embodiments of the present application and should not be construed as limiting the present application.

[0043] In the present application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being “above” or “below” a second feature may mean that the first and second features are in direct contact, or the first and second features are in indirect contact through an intermediate medium. Moreover, a first feature being “above”, “above”, and “above” a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being “below”, “below”, and “below” a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0044] Below, the background technology of this application is introduced:

[0045] In the related technologies of laser radar, generally, after the light beam emitted by the laser radar light source (for example, a linear light source) is incident on the optical reflector, the optical reflector is driven to rotate to change the incident angle of the light beam incident on the optical reflector, thereby obtaining the field of view (FOV) in the horizontal direction. The FOV in the vertical direction is generally determined by the highest light source and the lowest light source of the linear light source in the vertical direction, and the highest light source and the lowest light source usually need to pass through the collimating optical system before being incident on the optical reflector. Due to the limitations of the collimating optical system (for example, limited by the projection angle, etc.), the light of the single-row light source of the laser radar is usually scanned at a large line spacing after being projected to a distance, which is prone to missed detection of objects.

[0046] The line count of a laser radar is the number of laser beams that the laser radar can emit and receive in the vertical direction. The line count is an important parameter for measuring the performance of a laser radar, which directly affects the measurement accuracy, resolution, and coverage of the laser radar. How to improve the line count of a laser radar is an urgent problem to be solved in this field.

[0047] At present, the number of scanning lines is generally increased by increasing the number of light source units in a single row, thereby improving the detection accuracy and coverage, and avoiding omissions when detecting objects. However, the increase of light sources is limited (for example, due to the limitations of the size and weight of the laser radar equipment), resulting in the number of laser radar scanning lines (for example, the number of laser radar lines is usually 128 or 256) is still difficult to increase.

[0048] The laser radar 3000 of the present application is described in detail below.

[0049] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 The embodiment of the present application provides a laser radar 3000, and the laser radar 3000 includes:

[0050] The optical transmitter 1000 includes a first optical transmitter 1100 and a second optical transmitter 1200;

[0051] An optical receiver 2000, the optical receiver 2000 comprises a first optical receiver 2100 and a second optical receiver 2200;

[0052] Polyhedron 300, polyhedron 300 includes a first reflecting surface 301 and a second reflecting surface 302;

[0053] The light emitted by the first light emitter 1100 is emitted toward the first reflective surface 301 and is reflected by the first reflective surface 301 to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the first light emitter 1100 is reflected by the first reflective surface 301 to the first light receiver 2100 and is received by the first light receiver 2100.

[0054] The light emitted by the second light emitter 1200 is emitted toward the second reflective surface 302 and is reflected by the second reflective surface 302 to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the second light emitter 1200 is reflected by the second reflective surface 302 to the second light receiver 2200 and is received by the second light receiver 2200.

[0055] The optical transmitter 1000 may be used to transmit laser pulses.

[0056] The optical receiver 2000 may be used to receive laser pulses.

[0057] Optionally, the laser radar 3000 further includes:

[0058] Reflector 400, the reflector 400 includes a first reflector 401 and a first reflector 402, the first reflector 401 is used to guide the light emitted from the first light emitter 1100 to the first reflecting surface 301 of the polyhedron 300 and to guide the return light reflected by the first reflecting surface 301 to the first light receiver 2100, the first reflector 402 is used to guide the light emitted from the second light emitter 1200 to the second reflecting surface 302 of the polyhedron 300 and to guide the return light reflected by the second reflecting surface 302 to the second light receiver 2200.

[0059] Optionally, the laser radar 3000 further includes:

[0060] A collimating device 500, the collimating device 500 is used to collimate the light emitted by the light emitter;

[0061] The lens module 600 is used to focus the light returned from the external environment.

[0062] The collimating device 500 may be a collimating lens, and the lens module 600 may be a focusing lens. Figure 1 , the collimating device 500 may include a first collimating lens 501 and a second collimating lens 502, the first collimating lens 501 may be used to collimate the light reflected by the light emitter, and the second collimating lens may be used to reflect the light reflected by the reflector 400. For another example, the lens module 600 may include a first lens module 601 and a second lens module 602, the first lens module 601 may be used to focus the return light reflected by the polyhedron 300, and the second lens module 602 may be used to focus the return light reflected by the reflector 400.

[0063] The collimating device 500 and the lens module 600 may also be at least one of a reflector 400, a grating and a filter.

[0064] Among them, see Figure 3 The collimation device 500 and the lens module 600 can be connected and isolated in the height direction of the laser radar 3000 through the optical structure 700.

[0065] In which, along the height direction of the laser radar 3000, the light transmitter and the light receiver are arranged in sequence; or, the light receiver and the light transmitter are arranged in sequence. For example, along the height direction of the laser radar 3000, the light transmitter is arranged above the light receiver, or, the light receiver is arranged above the light transmitter.

[0066] Specifically, the laser radar 3000 may include a housing 3100, a light transmitter, a light receiver, a polyhedron 300, and a reflector 400. The light transmitter includes a first light transmitter 1100 and a second light transmitter 1200, and the light receiver includes a first light receiver 2100 and a second light receiver 2200. The first light transmitter 1100 and the first light receiver 2100 are arranged correspondingly, and the second light transmitter 1200 and the second light receiver 2200 are arranged correspondingly.

[0067] A polyhedron consists of multiple reflective surfaces, see e.g. Figure 1, taking the polyhedron including the reflection surface 31, the reflection surface 32 and the reflection surface 33 as an example, during the use of the laser radar, the polyhedron rotates continuously to make different reflections on the light, so as to realize the horizontal FOV scanning in the Y direction. For example, taking the clockwise rotation of the polyhedron as an example, assuming that at the first moment, the light emitted by the first light emitter is emitted to the reflection surface 31 (then the reflection surface 31 is the first reflection surface 301), as the polyhedron rotates, at the second moment, when the light emitted by the first light emitter is emitted to the reflection surface 302, the first reflection surface 301 at this time is the reflection surface 302, and similarly, as the polyhedron rotates, at the third moment, when the light emitted by the first light emitter is emitted to the reflection surface 303, the first reflection surface 301 at this time is the reflection surface 303.

[0068] The polyhedron 300 includes a first reflecting surface 301 and a second reflecting surface 302 . The light emitted by the first light emitter 1100 can be guided by the first reflecting mirror 401 to be emitted toward the first reflecting surface 301 of the polyhedron 300 . The light emitted by the second light emitter 1200 can be guided by the first reflecting mirror 402 to be emitted toward the second reflecting surface 302 of the polyhedron 300 .

[0069] The reflector 400 includes a first reflector 401 and a first reflector 402. The first reflector 401 is disposed corresponding to the first light transmitter 1100, the first reflection surface 301, and the first light receiver 2100. The first reflector 402 is disposed corresponding to the second light transmitter 1200, the second reflection surface 302, and the second light receiver 2200.

[0070] See also Figure 3 The first light transmitter 1100, the first reflector 401, the first reflective surface 301 and the first light receiver 2100 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the axis oo' of the polyhedron 300 in the Y direction with the second light transmitter 1200, the first reflector 402, the second reflective surface 302 and the second light receiver 2200. The polyhedron 300 and the reflector 400 can be shared by the first light transmitter 1100 (the first light receiver 2100) and the second light transmitter 1200 (the second light receiver 2200).

[0071] See also Figure 1, the polyhedron 300 also includes a motor 303, a motor control circuit 304 and a code disk 305. The rotor of the motor 303 is embedded in the polyhedron 300, and the stator of the motor 303 is fixed (such as fixed by the motor 303 seat) on the bottom plate of the shell of the laser radar 3000. The motor 303 is connected to the control board of the laser radar 3000 through the motor 303 control circuit to obtain the control signal and driving current of the motor 303. The code disk 305 is arranged at the bottom of the rotor of the motor 303 (and the polyhedron 300), and is located above the probe 3041 of the motor 303 control circuit. The first reflection surface 301 and the second reflection surface 302 of the polyhedron 300 can rotate under the drive of the motor 303, the motor 303 control circuit and the code disk 305, and the light emitted by the first reflection surface 301 and the second reflection surface 302 can scan the horizontal FOV in the Y direction.

[0072] For the convenience of description, the implementation principle of the present application is explained by taking the first light transmitter 1100 , the first reflector 401 , the first reflective surface 301 of the polyhedron 300 , and the first light receiver 2100 as examples.

[0073] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the light emitted by the first light emitter 1100 is first collimated by the first collimating lens, propagates to the first reflector 401, and is reflected by the first reflector 401. After being collimated by the second collimating lens, it is emitted to the first reflective surface 301 of the polyhedron 300, and is finally reflected to the external environment by the first reflective surface 301. The light emitted by the first light emitter 1100 is reflected by the detected object in the external environment to obtain return light, which can be reflected by the first reflective surface 301 to the first lens module 600, focused by the first lens module 600 to the first reflector 401, and finally reflected by the first reflector 401, and focused by the second lens module 600 to the first light receiver 2100.

[0074] Thus, by setting a light transmitter, a light receiver and a polyhedron, the light transmitter includes a first light transmitter and a second light transmitter, the light receiver includes a first light receiver and a second light receiver, and the polyhedron includes a first reflection surface and a second reflection surface. The light emitted by the first light transmitter is emitted toward the first reflection surface and is reflected by the first reflection surface to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the first light transmitter is reflected by the first reflection surface to the first light receiver and is received by the first light receiver. The light emitted by the second light transmitter is emitted toward the second reflection surface and is reflected by the second reflection surface to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the second light transmitter is reflected by the second reflection surface to the second light receiver. The light is emitted by a light transmitter and received by a second light receiver, that is, two sets of independent light transmitters and light receivers are arranged in the same laser radar (the first light transmitter and the first light receiver are regarded as one set; the second light transmitter and the second light receiver are regarded as another set), and each set of independent light transmitters and light receivers can perform detection and scanning to realize the function of the laser radar; the two sets of independent light transmitters and light receivers are used to simultaneously transmit and receive light based on the two reflecting surfaces of the polyhedron (to realize the function of the laser radar) to realize the high line number output of the laser radar, thereby increasing the detection density, improving the coverage rate during detection, and then improving the detection capability.

[0075] Next, the optical transmitter 1000 of the present application is described in detail.

[0076] See also Figure 4 , the optical transmitter 1000 comprises:

[0077] substrate 100;

[0078] Multiple light-emitting units, the light-emitting units include one or more columns, each column of light-emitting units is arranged along the height direction of the substrate 100, and among the multiple columns of light-emitting units of the first light emitter and / or the second light emitter, any two light-emitting units in the same row have different heights.

[0079] The light-emitting unit includes one column or multiple columns. For example, the light-emitting unit of the first light emitter and the light-emitting unit of the second light emitter may both be one column; for another example, the light-emitting unit of the first light emitter may include one column, and the light-emitting unit of the second light emitter may include multiple columns; for another example, the light-emitting unit of the first light emitter and the light-emitting unit of the second light emitter may both include multiple columns.

[0080] The substrate 100 is used to carry a plurality of light-emitting units.

[0081] Among them, the light-emitting unit can emit laser pulses.

[0082] Optionally, the number of light emitting units in different columns of light emitting units is the same or different.

[0083] For example, see Figure 4 The number of light emitting units in the first column and the number of light emitting units in the second column may be the same or different.

[0084] The number of columns of the light emitting units may include 2 columns or 3 columns.

[0085] Specifically, the light emitter 1000 includes a substrate 100 and a plurality of light emitting units, and the light emitting units may be disposed on the substrate 100. The light emitting units include a plurality of columns, such as Figure 4 The number of columns of the light-emitting units shown is 2; or Figure 5 The number of columns of light-emitting units shown is 3. The number of light-emitting units in different columns may be the same or different (for example, Figure 4 , the first column of light-emitting units includes N, the second column of light-emitting units includes M, N=M; or, N≠M), each column of light-emitting units is arranged along the height direction z of the substrate 100, and in multiple columns of light-emitting units of the same light emitter (taking the first light emitter as an example), the heights of any two light-emitting units in the same row are different, such as Figure 4 As shown, the height z1 of the light emitting unit 211 in the first row and the first column is different from the height z2 of the light emitting unit 221 in the second row and the second column.

[0086] Please continue reading Figure 4 , the vertical FOV of the light emitter 1000 in the height z direction is generally determined by the angle between the light emitted by the light emitting unit 211 with the highest height (z1) and the light emitted by the light emitting unit 221 with the lowest height (zN). In the same row, the height of the light emitting unit in the first column is different from the height of the light emitting unit in the second column (there is a height difference H). When scanning, it can be equivalent to embedding the multiple light emitting units in the second column into the light emitting units in the first column, respectively, at the center of the gap between two adjacent light emitting units. Then, the light beams emitted by the two columns of light emitting units have a total of N+M lines. Compared with a single column of light emitting units (taking the first column of light emitting units, including N lines as an example), within the vertical FOV range in the height z direction, a total of M lines are added, thereby increasing the number of lines when the light emitter 1000 is scanned.

[0087] See also Fig. 9 , there is a height difference of 1 / 4H between the central axis of the light emitting unit of the first light emitter 1100 and the central axis of the light emitting unit of the second light emitter 1200, the central axis of the first column of light emitting units of the second light emitter 1200 coincides with the central axis of the first column of light emitting units of the first light emitter 1100, and the central axis of the second column of light emitting units of the second light emitter 1200 coincides with the central axis of the second column of light emitting units of the first light emitter 1100. Therefore, from the perspective of the Y direction, it can be seen that the light emitting units of the second light emitter 1200 are evenly embedded between the light emitting units of the first light emitter 1100.

[0088] The first emitter and the second emitter have multiple columns of light-emitting units in the same row, and their heights are different. Therefore, when the lidar scans, light can be emitted from different heights, thereby increasing the number of light lines, and obtaining as many scanning lines as possible within the same FOV, further increasing the detection density.

[0089] In this way, by setting multiple columns of light-emitting units on the substrate 100, each column of light-emitting units is arranged along the height direction of the substrate 100 to achieve more uniform light coverage. Since the heights of any two light-emitting units in the same row in the multiple columns of light-emitting units are different, that is, each light-emitting unit can emit light at different heights, the number of light lines is increased, so that more scanning lines can be obtained within the same FOV, so that the scanning lines of multiple columns of light-emitting units at different heights on the same scanning path can complement each other, increase the detection density, improve the coverage during detection, and thus improve the detection capability.

[0090] In some embodiments, the light emitting unit includes a vertical cavity surface emitting laser 21 or a laser diode chip 22 .

[0091] Among them, see Figure 7 The vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser 21 (Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, VCSEL) includes a plurality of light-emitting holes, each of which can emit light.

[0092] The plurality of light-emitting holes include a central light-emitting hole and edge light-emitting holes, the edge light-emitting holes are arranged around the central light-emitting hole, the plurality of edge light-emitting holes are divided into a plurality of groups, and each group of edge light-emitting holes is arranged in a ring shape. Figure 7 The multiple light-emitting holes include a central light-emitting hole A and two groups of edge light-emitting holes (edge ​​light-emitting hole B and edge light-emitting hole C). The two groups of edge light-emitting holes are arranged around the central light-emitting hole, and the two groups of edge light-emitting holes are arranged in a ring shape.

[0093] Optionally, each light emitting unit includes a plurality of laser diode chips 22 .

[0094] The plurality of laser diode chips 22 (Laser Diode, LD chips) may include a central LD ​​chip and edge LD chips, the edge LD chips are arranged around the central LD ​​chip, the plurality of edge LD chips are divided into a plurality of groups, and each group of edge LD chips is arranged in a ring shape.

[0095] It can be understood that the power of the light generated by a single light-emitting unit is positively correlated with the number of light-emitting holes (or the number of LD chips), that is, the more light-emitting holes (or the number of LD chips) a single light-emitting unit has, the higher the power of the light emitted by the single light-emitting unit, and the longer the object detection distance.

[0096] Optionally, each light-emitting unit emits light independently; or, a plurality of light-emitting units are divided into a plurality of groups, and each group of light-emitting units emits light independently.

[0097] Each light-emitting unit can be controlled individually to emit light independently; or, multiple units can be divided into multiple groups, and each group of light-emitting units emits light independently. For example, each light-emitting unit can be controlled to emit light in sequence based on a time sequence; or, each group of light-emitting units can be controlled to emit light independently, and each light-emitting unit in each group of light-emitting units can emit light at the same time.

[0098] See also Figure 5 In some embodiments, the column spacing between two adjacent columns of light emitting units of the light emitter is the same; and / or, the row spacing between two adjacent rows of light emitting units is the same.

[0099] The same column spacing between two adjacent columns of light-emitting units may be that the column spacing between two adjacent columns of light-emitting units is smaller than a preset difference.

[0100] Specifically, see Figure 5 , taking the example of light-emitting units including 3 columns, the column spacing d1 between the first column of light-emitting units and the second column of light-emitting units is the same as the column spacing d2 between the second column of light-emitting units and the third column of light-emitting units; and / or the row spacing D1 between the first row of light-emitting units and the second row of light-emitting units is the same as the row spacing D2 between the second row of light-emitting units and the third row of light-emitting units.

[0101] Optionally, the column spacings between two adjacent columns of light emitting units may also be different.

[0102] Optionally, the row spacing is determined based on the line resolution, the number of columns of the light emitting units, and the size of the light emitter 1000 .

[0103] The line resolution may be the angle between the two light beams.

[0104] Specifically, see Figure 4 The physical size of the substrate 100 of the light emitter 1000 in the height direction z affects the maximum number of rows of the plurality of light emitting units. Figure 4 Taking the first column of light-emitting units as an example, the line resolution of the light emitted by the light-emitting unit 211 with the highest height (z1) and the light emitted by the light-emitting unit 21N with the lowest height (zN) will affect the ability to capture details during scanning, and the number of columns of light-emitting units will affect the coverage of the scan. Therefore, the row spacing can be determined based on the line resolution, the number of columns of light-emitting units, and the size of the light emitter 1000.

[0105] Optionally, the row spacing is greater than a preset row spacing, and after the light emitted by the light emitter 1000 is collimated based on the preset row spacing, the divergence of the collimated light beam is less than the preset divergence.

[0106] Optionally, the row spacing is greater than or equal to the size of the light emitting unit in the height direction to avoid mutual light blocking between the light emitting units.

[0107] The preset divergence is related to the light scanning requirement of the light emitter 1000 .

[0108] Specifically, when the line spacing is greater than the preset line spacing, the divergence of the collimated light beam after the light emitted by the light emitter 1000 is collimated can be less than the preset divergence, thereby meeting the scanning requirements.

[0109] It is understandable that when the row spacing is greater than the preset row spacing, although the divergence of the collimated light beam can be guaranteed, the number of scan lines in the vertical direction will be reduced. However, the present application sets multiple columns of light-emitting units, and in the multiple columns of light-emitting units, the heights of any two light-emitting units in the same row are different, thereby increasing the number of scan lines while ensuring the divergence of the collimated light beam to ensure scanning accuracy.

[0110] Optionally, among the multiple columns of light-emitting units, the height difference between any two light-emitting units that are in the same row and adjacent in the height direction is the same.

[0111] Specifically, if the height difference between any two adjacent light-emitting units in the same row in the height direction is different among multiple columns of light-emitting units, that is, when setting the light-emitting units, the density of the light-emitting units in the same row is different, then the detection accuracy based on the light emitter 1000 will be uneven, affecting the detection effect. Therefore, by setting the same height difference, the detection accuracy of each area and position is uniform.

[0112] Optionally, the height difference is determined based on the number of columns and row spacing of the light emitting units.

[0113] The height difference is determined based on the following formula:

[0114] Δd=D / N;

[0115] Wherein, Δd is the height difference, D is the row spacing, and N is the number of columns of the light-emitting unit.

[0116] Specifically, see Figure 5 , taking the case where the number of columns of light-emitting units is 3 as an example, when the row spacing D is determined, the height difference Δd=D / 3 is determined according to the ratio of the row spacing and the number of columns. In this way, in any column of light-emitting units, multiple light-emitting units can be embedded between any two adjacent rows of light-emitting units to increase the number of lines.

[0117] The present application also proposes an optical receiver 2000 , which includes a plurality of receiving units, and the receiving units and the light emitting units of the optical transmitter 1000 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0118] Among them, the optical receiver 2000 can be a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) chipset; or, it can also be a single photon avalanche diode (SPAD) array receiving chip; or, it can also be an optical receiving module after avalanche photodiodes (APD) are arranged in lines.

[0119] Specifically, see Figure 4 and Figure 8 The optical receiver 2000 includes a plurality of receiving units, and the receiving units are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the light emitting units of the optical transmitter 1000, that is, when the return light emitted by the light emitting unit is received by the optical receiver 2000, the position and orientation of the receiving unit receiving the return light corresponds to the position and orientation of the light emitting unit emitting the light. Figure 8 The receiving unit 311 and Figure 5 The light emitting unit 211 is configured accordingly, and the return light of the light emitted by the light emitting unit 211 can be received by the receiving unit 311.

[0120] For example, see Figure 5 ,exist Figure 5 In the light emitter 1000 shown, three columns of light-emitting units are included in the Y direction, the first column includes N light-emitting units, the second column includes M light-emitting units, and the third column includes X light-emitting units. The column spacing between the light-emitting units in the first column and the light-emitting units in the second column is d1, and the column spacing between the light-emitting units in the second column and the light-emitting units in the third column is d2, and d1 and d2 can be equal or unequal. Assume that in each column of light-emitting units, the row spacing between the light-emitting units in two adjacent rows is D1. Then, in the Z direction, the light-emitting units in the second column and the light-emitting units in the third column can both be regarded as light-emitting units embedded in the first column. In the Y direction, among the light-emitting units in the same row, there is a height difference of H1 between the light-emitting units in the first column and the light-emitting units in the third column, there is a height difference of H2 between the light-emitting units in the second column and the light-emitting units in the third column, and there is a height difference of H3 between the light-emitting units in the second column and the light-emitting units in the first column of the next row, and H1, H2 and H3 are equal.

[0121] See also Fig. 9 ,exist Fig. 9The optical receiver 2000 shown includes three columns of receiving units in the Y direction, the first column includes N receiving units, the second column includes M receiving units, and the third column includes X receiving units. The column spacing between the receiving units in the first column and the receiving units in the second column is d3, and the column spacing between the receiving units in the second column and the receiving units in the third column is d4, and d3 and d4 can be equal or unequal. In the Y direction, among the receiving units in the same row, there is a height difference of H4 between the receiving units in the first column and the receiving units in the third column, a height difference of H5 between the receiving units in the second column and the receiving units in the third column, and a height difference of H6 between the receiving units in the second column and the receiving units in the first column of the next row, and H4, H5 and H6 are equal.

[0122] See also Figure 5 and Fig. 9 After the N+M+X light beams emitted by the optical transmitter 1000 are emitted, the return light of the N+M+X light beams can be received by the N+M+X light receivers 2000 of the optical receiver 2000 one by one.

[0123] Optionally, a first ratio of a column spacing between two adjacent columns of light emitting units and a column spacing between two adjacent columns of receiving units is the same as a second ratio of a row spacing between two adjacent rows of light emitting units and a row spacing between two adjacent rows of receiving units.

[0124] Optionally, the first ratio and the second ratio are equal to the focal length ratio of a collimation module for collimating the light transmitter 1000 and a lens module corresponding to the light receiver 2000 .

[0125] The column spacing between two adjacent columns of light emitting units and the column spacing between two adjacent columns of receiving units may be the same or different, and the row spacing between two adjacent rows of light emitting units and the row spacing between two adjacent rows of receiving units may also be the same or different.

[0126] Specifically, see Figure 5 and Fig. 9, when the first ratio of the column spacing between two adjacent columns of light-emitting units and the column spacing between two adjacent columns of receiving units is different from the second ratio of the row spacing between two adjacent rows of light-emitting units and the row spacing between two adjacent rows of receiving units, the receiving unit may not be able to receive the light of the light-emitting unit, thereby causing a detection blind spot, affecting the accuracy and precision of the detection. Therefore, the first ratio and the second ratio are the same, so that the light emitted by each light-emitting unit can be received by the corresponding receiving unit. Since the collimation module for collimating the light transmitter 1000 affects the divergence angle and propagation path of the light emitted by the light-emitting unit, and the lens module corresponding to the light receiver 2000 affects the divergence angle and propagation path of the light received by the receiving unit, and when the first ratio and the second ratio are equal to the focal length of the collimation module for collimating the light transmitter 1000 and the lens module corresponding to the light receiver 2000, it can be ensured that the light transmission path between the receiving unit and the light-emitting unit can be consistent, thereby improving the intensity of the light received by the receiving unit, and improving the accuracy and stability of the detection.

[0127] It can be understood that the maximum value of the FOV in the horizontal direction is limited by the number n of the reflective surfaces of the polyhedron 300, and the two have the following relationship:

[0128] FOVmax=2*(360 / n)

[0129] See also Figure 8 ,exist Figure 8 In the optical path between the second collimating lens and the first reflecting surface 301, the intercepting surface S perpendicular to the X direction, if a real object is placed on the intercepting surface S, the polyhedron 300 structure and its reflecting surface are in Figure 1 In the orientation shown, the light beam of the light emitting unit 211 of the first light emitter 1100 is projected onto the point 10AA1' on the section S after passing through the reflector 400, and the light beam of the light emitting unit 212 is projected onto the point 10AB1' on the section S after passing through the reflector 400. The projection points of the light emitting unit 211 to the light emitting unit 21N are 10AA1' to 10AAN', respectively, and the projection points of the light emitting unit 221 to the light emitting unit 22M are 10AB1' to 10ABM', respectively, and so on.

[0130] See also Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Fig.10, the motor 303 can drive the first reflection surface 301 and the second reflection surface 302 to rotate, and the rotation angle is 120° as an example. After the light-emitting unit 211 passes through the rotating first reflection surface 301, multiple 10AA1' points can be projected on the cross section S, and these projection points are connected to form a line AA1L. After the light-emitting unit 221 passes through the rotating first reflection surface 301, multiple 10AB1' points can be projected on the cross section S, and these projection points are connected to form a line AB1L. In this way, the projection points within the vertical FOV can be connected to form N+M lines respectively; these N+M lines are embedded in the middle position where the projection points of the light-emitting unit 211 to the light-emitting unit 21N and the light-emitting unit 221 to the light-emitting unit 22M in the vertical FOV are connected to form N+M lines. There are a total of 2*(N+M) lines (including the first light emitter 1100 and the second light emitter 1200) within the vertical FOV range of the cross section S.

[0131] See also Fig.11 In the Z direction, there is a height difference of 1 / 4H between the central axis of the light-emitting unit of the first light receiver 2100 and the central axis of the light-emitting unit of the second light receiver 2200, the central axis of the first column of light-emitting units of the second light receiver 2200 coincides with the central axis of the first column of light-emitting units of the first light receiver 2100, and the central axis of the second column of light-emitting units of the second light receiver 2200 coincides with the central axis of the second column of light-emitting units of the first light receiver 2100. Therefore, from the perspective of the Y direction, it can be seen that each light-emitting unit of the second light receiver 2200 is evenly embedded between each light-emitting unit of the first light receiver 2100, thereby realizing the return of light to each light-emitting unit of the first light transmitter 1100 and the second light transmitter.

[0132] Please refer again Figure 1 and Figure 2 The control board 3200 of the laser radar 3000 may also include a timing control chip and an amplification processing circuit, etc. For example, the timing control chip of the control board of the laser radar 3000 may control each light emitting unit of the light transmitter to emit light (light pulses) in sequence according to a time sequence.

[0133] The optical transmitter may further include a driving board. For example, the first optical transmitter 1100 includes a first driving board 1110 and the second optical transmitter 1200 includes a second driving board 1210. The first driving board 1100 and the second driving board 1210 may be connected to the control board of the laser radar 3000, respectively, to receive control signals for controlling the light-emitting units of the first optical transmitter 1100 and the second optical transmitter 1200, respectively. Similarly, the optical receiver may further include a tail board. For example, the first optical receiver 2100 includes a first tail board 2110 and the second optical receiver 2200 includes a second tail board 2210. The first tail board 2110 and the second tail board 2210 may be connected to the control board of the laser radar 3000, respectively. The control board of the laser radar 3000 can obtain the flight time of the light pulse through the driving board and the tail board to calculate the flight time (Time-of-Flight, TOF) and obtain the detection result (such as the distance to the detected target, etc.), and then obtain the azimuth information under the TOF through the motor 303 control circuit, and output it through the I / O interface 3300. The I / O interface 3300 also inputs current from the outside to maintain the consumption of the laser radar 3000.

[0134] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to the terms "certain embodiments", "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "illustrative embodiments", "examples", "specific examples", or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiments or examples are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In this specification, the schematic representation of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0135] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one feature. In the description of this application, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0136] Although the embodiments of the present application have been shown and described above, it can be understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and cannot be understood as limitations on the present application. Ordinary technicians in this field can change, modify, replace and modify the above embodiments within the scope of the present application. The scope of the present application is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A laser radar, characterized in that: include: A light emitter, the light emitter comprising a first light emitter and a second light emitter; an optical receiver, the optical receiver comprising a first optical receiver and a second optical receiver; A polyhedron, the polyhedron comprising a first reflecting surface and a second reflecting surface; The light emitted by the first light emitter is emitted toward the first reflecting surface and is reflected by the first reflecting surface to the external environment, and the return light of the light emitted by the first light emitter is reflected by the first reflecting surface to the first light receiver and is received by the first light receiver; The light emitted by the second light emitter is emitted toward the second reflecting surface and is reflected by the second reflecting surface to the external environment. The return light of the light emitted by the second light emitter is reflected by the second reflecting surface to the second light receiver and is received by the second light receiver.

2. The laser radar according to claim 1, characterized in that: The optical transmitter comprises: substrate; A plurality of light-emitting units, wherein the light-emitting units include one or more columns, and the light-emitting units in each column are arranged along the height direction of the substrate. Among the light-emitting units in the plurality of columns of the first light emitter and / or the second light emitter, any two light-emitting units in the same row have different heights.

3. The laser radar according to claim 2, characterized in that: The column spacing of the light emitting units in two adjacent columns of the light emitters is the same; and / or the row spacing of the light emitting units in two adjacent rows of the light emitters is the same.

4. The laser radar according to claim 3, characterized in that: The row pitch of the light emitters is determined based on a line resolution, a number of columns of the light emitting units, and a size of the light emitters.

5. The laser radar according to any one of claims 3 and 4, characterized in that The row spacing of the light emitters is greater than a preset row spacing, and after the emitted light of the light emitters is collimated based on the preset row spacing, the divergence of the collimated light beam is less than the preset divergence.

6. The laser radar according to claim 5, characterized in that: The row spacing of the light emitters is greater than or equal to the dimension of the light emitting unit in the height direction.

7. The laser radar according to claim 3, characterized in that: Among the multiple columns of light emitting units of the light emitter, the height difference between any two adjacent light emitting units in the same row and in the height direction is the same.

8. The laser radar according to claim 7, characterized in that: The height difference is determined based on the number of columns of the light emitting units and the row spacing.

9. The laser radar according to claim 8, characterized in that: The height difference is determined based on the following formula: Δd=D / N; Wherein, Δd is the height difference, D is the row spacing, and N is the number of columns of the light emitting units.

10. The laser radar according to claim 2, characterized in that: The number of light emitting units of the light emitting units in different columns of the light emitter is the same or different.

11. The laser radar according to claim 2, characterized in that: The light emitting unit of the light emitter includes a vertical cavity surface emitting laser or a laser diode chip.

12. The laser radar according to claim 11, characterized in that: The vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes a plurality of light emitting holes.

13. The laser radar according to claim 12, characterized in that: The multiple light-emitting holes include a central light-emitting hole and edge light-emitting holes. The edge light-emitting holes are arranged around the central light-emitting hole. The multiple edge light-emitting holes are divided into multiple groups, and each group of edge light-emitting holes is arranged in a ring shape.

14. The laser radar according to claim 11, characterized in that: Each of the light emitting units includes a plurality of the laser diode chips.

15. The laser radar according to claim 11, characterized in that: Each of the light-emitting units emits light independently; or, the plurality of light-emitting units are divided into a plurality of groups, and each group of light-emitting units emits light independently.

16. The laser radar according to claim 2, characterized in that: The number of columns of the light emitting units of the light emitter includes 2 columns or 3 columns.

17. The laser radar according to claim 1, characterized in that: Along the height direction of the laser radar, the light transmitter and the light receiver are arranged in sequence; or, the light receiver and the light transmitter are arranged in sequence.

18. The laser radar according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A reflector, the reflector includes a first reflector and a second reflector, the first reflector is used to guide the light emitted from the first light transmitter to the first reflecting surface of the polyhedron and to guide the return light reflected by the first reflecting surface to the first light receiver, and the second reflector is used to guide the light emitted from the second light transmitter to the second reflecting surface of the polyhedron and to guide the return light reflected by the second reflecting surface to the second light receiver.

19. The laser radar according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A collimating device, the collimating device is used to collimate the light emitted by the light emitter; A lens module is used to focus the light returned from the external environment.

20. The laser radar according to claim 2, characterized in that: The optical receiver includes a plurality of receiving units, and the receiving units are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the light emitting units of the optical transmitter.

21. The laser radar according to claim 20, characterized in that: A first ratio of the column spacing between the light emitting units in two adjacent columns to the column spacing between the receiving units in two adjacent columns is the same as a second ratio of the row spacing between the light emitting units in two adjacent rows to the row spacing between the receiving units in two adjacent rows.

22. The laser radar according to claim 21, characterized in that: The first ratio and the second ratio are equal to the focal length ratio of a collimating module used to collimate the light transmitter and a lens module corresponding to the light receiver.

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