Disclosure of Invention
The present invention is directed to solving one or more of the problems set forth above. In general, the present invention provides a scanning device and a lidar including the scanning device that are capable of adjusting and controlling the movement of a reflective device and its associated movable member.
In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a scanning apparatus, including a scanning module, a detection module, and a control module; wherein the scanning module comprises a reflecting device comprising a mirror for reflecting a light beam, the mirror being capable of a deflecting movement with the reflecting device; the detection module is used for detecting the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflector in real time, and the control module is used for monitoring the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflector detected by the detection module in real time and controlling the movement of the reflection device according to the light intensity of the reflected light beam.
Optionally, the light intensity of the reflected light beam is obtained by a current generated by the light beam impinging on the detection device.
Optionally, when the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror detected by the detection module is less than or equal to a preset value, the control module controls the reflection device to stop moving.
Optionally, the control module controls the movement of the reflecting device by adjusting a driving power supply for driving the reflecting device to perform a deflection movement.
Optionally, the scan module further comprises at least one limiting member configured to start to hinder further deflection of the reflecting device beyond a critical deflection angle when the light intensity of the reflected light beam of the reflecting device reaches the critical deflection angle.
Optionally, the scan module further includes a bearing member for bearing the reflection device, the position-limiting member is fixed to the bearing member or integrally formed with the bearing member, and one end of the position-limiting member extends toward the reflection device and abuts against the reflection device when the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflection device reaches a critical deflection angle.
Optionally, the scanning module includes two of the limiting members, and the two limiting members are disposed on the same side of the reflection device and respectively abut against two opposite positions on two sides of the deflection axis of the reflection device.
Optionally, the scanning module comprises one of the stop members, which is configured to be able to abut against two sides of the reflecting device, respectively.
Optionally, the critical deflection angle is-10 ° to +10 ° relative to the initial position.
Optionally, the limiting member is an elastic member.
Optionally, the scanning module comprises a power line electrically connected from the drive power supply to the reflecting means, the power line being configured to comprise a resilient helical section.
In a second aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a lidar including the scanning apparatus of any of the first aspects of the present application.
In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an operation method of a laser radar including the scanning apparatus according to any one of the first aspect, the operation method including the steps of: starting a scanning module to implement scanning operation, wherein the reflecting device carries out deflection motion to reflect a scanning light beam; detecting the light intensity of a light beam reflected by a reflector of the reflecting device in real time by adopting a detection module; the control module monitors the light intensity of the reflected light beam of the reflector detected by the detection module in real time and controls the movement of the reflecting device according to the light intensity of the reflected light beam.
Optionally, the method further comprises the following steps: when the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflector detected by the detection module is less than or equal to a preset value, the control module controls the reflection device to stop moving.
Optionally, the controlling the movement of the reflecting device according to the light intensity of the reflected light beam includes: the control module controls the movement of the reflecting device by adjusting a driving power supply for driving the reflecting device to perform deflection movement.
Therefore, the scanning device, the laser radar comprising the scanning device and the operation method of the laser radar can effectively protect the reflecting device and relevant movable components from being damaged, ensure the normal work of the laser radar, prolong the service life and greatly save the maintenance cost of equipment, and have simple structure, easy realization and higher cost benefit.
Detailed Description
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses.
In the description of the present invention, it is to be understood that the terms "upper", "lower", "top", "bottom", and the like, indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the drawings, are only for convenience in describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the referred device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed in a specific orientation, and be operated, and thus, should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Furthermore, the terms "first", "second" and "first" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. Moreover, the terms "first," "second," and the like are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It is to be understood that the data so used is interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments of the invention described herein are capable of operation in sequences other than those illustrated or described herein.
Referring to fig. 1 and 2, an embodiment of the present invention provides a scanning apparatus, which includes a scanning module 1 and a detecting module 2, where the scanning module 1 and the detecting module 2 are separated by a certain preset distance. Wherein, the scanning module 1 includes the base plate 10, the base plate 10 includes the reflecting device, the said reflecting device includes the reflector 104 and movable member 101 used for reflecting the laser beam, the reflector 104 includes the first surface 1011 used for reflecting the angle measuring light beam; the detection module 2 is located at one side of the substrate 10, specifically, at one side of the first surface 1011 of the reflector 104 away from the substrate 10, wherein the detection module 2 includes a light source 21 and a receiving assembly 22, the light source 21 emits an angle measuring light beam toward the first surface 1011, and the receiving assembly 22 receives the angle measuring light beam reflected by the first surface 1011, so as to detect the light intensity of the reflected light beam of the reflector 104. The mirror 104 further has a second surface 1012 for reflecting the scanning beam, during the scanning operation of the scanning apparatus, the mirror 104 needs to continuously change the deflection angle to scan the surrounding environment, and the detection module 2 detects the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror 104 in real time so as to be used for measuring and calculating the scanning result.
The light intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror 104 can be obtained by the current generated by the light beam striking the detecting device. Specifically, the method comprises the following steps:
in the detection module, the light source 21 may be a laser, and the receiving component 22 may be a Position Sensor (PSD). Referring to fig. 2A, a schematic diagram of the current generated by the detecting device is shown. When the light spot from the scanning device hits on the position sensor, current signals I1, I2, I3 and I4 in four directions are generated. The current signal may be measured by other circuitry. For the PSD, the sum dc amount I1+ I2+ I3+ I4 of the four-way signal output can be used to characterize the intensity of the laser light received by the PSD (i.e., the intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror 104). When the scanning module (including the galvanometer) normally works, the sum of the direct current I1+ I2+ I3+ I4 is kept at a preset value (temperature effect is not considered). This feature can be used to monitor the operating state of the scanning module in real time. When the swing amplitude of the scanning module is too large, the light spot cannot be projected on the PSD, the sum of the currents is smaller than or equal to a preset value, and corresponding measures can be taken for protection.
The base plate 10 further comprises a first torsion axis 102, the movable member 101 is connected with the base plate 10 by the first torsion axis 102, and the movable member 101 is capable of a first deflection motion around the first torsion axis 102. Preferably, the movable member 101 is located in the same plane as the substrate 10 when located at the initial position. The mirror 104 is connected to the movable member 101 by a second torsion axis 105, and the second torsion axis 105 is at an angle to the first torsion axis 102, preferably, in this embodiment, the second torsion axis 105 is at a right angle to the first torsion axis 102. Therefore, when the movable member 101 performs the first deflecting motion about the first torsion axis 102, the mirror 104 can perform the first deflecting motion about the first torsion axis 102 together with the movable member 101, and the mirror 104 can also perform the second deflecting motion relative to the movable member 101 about the second torsion axis 105. In this way, the mirror 104 can perform a pivoting movement in two mutually perpendicular degrees of freedom. Preferably, according to the present invention, the movement rate of the second deflecting motion of the mirror 104 about the second torsion axis 105 may be higher than the vibration frequency of the movable member 101 about the first torsion axis 102 for the first deflecting motion.
In the working process, the scanning device may fall off or impact other parts due to overlarge swing amplitude, overhigh speed and the like, and particularly, the slow shaft is damaged due to overlarge swing amplitude, so that the laser radar cannot normally work, and even other internal structures of the laser radar are damaged. For this reason, in the present invention, a control module (not shown in the figure) is used to control and adjust the movement of the reflecting device including the reflecting mirror 104 and the movable member 101. In particular, the control module monitors the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror 104 detected by the detection module 2 in real time, and when the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror 104 detected by the detection module 2 is less than or equal to a preset value, the control module controls the amplitude, speed, and the like of the first deflection motion and the second deflection motion of the reflection device, thereby protecting the scanning device and the laser radar. Preferably, in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the control module controls the movement of the reflecting device (particularly, the mirror 104) by adjusting a driving power for driving the reflecting device to perform the first and second deflecting movements, for example, preferably, when the light intensity of the light beam (or the light spot) impinging on the position sensor reflected by the mirror 104 detected by the detection module 2 is equal to the above-mentioned preset value, the control module controls the driving power to be set to zero, thereby stopping the movement of the reflecting device (particularly, the mirror 104).
In particular, the control module may employ any suitable electronic control devices, sensing devices, etc. known in the art to implement control operations; and the detection module 2 may also use any suitable measuring device known in the art to measure the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflector 104, wherein the preset value may be set according to the parameters and requirements of the equipment, etc. In some application scenarios, the preset value may be zero.
On the other hand, during operation, the movable member 101 may also hit other parts due to an excessive amplitude of oscillation, resulting in damage, in particular impact damage to the first torsion shaft 102. To this end, with reference to a preferred embodiment according to the present invention shown in fig. 3, at least one stop member 106 may be provided in the scan module 1 to prevent the movable member 101 from swinging too much, the stop member 106 being configured to initiate an obstruction of further deflection of the movable member 101 beyond a critical deflection angle when the deflection angle of the movable member 101 reaches said critical deflection angle. Specifically, the position-limiting member 106 is configured as a sheet-shaped member as shown in the figure, and a support member 108 is connected, one end of the support member 108 is preferably fixed with the base plate 10 by any suitable means such as welding, bonding, screwing, etc., and the support member 108 preferably has a cylindrical shape as shown in the figure, and the other end has a convex portion T, in order to fix the support member 108 to other members, a groove capable of forming a snap fit, an interference fit with the convex portion T may be provided on other members, so that the support member 108 can provide a stable support for the position-limiting member 106 by fixing the support member 108 to other members. In addition, the stop member 106 and its support 108 may also be an integral part of the other members, and are not limited to the configurations described above.
In addition, as shown in the figures, the support 108 can support the stopper member 106 such that the stopper member 106 is at a distance from the plane in which the substrate 10 lies (i.e., the plane in which the movable member 101 lies in the initial undeflected state) such that: when the movable member 101 is deflected by a deflection angle within the critical deflection angle with respect to the substrate 10, the stopper member 106 does not contact the movable member 101; when the angle at which the movable member 101 deflects relative to the base plate 10 reaches or exceeds the critical deflection angle, the stopper member 106 abuts against the movable member 101 and blocks the movable member 101 from further deflecting beyond the critical deflection angle, thereby preventing the stopper member 106 from swinging excessively large. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the critical deflection angle of the movable member 101 is within an angle range of-10 ° to +10 ° with respect to the substrate 10.
The position-limiting member 106 may preferably be a member with certain elasticity, so as to provide certain buffering when abutting against the movable member 101, and prevent damage to the movable member 101 due to rigid contact, for example, the position-limiting member 106 may be made of beryllium copper, which is a material with both elasticity and strength, or may be another material with certain elasticity, which may be selected according to practical application conditions and requirements, without limitation. The stopper member 106 may be made of a rigid material as long as the purpose of restricting the movement of the movable member 101 can be achieved.
Moreover, the other member of the support 108 for fixing the position limiting member 106 may be any suitable member such as a bearing member for bearing the movable member 101 or other circuit board member, and it should be noted that the bearing member may be the substrate 10 or other housing member. By appropriately adjusting the shape and size of the stop member 106 and the support 108, it can be fixed to any suitable member to achieve the technical purpose, in conformity with the structure of the device itself, without the application being particularly restricted. In addition, although the support 108 is taught in the above-described preferred embodiment, the support 108 may be omitted, and only, for example, a substantially sheet-shaped stopper member may be employed, which may be fixed to the base plate 10 or extended toward the movable member 101 as an integral part of the base plate 10 so that the stopper member can restrict the deflecting motion of the movable member 101, and such a stopper member may be configured to extend on both sides of the movable member 101 and to restrict the deflecting motion of the movable member 101 in both directions, whereby only one such stopper member may be provided. Likewise, the configuration features of such a bi-directional stop member may be applied to the above and other embodiments.
As shown in fig. 3, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, two stop members 106 may be provided, the two stop members 106 being disposed on the same side of the movable member 101 (preferably on the side where the detection module 2 is disposed, and may be disposed on the opposite side) and abutting against two opposite positions of the movable member 101 on both sides of the first torsion shaft 102, respectively.
Although in the above exemplary embodiment the stop member 106 is in the form of a sheet, the present invention is not limited thereto, for example, referring to another preferred embodiment according to the present invention shown in fig. 4, wherein the stop member 106 is configured as a "Z" shaped member, one end of which is used to abut against the movable member 101, and the other end of which is used to be fixed to other members, as shown in the figure, a screw hole is included at the other end of the stop member 106, and thus can be fixed to other members by, for example, a screw connection, although the fixing manner may be any other possible fixing manner such as welding, bonding, etc. as described above, and even the stop member 106 may be an integral part of other members. The "Z" shaped stop member 106 does not require additional support and is itself supportive.
Besides, in another non-illustrated preferred embodiment according to the present invention, the stopper member 106 may also be, for example, a coil spring, a column having elasticity, a ball, or any other member capable of providing an abutting and stopping function to the movable member 101, without being limited to the configuration disclosed in the above exemplary embodiment. As can be seen from comparative experiments, the life of the movable member 101 (particularly, the first torsion shaft 102) can be extended by 3 times or more by providing the stopper member.
On the other hand, fig. 5 shows a substrate of the scanning device in fig. 1, in which the configuration of a power supply line S for supplying power to the scanning device is shown. Since the scanning device is constantly in motion, the power supply line S for supplying power thereto is likely to fail due to fatigue fracture, and the remaining length of the power supply line S is also unlikely to be accommodated, which is likely to affect the motion of the mirror 104 and the movable member 101. For this reason, in the present invention, the power cord S is constructed as a winding wire including the elastic spiral section S1, and preferably, both end portions of the power cord S around the first torsion shaft 102 include the elastic spiral section S1, whereby it is possible to extend the life of the power cord S and also to facilitate the accommodation of a margin length reserved for the power cord S.
In addition, the invention also provides a laser radar which comprises the scanning device.
In addition, the present invention also provides a method of operating a lidar including a scanning apparatus according to the present invention as described above, the method comprising the steps of:
starting a scanning module to implement scanning operation, wherein the reflecting device carries out deflection motion to reflect a scanning light beam;
detecting the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflector of the reflecting device in real time by adopting a detection module; and
the control module monitors the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the reflector detected by the detection module in real time and controls the movement of the reflection device.
And, preferably, when the light intensity of the light beam reflected by the mirror detected by the detection module is less than or equal to a preset value, the control module controls the reflection device to stop moving.
And, preferably, the control module controls the movement of the reflecting device by adjusting a driving power for driving the reflecting device to perform a deflecting movement.
By the operation method, the damage of the reflecting device due to overlarge swing amplitude can be effectively avoided.
It is obvious that further different embodiments can be devised by combining different embodiments and individual features in different ways or modifying them.
The scanning device and the lidar comprising same and the method of operation according to preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above in connection with specific embodiments. It will be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive, and that various changes and modifications may be suggested to one skilled in the art in view of the above description without departing from the scope of the invention. Such variations and modifications are also included in the scope of the present invention.
The above embodiments are only used for illustrating the technical solutions of the present application, and not for limiting the same; although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it should be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that: the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments may still be modified, or some technical features may be equivalently replaced; and such modifications or substitutions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the corresponding technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application.