KR20200095258A - Optical apparatus and lidar apparatus having same - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are a Lidar optical device and a Lidar device including the same. The Lidar optical device includes a mirror block disposed adjacent to a laser module assembly including a laser transmission module and a laser reception module, and a rotating unit rotating the mirror block. The mirror block includes a first mirror which reflecting the laser beam of the laser transmission module at a first angle, a second mirror reflecting at a second angle greater than the first angle, a third mirror reflecting at a third angle greater than the second angle, a fourth mirror reflecting at a fourth angle greater than the third angle, a fifth mirror reflecting at a fifth angle greater than the fourth angle, a sixth mirror reflecting at a sixth angle greater than the fifth angle, a seventh mirror reflecting at a seventh angle greater than the sixth angle, and an eighth mirror reflecting at an eighth angle greater than the seventh angle. The first to eighth mirrors are disposed on each of eight outer surfaces of the mirror block in a form of an octagonal column.

Description

A lidar optical device and a lidar device having the same TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a lidar optical device, and more particularly, to a lidar optical device including a mirror block having a plurality of mirrors and a lidar device using the same.

Recently, in order to detect surrounding terrain or objects in automobiles or mobile robots, LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), which is a laser radar device, has been widely used.

Such a radar is a device that emits pulsed laser light into the atmosphere and measures distances, objects, or atmospheric phenomena using the reflected light from a reflector or scatterer in the atmosphere, and calculates the time of the reflected light as a clock pulse. It has a resolution of 5m at ㎒ and 1m at 150 ㎒.

In this way, the radar irradiates the laser light to the surrounding area and uses the time and intensity of the reflected light reflected back from the surrounding object or terrain to measure the distance, speed and shape of the object to be measured, or to accurately measure the surrounding object or terrain. Scan it.

Such a radar is widely applied in various fields, such as sensors for detecting obstacles in front of robots and unmanned vehicles, radar guns for speed measurement, aerial geo-mapping devices, three-dimensional ground surveys, and underwater scanning.

However, the conventional radar emits a laser with a wide beam width corresponding to the angle of view and acquires the distance to the reflector by simultaneously acquiring reflected light from all directions within the angle of view, and thus requires a laser module with a very high output. There is a problem that it is very expensive. In addition, a laser module having a high output has a large size and acts as a factor to increase the overall size of the lidar device.

Particularly, most of the lidar devices with a panoramic scanning function are configured to rotate the entire device including the transmission optical system and the reception optical system. However, when the entire device is rotated, the size of the system becomes larger. This is not only aesthetically pleasing, but also intensifies the problem of increasing price and power consumption.

In addition, in the case of the conventional scanning lidar, it is necessary to change the angle of the reflection mirror in order to scatter the reflection and refraction angles of the laser. Due to this structure, the conventional scanning radar has poor intensive scanning performance for a specific region of interest, and it is impossible to irradiate various laser patterns, and the manufacturing cost is increased due to the use of a plurality of laser light emitting units and light receiving units. There are drawbacks.

The present invention was conceived to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to simplify the structure and drive while maintaining or improving the performance of the lidar device by rotating and driving a mirror block having a plurality of mirrors. It is intended to provide a lidar optical device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a lidar device capable of effectively performing omnidirectional scanning using one motor, one mirror block, and one laser module assembly.

A light detection and ranging radar (LIDAR) optical device according to an aspect of the present invention for solving the above technical problem is an optical device of a lidar device that transmits and receives laser light, and includes a laser transmission module and a laser reception. A mirror block disposed adjacent to a laser module assembly having a module, and a rotation unit rotating the mirror block, wherein the mirror block includes a first mirror that reflects the laser beam of the laser transmission module at a first angle. , A second mirror reflecting at a second angle greater than the first angle, a third mirror reflecting at a third angle greater than the second angle, and a fourth mirror reflecting at a fourth angle greater than the third angle And, a fifth mirror reflecting at a fifth angle greater than the fourth angle, a sixth mirror reflecting at a sixth angle greater than the fifth angle, and a seventh mirror reflecting at a seventh angle greater than the sixth angle A mirror and an eighth mirror reflecting at an eighth angle greater than the seventh angle are provided, and the first to eighth mirrors are disposed on each of eight outer surfaces of the mirror block in the form of an octagonal column.

In one embodiment, the mirror block has an octagonal column shape having an inner hollow portion, and the rotation unit is inserted into the inner hollow portion.

In one embodiment, the first to eighth mirrors have a square plate shape, and the first to eighth mirrors are attached to the surface of the mirror block body in the form of a reflector, or coated on the surface of the mirror block body. do.

In one embodiment, the first to eighth mirrors have a rectangular plate shape, and each of the first to eighth mirrors with respect to a vertical direction perpendicular to a horizontal line and passing through each of the first to eighth mirrors The reflective surfaces have different inclination angles, and the inclination angles of each reflective surface from the first mirror to the eighth mirror are gradually small in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction around the rotation axis of the mirror block by the rotation unit. Lose or grow.

A lidar optical device according to another aspect of the present invention for solving the above technical problem is an optical device of a lidar device that transmits and receives laser light, and is adjacent to a laser module assembly including a laser transmission module and a laser reception module. A mirror block arranged to be arranged, and a rotation unit for rotating the mirror block, wherein the mirror block includes a plurality of mirrors respectively reflecting a laser beam of the laser transmission module at different angles, and the plurality of mirrors Are disposed on a plurality of side surfaces of the mirror block in the form of a polygonal column.

In one embodiment, the rotation unit is inserted and disposed in the inner hollow portion of the mirror block.

In one embodiment, the mirror block includes 5 or more to 20 or less mirrors arranged to be inscribed or circumscribed to a circle.

A lidar device according to another aspect of the present invention for solving the above technical problem, the lidar optical device of any one of the above-described embodiments; And first and second laser transmitting modules for transmitting a laser beam to the lidar optical device, and first and second laser receiving modules for receiving a laser beam reflected from the lidar optical device. It includes, wherein the first and second laser transmission modules are on any one of a plurality of mirrors mounted on the mirror block of the lidar optical device, and a plane including a vertical line orthogonal to a horizontal line is any of the Laser beams spaced apart from each other at regular intervals in the vertical direction are irradiated on a straight line formed when crossing the reflection surface of one mirror.

When the lidar optical device and the lidar device having the same according to the present invention are used, a mirror block including a plurality of mirrors is rotated to effectively scan the periphery of the lidar device, and detect a person or object, or Can measure the distance.

In addition, according to the present invention, there is an advantage in that a drive control algorithm with relatively low complexity can be used by simplifying the device using a single rotating unit, thereby improving efficiency.

In addition, according to the present invention, a plurality of laser modules are installed to cover different scan areas in the vertical direction while dividing the laser emitted to the area to be scanned by laser scanning lines in different areas of the scan area. It enables scans and quick scans of areas.

1 is a perspective view of a lidar device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the upper case is removed from the lidar device of FIG. 1.
3 is a perspective view of the lidar device of FIG. 2 viewed from another side.
4 is a left side view of the lidar device of FIG. 2.
5 is a right side view showing a state in which a part of the lower case is removed from the lidar device of FIG. 2.
6 is a plan view showing an example of the operating state of the lidar device of FIG. 2.
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of a lidar optical device that can be employed in the lidar device of FIG. 6.
8 is a diagram for explaining the principle of operation of the lidar device of FIG. 2.
9 is a diagram for describing an operating state of the LiDAR device of FIG. 2.
10 is an exemplary diagram for describing a scan area by the LiDAR device of FIGS. 8 and 9.
FIG. 11 is an exemplary diagram for explaining a scan area of different resolution by the LiDAR device of FIGS. 8 and 9.
12 is an exemplary view of a scan area for explaining an operating principle of a lidar device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Terms and words used in this specification should not be construed as being limited to a conventional or dictionary meaning, and the inventor is based on the principle that the concept of terms can be appropriately defined in order to describe his or her invention in the best way. It should be interpreted as a meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention.

In addition, since the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and do not represent all the technical spirit of the present invention, various alternatives that can be substituted for them at the time of application It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

The lidar device 100 according to the present embodiment includes an upper case 110 and a lower case 130 as shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, and is disposed on at least one surface of the upper case 110 to be It includes a window 120 for transmitting the laser beam to the outside and for transmitting the laser beam reflected from the outside to the inside.

The lower case 130 includes a bottom plate and a wall frame 131 that is vertically installed on the bottom plate and is installed to be inserted into the box-shaped upper case 110 in which the lower part is open. The wall frame 131 is erected on the four side edges of the square plate-shaped bottom plate, of which the wall frame 131 erected on the window 120 side is mostly removed, so that the inside of the device is removed to the outside through the window 120 It is installed to be open.

In addition, the lidar device 100 includes a laser module assembly 10, a mirror block 20, and a rotation unit 30 installed on the lower case 130.

The laser module assembly 10 includes a first laser module and a second laser module. The first laser module and the second laser module are installed to irradiate a laser to different regions of the first mirrors 21 disposed on the polygonal mirror block 20. When the first laser module and the second laser module coincide with each other, the first laser module and the second laser module are installed to be parallel to each other or at an acute angle to each other to emit laser light toward at least one mirror on the surface of the mirror block 20.

The first or second laser module includes at least one laser diode and at least one plurality of photodiodes emitting pulsed laser beams. Here, the laser diode corresponds to the racer transmission module, and the photodiode corresponds to the laser reception module.

The mirror block 20 includes a plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h disposed in a radial direction on the outer surface of the mirror block body. The plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h reflect the first laser beam of the first laser module and the second laser beam of the second laser module on the front surfaces of the first and second laser modules to transmit and receive signals. It is responsible for the reflection of the laser beam. Each of the plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h may be attached or coated on each surface of the side surfaces of the mirror block 20 in the form of a polygonal column.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of mirrors 21 are sequentially arranged in the order described in the counterclockwise direction from any one mirror, for example, the first mirror 21a, the second to eighth mirrors 21b to 21h. ), each of the first to eighth mirrors has a rectangular plate shape, the first to eighth mirrors with respect to a vertical direction perpendicular to the horizontal line and passing through each of the first to eighth mirrors Each reflective surface has a different inclination angle, and the inclination angles of each reflective surface from the first mirror to the eighth mirror are arranged to gradually decrease or increase in a counterclockwise direction centered on the rotation axis of the mirror block by the rotating unit. do. It goes without saying that the arrangement of the first to eighth mirrors in this configuration is not limited to the counterclockwise direction, but may be arranged clockwise.

In addition, the mirror block 20 is not limited to having 8 mirrors in the shape of a square plate, and a plurality of mirrors attached to the flat surface of each outer side of a polygonal column shape such as a pentagonal column shape or a 20-angle column shape. Can be equipped with.

In the above description, the mirror block 20 on which the plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h is installed may be referred to as a polygonal mirror block in the form of a polygonal column. The mirror block 20 is installed to rotate by a rotating unit 40 having an inner hollow portion thereof and inserted into the inner hollow portion and coupled by fastening means such as screws, nuts, and bolts. According to the above-described configuration, since the lidar optical device can be configured simply by rotating the mirror block 20 through the rotation unit 40 such as a single motor, the components of the device can be reduced and the structure can be simplified.

The plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h of the mirror block 20 may have 5 or more to 20 or less mirrors arranged to be inscribed or circumscribed to a circle corresponding to the longitudinal section of the outer circumferential surface of the mirror block body. It is desirable to have from four to twelve mirrors.

At least one of the first mirrors 21 and the second mirrors 22 may have a flat, curved, or aspherical shape. The arrangement of the laser modules or the emission angle of the laser light may be adjusted according to the shape of the reflective surfaces of the first mirrors 21 and the second mirrors 22.

The vertical inclination angles of the plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h of the above-described mirror block 20 are illustrated in Table 1 below.

No. 1 mirror 21a 21b 21c 21d 21e 21f 21g 21h Inclination angle (") 1.2 1.525 1.85 2.175 2.5 2.825 3.15 3.475

The rotation unit 40 includes a support plate overlapping on the bottom plate of the lower case 130 and a motor support 31 extending vertically upward from the support plate, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7. The motor support part 31 is configured to seat and support a rotating unit such as a motor or a rotating unit 40 in an inner hollow part of the mirror block 20.

The rotation shaft 42 protruding from the top of the rotation unit 40 is disposed to pass through the upper center of the mirror block 20. At this time, a part of the motor support part 31 surrounds and supports the rotation unit 40 and extends to the inside of the upper portion of the mirror block 20, and is closely fixed to the mirror unit 20 by the fastening means 50. According to this configuration, the mirror block 20 is coupled to the rotation shaft 42 of the rotation unit 40 so as to be able to stably rotate without substantial shaking.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, the first inclination angle (B°) of one of the plurality of mirrors (first mirror; 21a) of the mirror block 20 is the other one of the plurality of mirrors ( The fifth mirror; smaller than the fifth inclination angle (C°) of 21e, and the second to fourth inclination angles of the mirrors 21b, 21c, and 21d between the two mirrors 21a and 21e are It can be increased gradually or step by step between 5 inclination angles.

In addition, in addition to the above-described configuration of the mirror block 20, the lidar device 100 of the present invention includes a laser module assembly 10 that transmits a laser beam to a lidar optical device including the mirror block 20. By configuring the first and second laser transmitting modules and the first and second laser receiving modules to receive the laser beam reflected from the lidar optical device, it is possible to expand a scan range or improve a scan speed.

Here, the first and second laser transmission modules are on any one of a plurality of mirrors mounted on the mirror block, and a plane including a vertical line orthogonal to a horizontal line crosses the reflection surface of the one mirror. It may be installed to irradiate laser beams spaced apart from each other at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction on the straight line formed in the case.

The lidar device 100 according to the present embodiment recognizes objects around the device by simply transmitting and receiving lasers using the laser module assembly 10 and the mirror block 20 as shown in FIG. 8. Or you can measure the distance to the object. At this time, since only the mirror block 20 rotates, it is possible to minimize the parts that rotate in the device. In particular, the mirror block 20 is attached to the outer surface of the side surface of the polygonal column block body of the plastic mirror block body. Since it can be manufactured simply by designing that the inclination angle is changed little by little, the overall structure of the device can be simplified and durability and reliability of the device can be improved.

In addition, the lidar device 100 according to the present embodiment has a laser beam emission angle of the first laser module 10a and the second laser module 10b in the laser module assembly 10 as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. The same or at least one of the laser modules may be installed to have a laser beam emission angle in an acute angle range by slightly rotating. At this time, each laser module (10a; 10b) may be installed so as to rotate slightly about the rotation center support (13) for the linear motion of the length of the actuator 14 becomes longer or shorter. As the actuator 14, a piezoelectric element capable of linearly moving a predetermined bar, a hydraulic unit, a pneumatic unit, a gear structure, or the like may be used. Of course, in the laser module, it is possible to directly install a motor in the center of rotation in addition to the above-described rotational structure, but in that case, the number of motors may increase, resulting in a complicated structure and increased cost.

Meanwhile, the above-described LiDAR device irradiates a laser beam to different regions (Sa, Sb, Sc, Sd) simultaneously in a vertical direction or an up-down direction to each mirror of the mirror block 20 as shown in FIG. A plurality of laser receiving modules may be provided.

In addition, the lidar apparatus of the present invention may have a scan area as shown in FIG. 11 by the first laser module 10a and the second laser module 10b and a plurality of mirrors 21a to 21h. . In that case, the first laser module 10a scans the first scan area Sa through the mirrors, and after the first laser module 10a is rotated by a certain angle, the third scan area Sc is again formed through the mirrors. It can be operated to scan.

Similarly, the second laser module 10b scans the second scan area Sb through the mirrors as shown in FIG. 11, and then again through the mirrors after the second laser module 10b is rotated by a certain angle. It may operate to scan the fourth scan area Sd. In that case, the rotation directions of the first laser module 10a and the second laser module 10b may be opposite to each other (eg, clockwise and counterclockwise).

Each of the eight lines in each scan area (hereinafter, simply referred to as a scanning line) is formed by eight mirrors provided on the outer surface of the mirror block in the horizontal direction of the mirror block. Of course, by increasing the number of mirrors having different inclination angles in the mirror block, the number of scanning lines in the vertical direction can be increased (see FIGS. 10 and 11). In addition, if the transmission period of the laser transmission module is increased, the density or resolution of the scanning line itself can be increased.

In this way, the lidar optical device 100 according to the present exemplary embodiment rotates the mirror block 20 including a plurality of mirrors having an inclination angle that gradually increases or decreases to change the reflection angle of the laser to form one horizontal line. The scanning angle and resolution can be changed and the desired resolution can be obtained by using multiple laser transmission modules with different laser beam emission positions or laser beam emission angles while transmitting and receiving laser beams on the scanning line corresponding to. have.

Meanwhile, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the first to fourth scan areas have the same resolution, but the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and the resolution of at least one or more scan areas is implemented differently from the resolution of other scan areas. Can be. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, the resolution S2 of the third scan area Sc is different from the resolution S1 of the first scan area Sa. This configuration can be implemented by configuring the laser beam transmission period of the corresponding laser transmission module during the scanning operation of the third scan area (Sc) different from the laser beam transmission period during the scanning operation of the first scan area (Sa) and controlling the operation. I can.

On the other hand, although the control unit is not specifically mentioned in the above-described embodiment, the lidar optical device according to the present embodiment or the lidar device 100 including the same may further include a control unit. In that case, the control unit controls the on-off operation or rotation speed of the rotation unit 40 such as a motor, controls the transmission and reception operation of the laser module assembly 10, and transmits the received signal to an external device. Can be implemented. In that case, the control unit is configured to synchronize the laser beam transmission timing of the laser transmission module and the rotation position of the mirror block 20 to a preset position and timing to perform a control operation.

The above-described control unit may be implemented as at least one device selected from a logic circuit, a programming logic controller, a microcomputer, a microprocessor, and the like, and may have a communication module or be coupled to a communication module. The communication module communicates with an external device through an intranet, the Internet, a vehicle network, etc., and can transmit a signal or data related to the distance to a target or target detected through laser scanning to the external device. Such a control unit may be mounted in the case of the laser module assembly 10, but is not limited thereto.

Meanwhile, although not shown in the drawings, the lidar device 100 may be provided with a wiring for supplying power, an adapter, or a power supply means. The power supply means may have an internal power supply or a rechargeable power supply, in which case the lidar device may be implemented for use as a removable device.

Using the lidar device of the present invention described above, it is possible to effectively reflect and emit a laser beam emitted from a laser module to a desired target range, and to effectively receive a laser beam reflected from the outside to detect a target by a laser beam or Target measurement can be performed effectively. That is, the rotating mirror block enables effective adjustment of the incident angle and reflection angle of the laser beam emitted through the window from the inside of the outer case through the mirrors on the mirror block surface, and the laser modules rotating at a certain angle are It is possible to effectively perform a laser scanning operation by using another area.

According to the above-described configuration, it is possible to maximize the spatial scanning performance to secure spatial data while effectively controlling the reflection and scattering angle of the laser beam by the combination structure of the laser modules, the mirror block and the rotating unit in the lidar device. There is an advantage.

It is natural that the present invention can be variously modified in addition to the above-described embodiments. The lidar device of the present invention may be generally applied to a vehicle, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, the lidar optical device and the lidar device having the same according to the present invention can be applied not only to vehicles, but also to moving objects such as robots, ships, helicopters, drones, etc., and movement of buildings, columns, towers, etc. is restricted. It can be applied to a fixture without limitation.

As described above, in the detailed description of the present invention, preferred embodiments have been described, but a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field of the present invention will not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims below. It will be understood that the present invention can be variously modified and changed.

Claims (8)

As an optical device for light detection and ranging radar (LIDAR) that transmits and receives laser light,
A mirror block disposed adjacent to a laser module assembly having a laser transmitting module and a laser receiving module, and a rotating unit rotating the mirror block,
The mirror block includes a first mirror reflecting the laser beam of the laser transmission module at a first angle, a second mirror reflecting at a second angle greater than the first angle, and a third angle greater than the second angle. A third mirror reflecting, a fourth mirror reflecting at a fourth angle greater than the third angle, a fifth mirror reflecting at a fifth angle greater than the fourth angle, and a sixth angle greater than the fifth angle And a sixth mirror reflecting by, a seventh mirror reflecting at a seventh angle greater than the sixth angle, and an eighth mirror reflecting at an eighth angle greater than the seventh angle, and the first to eighth Mirrors are arranged on each of the eight outer surfaces of the octagonal column shape of the mirror block. The method according to claim 1,
The mirror block has an octagonal column shape having an inner hollow portion, and the rotation unit is inserted into the inner hollow portion, a lidar optical device. The method according to claim 1,
The first to eighth mirrors have a rectangular plate shape, and the first to eighth mirrors are attached to the surface of the mirror block body in the form of a reflecting plate, or coated on the surface of the mirror block body. Device. The method according to claim 1,
The first to eighth mirrors have a rectangular flat plate shape, and a reflective surface of each of the first to eighth mirrors is different from each other in a vertical direction perpendicular to a horizontal line and passing through each of the first to eighth mirrors. It has an inclination angle, and the inclination angles of each reflective surface from the first mirror to the eighth mirror gradually decrease or increase in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction about a rotation axis of the mirror block by the rotation unit. Optical device. As an optical device for light detection and ranging radar (LIDAR) that transmits and receives laser light,
A mirror block disposed adjacent to a laser module assembly including a laser transmission module and a laser reception module; And
It includes a rotation unit for rotating the mirror block,
The mirror block includes a plurality of mirrors each reflecting a laser beam of the laser transmission module at different angles, and the plurality of mirrors are a liner disposed on a plurality of side surfaces of a polygonal pillar-shaped mirror block. Optical device. The method according to claim 5,
The rotating unit is a lidar optical device that is inserted and disposed in an inner hollow portion of the mirror block. The method according to claim 5,
The mirror block is a lidar optical device having 5 or more to 20 or less mirrors arranged to be inscribed or circumscribed to a circle. The lidar optical device of any one of claims 1 to 7; And
A laser module assembly comprising first and second laser transmitting modules for transmitting a laser beam to the lidar optical device, and first and second laser receiving modules for receiving a laser beam reflected from the lidar optical device Including,
The first and second laser transmission modules are on any one of a plurality of mirrors mounted on the mirror block of the lidar optical device, and a plane including a vertical line orthogonal to a horizontal line is of the one of the mirrors. A lidar device that irradiates laser beams spaced apart from each other at regular intervals in the vertical direction on a straight line formed when crossing the reflective surface.

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