The present disclosed subject matter relates to a method for measuring the distance of targets in the surroundings by way of a time-of-flight measurement of pulses reflected at said targets, in particular laser pulses, said method comprising: emitting a sequence of transmission pulses having varying pulse intervals, and receiving at least one receive pulse after each one of two different transmission pulses; for each receive pulse: generating a group of M candidate distances, each based on a different transmission pulse among M transmission pulses preceding the receive pulse, wherein each candidate distance is assigned to the corresponding transmission pulse on which it is based; for each candidate distance: determining a weighting value on the basis of at least the closest of the candidate distances assigned to such a transmission pulse which is adjacent to the transmission pulse to which the candidate distance being considered in this determining process is assigned; for each group: selecting the candidate distance with the highest weighting value as the distance measurement value of the receive pulse for which the group was generated.

The technology relates to identifying sensor occlusions due to the limits of the ranges of a vehicle's sensors and using this information to maneuver the vehicle. As an example, the vehicle is maneuvered along a route that includes traveling on a first roadway and crossing over a lane of a second roadway. A trajectory is identified from the lane that will cross with the route during the crossing at a first point. A second point beyond a range of the vehicle's sensors is selected. The second point corresponds to a hypothetical vehicle moving towards the route along the lane. A distance between the first point and the second point is determined. An amount of time that it would take the hypothetical vehicle to travel the distance is determined and compared to a threshold amount of time. The vehicle is maneuvered based on the comparison to complete the crossing.

The technology relates to identifying sensor occlusions due to the limits of the ranges of a vehicle's sensors and using this information to maneuver the vehicle. As an example, the vehicle is maneuvered along a route that includes traveling on a first roadway and crossing over a lane of a second roadway. A trajectory is identified from the lane that will cross with the route during the crossing at a first point. A second point beyond a range of the vehicle's sensors is selected. The second point corresponds to a hypothetical vehicle moving towards the route along the lane. A distance between the first point and the second point is determined. An amount of time that it would take the hypothetical vehicle to travel the distance is determined and compared to a threshold amount of time. The vehicle is maneuvered based on the comparison to complete the crossing.

The present invention discloses a multi-excitation wavelength spectrometer fluorescence laser radar system, including a multi-wavelength laser emission system, a signal frequency division system and a data storage and display system. The present invention emits lasers with a plurality of wavelengths into the atmosphere simultaneously to alternately excite an organic matter in atmospheric particulate matters and obtain a fluorescence spectrum. The lasers with different wavelengths can excite the same organic matter to obtain different spectra. By analyzing a matrix diagram of each excitation and emission fluorescence spectrum, the present invention effectively explores the features of compositions and concentration of the organic matter in the atmospheric particulate matters.

Vehicle-based distributed LIDAR apparatuses and methods. These apparatuses may include coherent fiber optic image bundles (CFOBs) that transfer laser reflections from several fields of view (FOVs) around the vehicle to a shared remotely located detector array, thereby enabling correlation of the original reflection directions with fiber locations within a bundle. These apparatuses may operate with a remotely located mirror (e.g. a convex roadside mirror); the apparatus and methods can track the mirror region as it moves in the local environment with an increased density of outgoing laser pulses and thereby interrogate the remote mirror for reflection data from a wide indirect field of view.

An integrated communication and ranging system for use on a spacecraft includes: a laser module configured to emit at least one beam, a pointing module configured to direct the at least one beam toward a ground station and toward an object in space, and a detector module configured to detect a scattered portion of the at least one beam. The system further includes a control module configured to operate the pointing module to (i) transmit data to the ground station using the at least one beam and (ii) determine, using the detector module, a distance between the spacecraft and the object using the at least one beam.

An integrated communication and ranging system for use on a spacecraft includes: a laser module configured to emit at least one beam, a pointing module configured to direct the at least one beam toward a ground station and toward an object in space, and a detector module configured to detect a scattered portion of the at least one beam. The system further includes a control module configured to operate the pointing module to (i) transmit data to the ground station using the at least one beam and (ii) determine, using the detector module, a distance between the spacecraft and the object using the at least one beam.

Provided is a distance measuring method and device for selecting an optimum peak detection signal from among a plurality of peak detection signals, based on a level of at least one of a plurality of amplified electrical signals, and measuring a distance to an object by using the selected optimum peak detection signal.

A coaxial-macro-scanner-system, including a light-source, a light-detector, and a rotatable-mirror-system to optically isolate an optical-path between the light-source and light-detector, the rotatable-mirror-system emitting a transmitting-light-beam, generated by the light-source, with a first-mirror in a predefined-plane into an environment, and to receive a receiving-light-beam, representing components of the transmitting-light-beam reflected/dispersed by the environment, with a second-mirror in the same-plane and to reflect it onto the light-detector, both the first-mirror, the second-mirror and an axis of rotation about which the second-mirror is rotated being aligned at a right-angle to the predefined-plane, the first-mirror being aligned at a right-angle to the predefined-plane and being in a region of the rotation-axis of the second-mirror so that the first-mirror and the second-mirror rotate about the common-rotation-axis, and an angle under which the first-mirror and the second-mirror are disposed relative to each other about the common-rotation-axis corresponding to an angle of more than 0°.

Disclosed herein are examples of ladar systems and methods where data about a plurality of ladar returns from prior ladar pulse shots gets stored in a spatial index that associates ladar return data with corresponding locations in a coordinate space to which the ladar return data pertain. This spatial index can then be accessed by a processor to retrieve ladar return data for locations in the coordinate space that are near a range point to be targeted by the ladar system with a new ladar pulse shot. This nearby prior ladar return data can then be analyzed by the ladar system to help define a control parameter for use by the ladar receiver with respect to the new ladar pulse shot.