High speed 3D scanner with real-time 3D processing

A novel sensor with real-time 3D processing capable of scanning an object at very high speeds (greater than 500,000 3D points/second) and creating high-resolution surface maps has been developed. The ranging technique of laser triangulation is implemented with a high-resolution camera, a laser diode, and processing electronics incorporated into a small sensor package that traverses linearly or rotates from a fixed position to scan over an object. Processing is done on board the instrument in real time and the resultant 3D data is transmitted to a PC. The sensing system was developed for the NASA Mars rover program and for the inspection of shuttle thermal protection system (tiles) radiator, and structures