Garmin LIDAR-Lite v1 Silver Label Operating Manual page 14

Technology and System Hardware Overview
Technology
PulsedLight's "Time­of­flight "distance measurement technology is based on the precise measurement of the
time delay between the transmission of an optical signal and its reception. Our patented, high accuracy
measurement technique enables distance measurement resolution down to 1cm by the digitization and
averaging of two signals; a reference signal fed from the transmitter prior to the distance measurement and
a received signal reflected from the target. The time delay between these two stored signals is estimated
through a signal processing approach known as correlation, which effectively provides a signature match
between these two closely related signals. Our correlation algorithm accurately calculates the time delay,
which is translated into distance based on the known speed­of­light. A benefit of PulsedLight's approach is
the efficient averaging of low­level signals enabling the use of relatively low power optical sources, such as
LEDs or VCSEL (Vertical­Cavity Surface­Emitting) lasers, for shorter­range applications and increased
range capability when using high power optical sources such as pulsed laser diodes.
System Hardware
The Single Board Sensor provides distance and velocity measurements in an ultra­small form factor. This
small size is the result of PulsedLight's System­On­Chip (SoC) signal processing technology which, beyond
being small, reduces the complexity and power consumption of supporting circuitry. The system consists of
three key functionalities:
● A Signal Processing Core (SPC) System­on­Chip solution encapsulating all the required functions in
support of our proprietary range finding system architecture.
● An optical transmitter and receiver tied to the SPC emit and receive a proprietary optical signal
pattern generated by the SPC.
● Power Conditioning and I2C signal filtering and buffering.
Please refer to "LIDAR­Lite Block Diagram" for a full overview of the system architecture.
LIDAR­Lite v1 "Silver Label" Manual​ , Updated: 08/13/15