Laser scanners take measurements according to the time-of-flight principle.
A laser pulse with a defined duration is sent and reflected by an object. The reflection from the object is captured by a photodiode and transformed into signals in an optoelectronic circuit.
The time interval between the pulse of light being sent and its reflection being received, making due allowance for the speed of light, indicates the distance to the object that reflected the light.
By way of the rotating mirror, the laser range finder operates as a scanner, because the mirror deflects each outgoing beam. The mirror's continuous rotation, in conjunction with the pulsing laser, generates a complete environmental profile of the vehicle within the laser scanner's visible range.
