Apr 16 2014
Neptec Technologies Corp., a leading developer of innovative 3D robotic vision products, has announced that it will be demonstrating the OPAL-120, the newest addition to its OPAL 2.0 family of obscurant-penetrating 3D laser scanners for harsh environments, at SPAR International in Colorado Springs from April 14 to 17.
OPAL-120 scans with non-overlapping scan pattern
The OPAL-120 series, which uses spinning prisms and incorporates Neptec's patented obscurant-penetrating technology, is particularly well suited for high-speed mobile robotics applications in harsh environments. Unlike conventional spinning 360° scanners, it produces a non-overlapping rosette-scan pattern in real-time that naturally focuses 3D data collection into the center of the sensor field-of-view.
"The OPAL-120 series is a great addition to our product portfolio and integrates seamlessly with our 3DRi (3D Real-time intelligence) strategy of 'more information, less data!™'"said Mike Sekerka, CEO of Neptec Technologies. "The higher point density and refresh rates in the direction of travel available with the OPAL-120 make it a very efficient sensor for mobile robotics applications such as autonomous haul trucks."
In addition to data collection being concentrated in the most important parts of the field-of-view, the OPAL-120 helps reduce the large amount of "waste data" collected by more conventional 360° spinning-head scanners where much of the field-of-view may be obstructed due to vehicle mounting. It is specifically designed for harsh environments and is available with 60, 90 and 120 degree fields-of-view and range options between 200m out to 4km.
"We're very excited about the 3D imaging performance of the OPAL-120 which opens up a wide range of new applications," said Mike Dunbar, Neptec Technologies' Director of Business Development. "Even in static applications, its ability to almost instantaneously generate detailed 3D scans is really impressive. One customer who recently took delivery of an OPAL-120 called it 'long-range 3D video-like imaging.' "
The OPAL-120 will be on display at Booth 218 at SPAR International, which takes place April 14-17, 2014 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
About Neptec Technologies Corp.
Neptec Technologies Corp. develops innovative 3D robot vision products for machine automation and robotics applications in harsh environments. The company was founded in 2011 to commercialize space-technologies developed by Neptec Design Group Ltd., an award-winning space flight technology company and NASA prime contractor. Its first products are a family of obscurant-penetrating laser scanners (OPAL) and a software development tool kit (3DRi) with advanced features such as automatic change detection and object recognition and tracking. Together, these out-of-the-box "building blocks" make it easy to integrate intelligent real-time machine vision applications on autonomous off-road vehicles, and for more familiar LiDAR-based survey and measurement tasks in harsh environments. The company is located in Kanata, Ontario.