Introduction
In the world of 3D mapping and autonomous systems, precision and reliability are crucial. Whether it’s navigating complex urban or offroad environments, or transferring materials within warehouses, the quality of perception technology plays a pivotal role. In this Sensor Spotlight, we put the Ouster OS1-128 Rev 7 LiDAR to the test to see for ourselves how it performs in common robotics application tasks.
Importance of 3D Perception
3D perception is the backbone of autonomous robotics and vehicles. By generating detailed, accurate models of the environment, 3D sensors like LiDAR enable machines to “see” the world around them in real-time, providing critical data for navigation, obstacle detection, and decision-making.
Three common applications that we at Clearpath often see for 3D sensors like the OS1-128 are 3D mapping, localization, and object detection. Let’s look at how the key features of the Ouster OS1-128 benefit these use cases, offering a very high level of range, resolution, and flexibility to real-world conditions.
Highlights of the Ouster OS1-128
The Ouster OS1-128 is a versatile LiDAR sensor designed to perform in the aforementioned applications and more, offering a great balance of range, field of view, resolution, and form factor.
Figure 1: Map generated with point cloud from the OS1-128 at a local park.
Field of View and Resolution
The OS1-128 offers up to 128 channels of resolution spread across a 45 degree vertical field of view and a scanning speed of 5-20 Hz (can be adjusted with data profiles). For the OS1-128, this translates to 5.2 million points per second! This allows the user to see even more details of the robot’s surroundings for data collection and obstacle avoidance.
Range
The OS1-128 offers a low minimum range and up to 0 meters (with the latest 3.1 firmware) and up to 200 meters under ideal operating conditions. This makes it a flexible choice for different robotics applications.
Documentation
Ouster provides comprehensive documentation on a wide range of topics ranging from physical installation to packet structuring. The OS1-128 and other models are well-supported in ROS, with polished drivers available for both ROS1 and ROS2. Additionally, Ouster LiDAR benefits from strong support within the ROS community. Together, these resources, offered by Ouster and the community, empower the development of robotics projects.
Time Synchronization
The OS1-128 supports Precision Time Protocol (PTP) time synchronization, which allows for precise time-stamping of LiDAR and IMU data across multiple sensors and systems. This synchronization is essential for applications such as LiDAR-inertial SLAM, multi-sensor fusion, and robotics, where precise time alignment is critical for optimal performance in dynamic environments. In our setup, we used an XVN as a PTP master clock (the XVN was featured in a previous Sensor Spotlight).
Built-In IMU
With a built-in IMU (inertial measurement unit), offers significant convenience by providing pre-configured time synchronization and extrinsic calibration with the LiDAR sensor. The system ensures alignment between the LiDAR and IMU frames, streamlining setup and integration in applications that rely on sensor fusion (LiDAR-intertial odometry).
Software Development Kit
This Ouster SDK (software development kit) makes it easy to interface with and build applications for the OS1-128. With this, developers can control, retrieve, record and visualize the data with just a few lines of code.
Industrial
This LiDAR is automotive grade with a rating of IP68 and IP69K. It is durable enough to withstand extreme shock, vibration, and high-pressure cleaning expected in many industrial applications. The LiDAR is robust and reliable for both urban and offroad applications.
Figure 2: Replay of recorded raw data from the university campus building.
Application Highlights
We put the Ouster OS1-128 to the test on our new Husky A300 platform, evaluating its capabilities across three applications.
3D Mapping
For the first use case the integrated robot was driven around a local park to showcase the LiDAR’s point cloud in a 3D mapping application. Common mapping applications for Clearpath platforms include facility mapping, engineering surveys for site planning and a variety of use cases in mining. As you can see in the video below, there is a very high level of detail picked up by the sensor, seen in the passing structures and even foot steps in the snow.
Localization
Our second test application was localization in an outdoor environment at a busy university campus. Localization, lidar odometry or localizing against a prior map is common in areas without other sources of absolute position (like GNSS). In the video, the A300 is augmenting its position estimate by matching scans from the OS1-128 (shown in white) with a previously generated 3D map of the area.
Object Detection
Object detection in a university campus building is the final application where we tested the Ouster OS1-128. 3D sensors are commonly used for object detection and obstacle avoidance. For example, in warehouses an AMR might use a 3D sensor to detect overhead or dynamic obstacles and in other applications 3D sensors could be used to identify objects of interest. A useful feature of the OS1-128 is the level of vertical resolution allowing individual LiDAR scans to be structured into a 2D image, where pixel values can be based on data attributes like range, reflectivity, or IR signal. This makes it easy to use traditional image-based detection models that are typically easier to get up and running compared to models that run entirely on 3D points. Figure 2 above shows the reflectivity image for a scan from the OS1-128.
Conclusion
The Ouster OS1-128 is a powerful tool for 3D perception, autonomous vehicles, and industrial applications. As demonstrated in our test use cases of mapping and localization in outdoor and indoor environments, its ultra-wide field of view, extended range, high resolution, and real-world durability offers excellent performance. Whether you’re working in a warehouse, navigating the open road, or advancing your autonomous technology, the Ouster OS1-128 helps ensure that obstacles are not left unseen.
Ouster OS1-128 LiDARs are available on the Clearpath Store and integrated on our robot platforms by contacting our team.
Stay tuned for more content on the Ouster OS1-128 LiDAR.