Phoenix LiDAR Systems RECON-XT

The Phoenix LiDAR Systems RECON-XT is a LiDAR mapping system from the USA for UAVs, built around a scanner with 32 lasers at 905 nm. It is designed for mid-sized multicopters and serves the surveying of terrain, vegetation and installations.

The system reaches 120 m and delivers 640,000 points per second, up to 1.28 million in dual echo; two echoes per pulse capture ground and vegetation at once. The field of view is 360 × 31° (+15° to −16°). The accuracy quoted is a system accuracy (RMSEz) of 2 to 5 cm at 80 m; the 5 cm value is the upper limit. System accuracy includes the position determination and is not comparable with the range accuracy of a pure scanner. The system weighs 1,800 g.

The scanner is a laser device, and the laser class given by the manufacturer is to be observed. With 1.8 kg, the aircraft lies in EU class C2 (below 4 kg) or higher up to C3 and C4 (25 kg). Surveys of large areas are often flown in the specific category, above all for flights beyond visual line of sight. Point clouds of built-up areas touch data-protection law, and the operator must be registered.

With a scanner of only 120 m range, flying height becomes a compromise: flown low, the cloud is dense, but less area is covered per flight. The figure of 640,000 points per second applies to one echo, and double that to dual echo. Quality hinges on the trajectory from IMU and GNSS and on a rigid mount. Wear points are the scanner window, the connectors and the rotation motor with its bearings; after knocks the calibration is checked.