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What is the P.L.U.T.O. project, in simple non-scientific terms?

P.L.U.T.O. is an ultra-fast laser rangefinder system, with a resolution of centimeters.

What does the project do?

Much like a normal radar, a LIDAR system is a radar that utilizes the power of light in order to sense distance based on time-of-flight measurement. It is used with an easy to use computer GUI to calculate the precise “distance” between the two beams.

How does it work?

With the laser powered on, the light is split into two signals (with the help of a beam splitter): start and stop. The start beam is directed right onto one of the two photodetectors, while the stop beam must travel a minimum distance of roughly a meter to then reflect onto a surface, and travel back to the mirroring beam splitter, where it will then hit the “stop” detector. Then, both signals travel through the receiver channel circuit, where a TI MSP430 microcontroller and the TI TDC7200 program will calculate the time-of-flight of between the start and stop signals.