Blickfeld smart LiDAR integrations allows for accurate and precise volume measurement capabilities
- Blickfeld’s high performance and mass-producible sensing technology enables volume measurement across a range of dierent industries
- Existing methods result in inaccurate data and costly installations
- LiDAR in volume measurement and inventory tracking can unlock unprecedented operational eciency for businesses through real-time and accurate volume measurement
- Blickfeld’s 3D LiDARs provide previously unavailable digital information allowing for a highly digitized supply chain, in industries previously dominated by hand labour
Blickfeld, the breakthrough LiDAR sensor technology start-up creating innovative hardware and software products, is highlighting the benefits which a number of major industries can gain through deploying 3D LiDAR technology to accurately and easily measure the volumes of their bulk material. 3D LiDAR technology can help to oset significant inaccuracies and financial burdens which come as part of an inability to measure and track the volume of raw materials. From agriculture and forestry, to construction and mining, entire operations within these industries would really profit from a much more accurate measurement, through vital stages including planning, manufacturing, and delivery.
To date, traditional manual volume measurement methods have included simply eyeballing the materials, the use of a walking wheel instrument, as well as bucket or truckload counting. Not only are each of these techniques inefficient, they are also costly, inaccurate and overall contribute to damaging a company’s ability to outperform others in their industry or field.
Volume measurement requires the entire surface of materials to be scanned, taking into account variations in surface level. Other technologies like cameras or single-point lasers are unable to gather this level of three-dimensional detail at one time.
Meanwhile, ultrasound sensors are marred by problems like signal absorption by certain stored materials, signal noise and reflection, limited range, and high-power requirements. This results in inaccurate data and costly installations.
3D LiDAR technology is capable of overcoming these issues, by scanning the entire surface of the relevant material, to produce an accurate three-dimensional point cloud image comprising millions of points. This generates spatial data of the surface accurate to centimetres, accounting for all variations on the material surface. Through a combination of hardware and software data-driven decisions are enabled. The technology is capable of operating in real time to provide the data, which is ultimately the basis for a highly digitised supply chain.
Sachtleben Technology uses Blickfeld’s LiDAR to accurately determine bulk material inventory levels. Since using LiDAR sensors, Sachtleben Technology manages to provide their workers with a precise overview of the actual amount of product in the warehouse, ultimately increasing the productivity and efficiency of the companies’ supply chain management.
While most optical reconstruction methods require ambient light, LiDAR has the ability to operate in low-light and darkness, leaving customers confident that no matter the circumstances of their operations or storage, the sensing technology can deliver the information required continuously and instantaneously, 24/7. Furthermore, the safety of their workers is protected, due to the extensive range capabilities of the sensors to allow for data to be gathered at longer distances and the scarce need for maintenance.
Overall, LiDAR is capable of providing real-time, accurate, and repeatable results, its integration can offer streamlined, cost-effective, efficient, and safer volume measurements.
Dr. Florian Petit, co-founder of Blickfeld comments, “An accurate volume measurement installed in the inventory management system can help reduce inventory errors and ensure on-demand delivery verification and timely shipments. 3D LiDAR-based volume measurement can also enable accurate production and material level tracking to prevent stockouts and overstock situations. Supply and demand could be easily tracked, and complete inventory across multiple locations can be managed along with stockpile history tracking and inventory level thresholds.”
Three Blickfeld Cube 1 LiDAR sensors attached to the warehouse ceiling record the barite inventory in a huge storage hall. The 3D data provides information on the height, width, and depth of the bulk piles accurate to the centimetre. The fusion of three point clouds from the sensors in the warehouse allows the entire stock to be recorded at once. The Blickfeld software evaluates this data to provide information on occupancy and fill levels, thus improving the company’s supply chain management and increasing the productivity for their customers.