The 4D LiDAR L2 is Unitree’s compact spinning-mirror scanner for mobile robots, drones and handheld mapping. “4D” means each returned point carries three spatial coordinates plus a grayscale intensity value, so surfaces can be told apart by reflectivity as well as by shape.

Non-repetitive scanning

Most LiDAR units retrace the same scan lines on every rotation, so holding still adds nothing. The L2 sweeps a different pattern each revolution, which means point density keeps building the longer the sensor dwells on a scene. Left in place for a few seconds it resolves detail a fixed-line sensor of the same point rate cannot reach.

Coverage and blind zone

The field of view is 360° around and 96° vertically in negative-angle mode, against 360° × 90° standard, and the near blind zone is 50 mm. In practice that means a robot can see the ground immediately around its own footprint as well as overhead structure, without a second sensor to fill the gap underneath.

Mapping without a second positioning sensor

Unitree publishes an open-source SLAM path built on POINT-LIO (github.com/unitreerobotics/point_lio_unilidar) that maps using the L2 and its own built-in IMU alone, with no wheel odometry, GNSS or external tracking. Drivers ship for ROS and ROS 2 through unilidar_sdk2, publishing the point cloud and IMU as separate topics.

Working outdoors

Ambient light immunity is rated above 100 kLux, which covers direct South African summer sun. The unit is Class 1 eye-safe under IEC 60825-1:2014, so it needs no viewing restrictions around people. Below 30°C ambient it runs a self-heating mode before producing point cloud data, and draws up to 13 W while doing so; size the supply for the peak rather than the 10 W typical figure.

L2 against the L1

Compared with the 4D LiDAR L1, the L2 roughly triples the sampling rate to 128 000 points/s, improves distance resolution from 8 mm to 4.5 mm, adds a 6° wider vertical field, and adds an Ethernet interface alongside the serial one. The L1 remains the lighter and cheaper option where a 20 m to 30 m serial-only scanner is enough.

Buying in South Africa

Stocked and supported locally. Price is in Rand excluding VAT, import duty and clearance are handled in house, and first-line technical support comes from George in the Western Cape rather than an overseas ticket queue.