SICK is certainly a pioneer and industry leader in the field of laser rangefinders; their focus is largely on industrial applications or large robots (such as AGVs, as in the DARPA Grand Challenges) that require robustness.
However, Hokuyo has become something of a "standard" (at least based on my own personal observations of robotics labs across the country) among smaller and/or indoor robots for the "budget" laser rangefinders.
I agree with the commenter above... whether one was designed to compete with the other is a moot point; it's all about the specifications. However, I'm still excited to see the trend toward low-cost, "budget" LRFs. In fact, this reminds me of a paper at ICRA 2008 about a sub-$30 laser range finder being developed by Silicon Valley robotics startup Neato Robotics. I'd really like to learn more about their plans and aspirations for their laser range finder...
10:23 am
I agree with aspects from both comments.
SICK is certainly a pioneer and industry leader in the field of laser rangefinders; their focus is largely on industrial applications or large robots (such as AGVs, as in the DARPA Grand Challenges) that require robustness.
However, Hokuyo has become something of a "standard" (at least based on my own personal observations of robotics labs across the country) among smaller and/or indoor robots for the "budget" laser rangefinders.
I agree with the commenter above... whether one was designed to compete with the other is a moot point; it's all about the specifications. However, I'm still excited to see the trend toward low-cost, "budget" LRFs. In fact, this reminds me of a paper at ICRA 2008 about a sub-$30 laser range finder being developed by Silicon Valley robotics startup Neato Robotics. I'd really like to learn more about their plans and aspirations for their laser range finder...