how far is laser (as in I got a ticket today) accurate?
10-14-2007, 11:16 AM
#1
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how far is laser (as in I got a ticket today) accurate?
Driving up rt 3 in Nashua 10:55am and got caught going 83 in a 55 (ticket is for 80 in a 55-so that it was $200 fine instead of a summons to court). On the ticket he noted that he got me at 1422ft-
more than 1/4 mile away seems like it's pretty far to be accurate. My understanding is that he has to "aim" the laser at me .
and my second question is does anyone know a traffic lawyer in NH that can help me ? This will be 3 tickets this year and as a "on the road salesman" this ticket pretty much makes me unemployed.
more than 1/4 mile away seems like it's pretty far to be accurate. My understanding is that he has to "aim" the laser at me .
and my second question is does anyone know a traffic lawyer in NH that can help me ? This will be 3 tickets this year and as a "on the road salesman" this ticket pretty much makes me unemployed.
10-14-2007, 12:33 PM
#2
It's very accurate, but as you state, it's pin point accurate....
requires pretty steady hands to get good readings at almost 1/4 mile away... unless it's on a tripod, aimed in, which I've seen.
10-14-2007, 02:39 PM
#3
the beam gets wider as the distance gets further...
I believe when I was doing research, at 800 ft the beam is approx 18" wide, beam is also more difficult to keep steady at a further distance. Go on Escort Radar detectors website and they actually offer rather valid information in their manual.
10-14-2007, 03:35 PM
#4
You're thinking of radar.. I don't think LIDAR does that...
if it does, it doesn't do it as much.
When I went to radar school, we learned all kinds of interesting radar tidbits, the conical shape of the beam being one of them.
most radar guns will also not only record the speed of the largest object in it's path (regardless of which object in it's path is fastest or slowest), many guns will latch onto that object till it's out of range.
When I went to radar school, we learned all kinds of interesting radar tidbits, the conical shape of the beam being one of them.
most radar guns will also not only record the speed of the largest object in it's path (regardless of which object in it's path is fastest or slowest), many guns will latch onto that object till it's out of range.
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10-15-2007, 08:32 AM
#8
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Re: it's NOT pin point accurate....
Kris:
Please stop spreading mis-information about L I D A R / laser..
While the 3 milliradian "spread" means a very narrow beam at the lens, its "spread" (divergence)
is FAR from pin point, no matter how you slice it from beyond 200 feet.
a 3' x 3' beam at 1,000ft is far from pinpoint.
Even when the manufacturer <claims> pin point accuracy, its only in comparison to their K band (as an example) radar spread of approximately 212 feet @ 1,000 feet.
L I D A R is FAR from infallible. The device measures distances only and the influences surrounding determining speed from distance measurements over time is well documented, real and reproducible. Operator error is one of the largest factors, but the design of the L I D A R beam complicates things also.
BTW 1/4 mile is 1320 feet (1 mile is 5280)
so 1,000 feet is just shy of 1/4 mile, but the beam spread is very big at that "short" distance.
The lister mentions his ticket was farther out.
Please stop spreading mis-information about L I D A R / laser..
While the 3 milliradian "spread" means a very narrow beam at the lens, its "spread" (divergence)
is FAR from pin point, no matter how you slice it from beyond 200 feet.
a 3' x 3' beam at 1,000ft is far from pinpoint.
Even when the manufacturer <claims> pin point accuracy, its only in comparison to their K band (as an example) radar spread of approximately 212 feet @ 1,000 feet.
L I D A R is FAR from infallible. The device measures distances only and the influences surrounding determining speed from distance measurements over time is well documented, real and reproducible. Operator error is one of the largest factors, but the design of the L I D A R beam complicates things also.
BTW 1/4 mile is 1320 feet (1 mile is 5280)
so 1,000 feet is just shy of 1/4 mile, but the beam spread is very big at that "short" distance.
The lister mentions his ticket was farther out.
10-15-2007, 08:50 AM
#9
Are you a police officer? Are you certified in the use of laser speed detection?
I'm not qualified on laser, but I am on radar.. I stopped working in law enforcement just as laser was coming on to the scene. I've seen enough to know that it's pretty accurate compared to radar in terms of being able to single out individual vehicles vs. getting everything in sight..
3 feet is still pretty darn pin point at 1000 feet in my book, you can still capture readings from an individual vehicle at 1000 feet vs. 100 for radar..
3 feet is still pretty darn pin point at 1000 feet in my book, you can still capture readings from an individual vehicle at 1000 feet vs. 100 for radar..