Benewake TF03 User manual

TF03 Product Manual V1.0
Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
Page1
TF03 Single-Point Long-Distance LiDAR

TF03 Product Manual V1.0
Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
Page2
Specified Product
Product model: TF03
Product Name: Single-Point Long-Distance LiDAR
Manufacturer
Company name: Benewake(Beijing) Co., Ltd.
Address: NO.28 Xinxi Road, Haidian District, Beijing, PRC
Copyright
The Copyright of this document is protected. All the rights involved herein belong to Benewake
(Beijing) Co., Ltd. Any copy activity of this document, no matter in whole or in part, should be in
conformity of the Copyright Law. The actives of modification, omission or translation of this document are
not allowed unless a written permission from Benewake (Beijing) Co., Ltd.
All rights reserved © Benewake (Beijing) Co., Ltd.

TF03 Product Manual V1.0
Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
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Forward
Dear users:
Thanks for choosing Benewake products, and it’s our pleasure to help you to solve any technical
question.
For the purpose of offering a better operation experience to you, we hereby write this manual for an
easier and simpler operation of our product, hoping to better solve the common problems you maybe meet.
Please contact us if you have any questions.( [e-mail])
This operation manual covers the product operation introduction and common problem solutions, but
it is really hard to cover allthe problems you maybe meet. So if you have any further questions or problems,
please feel free to consult our technical support service ([e-mail]). We will do our best to
solve any problem related to the product. If you have any other good advice or suggestions, welcome to
visit our official website and offer us your feedback there (http://www.benewake.com/feedback.html), and
we are looking forwards to your participation.
We are Benewake who dedicated to making the best “Robotic Eyes” worldwide!

TF03 Product Manual V1.0
Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
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Content
1ATTENTIONS........................................................................................................................................ 6
1.1 ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT........................................................................................................................ 6
1.2 USAGE OF PRODUCT .............................................................................................................................. 6
1.3 CONDITIONS WITH POTENTIAL PRODUCT FAILURE ................................................................................. 6
2PHYSICAL INTERFACE...................................................................................................................... 7
2.1 DESCRIPTION ABOUT THE LINE SEQUENCE AND CONNECTION ................................................................. 7
2.2 ELECTRICAL CHARACTERISTICS............................................................................................................. 7
3INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS...................................................................................................... 8
3.1 PRODUCT OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................. 8
3.2 PRODUCT STRUCTURE ........................................................................................................................... 8
3.3 DETECTION ANGLE DESCRIPTIONS.......................................................................................................... 8
4COMMUNICATION PROTOCOLAND DATAFORMAT ............................................................... 10
4.1 SERIAL PORT VERSION.......................................................................................................................... 10
4.2 CAN BUS VERSION............................................................................................................................... 11
4.3 CUSTOME PARAMETER CONFIGURATIONS ............................................................................................. 11
4.3.1 OBTAINING VERSION NUMBER........................................................................................................... 12
4.3.2 SYSTEM SOFTWARE RESULT............................................................................................................... 12
4.3.3 SETTING OPERATING FREQUENCY...................................................................................................... 13
4.3.4 SINGLE TRIGGER INSTRUCTION.......................................................................................................... 13
4.3.5 SETTING OUTPUT FORMAT................................................................................................................. 13
4.3.6 SETTING SERIAL PORT BAUD RATE ..................................................................................................... 14
4.3.7 OUTPUT ENABLING SWITCH............................................................................................................... 14

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4.3.8 ENABLING CHECKSUM SWITCH.......................................................................................................... 15
4.3.9 RESTORING FACTORY SETTINGS......................................................................................................... 15
4.3.10 SAVING CURRENT SETTINGS TO FLASH........................................................................................... 15
4.3.11 CONFIGURING OVER RANGE THRESHOLD VALUE .............................................................................. 16
4.3.12 CONFIGURING CAN SEND ID.......................................................................................................... 16
4.3.13 CONFIGURING CAN RECEIVE ID...................................................................................................... 17
4.3.14 CONFIGURING CAN BAUD RATE...................................................................................................... 17
4.3.15 CAN FRAME TYPE CONFIGURATION ................................................................................................ 18
5QUICK TEST PROCUDURES............................................................................................................ 18
5.1 REQUIRED TOOLS OF PRODUCTTEST ................................................................................................... 18
5.2 TEST PROCEDURES............................................................................................................................... 18
6TF03 SOFTWARE SETUP .................................................................................................................. 20
7FAILURE REASONS AND TROUBLESHOOTING ......................................................................... 21
8FREQUENTLYASKED QUESTIONS ............................................................................................... 22
ATTACHMENT 1: INSTRUCTION OF TF SERIES PC DISPLAY SOFTWARE................................. 23

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Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
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1Attentions
1.1 About this Document
This Manual provides information necessary for the use of this product.
Please read this Manual carefully before using this product and make sure that you have fully
understood its contents.
1.2 Usage of Product
This product can only be maintained by qualified professionals and only the original spare parts
can be used to ensure its performance and safety.
The product itself has no polarity and overvoltage protection. Please complete wiring and supply
power correctly according to the contents of the Manual.
The working temperature of the product is -25°C~60°C; please do not use it beyond this
temperature range, so as to avoid risks.
The storage temperature of the product is -40°C~85°C; please do not store it beyond this
temperature range, so as to avoid risks.
Do not open its enclosure for assembly or maintenance beyond this Manual; otherwise, it will
affect the product performance.
1.3 Conditions with Potential Product Failure
When the product transmitter and receiver lens are covered by dirt, there will be a risk of failures.
Please keep the lens clean.
The product will have a risk of failure when immersed completely in water. Do not use it
underwater.
When detecting objects with high reflectivity, such as mirrors and smooth tiles, the product may
have a high risk of failures.

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Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
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2Physical Interface
2.1 Description about the line sequence and connection
Wiring terminal model: MH1.25-7P。
Figure 1 TF03 Line Sequence
Table 1 TF03 Pin functions and connection instructions
No
Color
Pin
Function
1
Red
VCC
Voltage Input
2
White
CAN_L
CAN bus low
3
Green
CAN_H
CAN bus high
4
Blue
GPIO
IO output
5
brown
TTL_RXD
UART receiver
6
Yellow
TTL_TXD
UART transmitter
7
Black
GND
GND
2.2 Electrical Characteristics
This product has no overvoltage or polarity protection. Please ensure that the wiring and power supply
are normal, and the supply voltage is allowed to fluctuate by ±0.5V.
Table 2 main electrical parameters
Parameter
Typical value
Power supply voltage
5V
Average current
≤180mA
Peak current
≤180mA
Average power
≤0.9W

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3Installation Instructions
3.1 Product Overview
Figure 2 Exterior
3.2 Product Structure
The LiDAR mounting holes are applicable to M3 screws. Note that the length of the screw entering
the enclosure shall be no more than 3.5mm.
Figure 2 TF03 dimensions (Left 1: top view; Left 2: vertical view; Left 3: front view)
3.3 Detection angle descriptions
TF03 has a 0.5-degree detection angle and rectangular light spots; see Table 3 for simulated

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diagrams of the light spots. Therefore, at different distances, the spot size, namely detecting range, is
different as shown in Figure 4.
Note: The side length of common objects detected should be greater than that of the detection range of
TF03; When the side length of the detected object is less than that of the detection range, the LiDAR
effective range will be reduced
Figure 3 Detection angle schematic of TF03
Table 3 Spot simulated diagrams and sizes at different distances
Spot 20m away
Size：20cm*6cm
Spot 50m away
Size：50cm*14cm
Spot 100m away
Size：100cm*28cm
Spot 150m away
Size：150cm*42cm

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4Communication protocol and Data format
There aretwo type of communication version: serialport version and CAN bus communication version.
4.1 Serial port version
The serial port version ofTF03 adopts anUART-LVTTL interface; refer to the specific communication
in Table 4. The output level of the serial port is a LVTTL level (0-3.3V).
Table 4 TF03 Serial port communication protocol
Item
Content
Communication
protocol
UART
Baud rate
115200
Data bit
8
Stop bit
1
Checksum bit
None
1）Serial data format
The output data (hexadecimal numbers) of TF02 is shown in table 5. Each data frame consists of 9
bytes and the data contains the measured distance information; namely, DIST; the frame tail acts as a data
checksum bit; other bytes are reserved.
Table 5 TF03 serial data format
Data bit
Definition
Description
Byte0
Frame
header
0x59
Byte1
Frame
header
0x59
Byte2
DIST_L
DIST low 8-bits
Byte3
DIST_H
DIST high 8-bits
Byte4
Reserved bit
/
Byte5
Reserved bit
/
Byte6
Reserved bit
/
Byte7
Reserved bit
/
Byte8
Checksum
Low 8 bits of Checksum bit. Checksum = Byte0 +
Byte2+…+Byte7, Checksum are the low 8 bits of the
checksum of former 8 bytes.

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2）Pixhawk serial data format
The pixhawk data format refers that the unit of output string is M(meter). For example, if the ranging
distance is 1.21m, then it will output the string 1.21 and each distance value ends with a symbol of line
break. The serial port products can support to be modified with Pixhawk format output via host computers
or commands.
4.2 CAN bus version
The CAN communication protocol of TF03 can be customized according to customers’ needs and the
CAN baud rate, ID and frame format can be modified. The contents of the protocol are shown in Table 6.
Table 6 CAN communication protocol of TF03
Item
Content
Communication
protocol
CAN
Baud rate
1M
Recieve ID
0x3003
Transmit ID
0x3
Frame format
Transmit frame defaults to standard
frame. Receive frame support
standard frame and extended frame.
See Table 7 for TF03 data format of the CAN version; all data is hexadecimal numbers, each frame of
data has a total of 8 bytes and the data contains the measured distance information, namely, DIST; other
bytes are reserved.
Table 7 Data frame format of CAN version
Data bit
Definition
Description
Byte0
DIST_L
DIST low 8-bits
Byte1
DIST_H
DIST high 8-bits
Byte2
Reserved bit
/
Byte3
Reserved bit
/
Byte4
Reserved bit
/
Byte5
Reserved bit
/
4.3 Custome parameter configurations
Custom parameters configurations are open in order that problems could be solved conveniently.
Parameters, such as output data format, output frame rate could be changed by sending command.
Parameter will be stored in flash and needn’t to be configured again if restart after configured successfully.

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Please change the configuration according to the real demands and never try uncorrelated command
frequently thus unnecessary loss from wrong command; please configure the product according to the
demands of the manual and never send unstated command.
The instruction frame includes Head, Len, ID,parameters (optional) and Check sum, where Head is
fixed to 0x5A; Len is the length of the entire instruction frame (unit: Byte); ID identifies the function of
each instruction; parameters have different meanings and lengths in different ID instruction frames; and
Check sum is the lower 8 bits of the Len-1 byte data.
4.3.1 Obtaining version number
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
Len-1
Descriptions
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x01
Check_sum
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3~5
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x01
Version
Check_sum
Version: For example, the third, fourth, and fifth bytes are 112, 50, and 9 respectively, indicating the
version number 9.50.112.
4.3.2 System software result
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x02
Check_sum
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x02
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）； -1（Failed）。

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4.3.3 Setting operating frequency
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5
A)
Len
0x03
Freq_low
Freq_high
Check_sum
Freq: Operating frequency，>0（operating frequency set）。
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5
A)
Len
0x03
Freq_low
Freq_high
Check_sum
Freq: Operating frequency actually achieved in the TF03
This command takes effect immediately and the configurations are not saved by default.
The serial port baud rate supports 1Hz and Hz x 10/100/1000, such as 10 Hz, 20Hz…100Hz,
200Hz…1000Hz, 2000Hz…10000Hz.Up to 1000Hz is supported when the baud rate is 115200; while up
to 10000Hz is supported when the baud rate is 1M.
4.3.4 Single trigger instruction
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x04
Check_sum
TF03 returns ：
Data frame, see in Figure 4.
4.3.5 Setting output format
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x05
Format
Check_sum
Format:0x01（Standard data format output）， 0x02（Pixhawk data format output）

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TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x05
Format
Check_sum
Format: Output format configured in the TF03. 0x01 (Standard data format output), 0x02 (Pixhawk
data format output). This instruction takes effect immediately and configurations are not saved by default.
4.3.6 Setting serial port baud rate
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Len-1
Desc
ripti
on
Head
(0x5A)
Len
0x06
baudrate_l
ow_0
baudrate_l
ow_8
baudrate_
high_16
baudrate_
high_24
Check_su
m
E.g: 115200, byte3：0x00，byte4：0xC2，byte5：0x01，byte6：0x00
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Len-1
Descr
iption
Head
(0x5A)
Len
0x06
baudrate_l
ow_0
baudrate_l
ow_8
baudrate_h
igh_16
baudrate_h
igh_24
Check_su
m
baudrate: The serial port baud rate actually configured in the TF03
This instruction cannot take effect until it is executed and restarted with saved configurations.
4.3.7 Output enabling switch
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x07
Enable
Check_sum
Enable: 0（Output disabled）， 1（Output enabled）。
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x07
Enable
Check_sum

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Enable: 0（Output disabled）， 1（Output enabled）。
This instruction takes effect immediately and configurations are not saved by default.
4.3.8 Enabling checksum switch
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x08
Enable
Check_sum
Enable: 0（Checksum disabled, Check_sum may be any value）， 1（Checksum enabled）。
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x08
Enable
Check_sum
Enable: 0（Checksum disabled）， 1（Checksum enabled）。
This instruction takes effect immediately and configurations are not saved by default.
4.3.9 Restoring factory settings
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x10
Check_sum
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x10
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）; non-0（Failed）. This instruction takes effect immediately.
4.3.10 Saving current settings to FLASH
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x11
Check_sum
TF03 returns：

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Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x11
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）; non-0（Failed）.
Interpretation:
1) After this instruction has been executed, allconfiguration information is still effective upon reboot.
2) The power cannot be cut off during the execution of this instruction, otherwise the configuration
may be lost. If this happens, please use the restore factory setting instruction to restore the radar
configuration to the factory state.
4.3.11 Configuring over range threshold value
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x4F
Value_low
Value_high
Check_sum
Value：over range threshold value，unsigned short Type. 0 indicates no range limit; in addition, it
cannot be configured as 0xFFFF.
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x4F
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）; non-0（Failed）.
This instruction takes effect immediately and configurations are not saved by default.
4.3.12 Configuring CAN Send ID
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Len-1
Descript
ion
Head
(0x5A)
Len
0x50
ID_low_0
ID_low_8
ID_high_16
ID_high_24
Check_sum
ID:CAN Send ID
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1

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Benewake(Beijing)Co., Ltd.
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Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x50
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）; non-0（Failed）.
This instruction cannot take effect until it is executed and restarted with saved configurations
4.3.13 Configuring Can Receive ID
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Len-1
Descriptio
n
Head
(0x5A)
Len
0x51
ID_low_
0
ID_low_
8
ID_high_16
ID_high_24
Check_sum
ID:CAN Receive ID
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Desc
ripti
on
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x51
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）non-0（Failed）.
This instruction cannot take effects until it is executed and restart with saved configurations.
4.3.14 Configuring CAN baud rate
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Len-1
Desc
ripti
on
Head
(0x5A)
Len
0x52
baudrate_l
ow_0
baudrate_l
ow_8
baudrate_
high_16
baudrate_
high_24
Check_su
m
baudrate: CAN Communication baud rate, currently able to support 1M, 500k, 250k and 125k only.
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Desc
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x52
Status
Check_sum

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riptio
n
Status: 0（Successful）; non-0（Failed）.
This instruction cannot take effect until it is executed and restarted with saved configurations.
4.3.15 CAN Frame type configuration
Send to TF03：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x5D
Type
Check_sum
type–CAN frame type，0 –Standard frame，1 –Extended frame
TF03 returns：
Byte
0
1
2
3
Len-1
Description
Head(0x5A)
Len
0x5D
Status
Check_sum
Status: 0（Successful）; non-0（Failed）.
This instruction cannot take effect until it is executed and restarted with saved configurations.
5Quick Test Procudures
5.1 Required Tools of Product Test
Note: the product package contains only TF03 products and factory certificate, and other accessories
are collected by yourself. For TTL-USB boards, please contact sales or technical support.
TF03
（UART）
TTL - USB
Board
USB Cable
PC
TF display
program
Figure 4 Tools example
5.2 Test procedures
1）Download the TF display program
Please download the TF display program from http://benewake.com/en/down.html

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Note: Please close the anti-virus software before unpacking the TF display program; otherwise, the
files in the TF display program will be deleted as viruses; The TF display program currently only supports
running on the Windows system. See Attachment 1: Instruction of TF Series PC Display Software.
2）Equipment connection
Figure 5 How to connect TF03 to PC for test
As figure 6 shown, connect 『TF03』->『TTL- USB board』->『USB cable』, ensure no looseness,
and then connect the 『USB cable』with the『computer』.
3）TF display software connection and reading
Figure 6 The interface of TF display software
As shown in Figure 7, open the TF display program, selectⅠ『Benewake TF03』and select the serial
port for automatic identification (here is Ⅱ『COM9』).
Then, click『CONNECT』to connect to the TF display program.
After connected successfully, continuous output data images will occur in the right Ⅳ『TIME LINE

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CHART』area and the Ⅴ『REAL TIME DATA』area below will display the current test distance (Dist:
125cm), the output frame rate (Effective Points: 100Hz).
Note: the Dist(Echo) and Strength are unmeaning in here.
4）Another note
If TF03 is required to output in Pixhawk mode, check Ⅲ『PixMode』first and then the data images
will be normally output in the Ⅳ『TIME LINE CHART』area. After the Pix Mode ischecked, the distance
unit will change to m.
6TF03 Software Setup
Figure 7 TF03 Setup software display
Interface of custom TF display software is shown in the figure above.
1) After TF03 is connected to the computer, select the correct port number and baud rate in Zone C
manually and click the 『Connect』button to realize communication between the TF display
software and TF03.