mini_tof
- Software
- Perception
- Driver or SDK
A ROS 2 package that passes readings from miniature time-of-flight sensors to ROS 2 topics, including raw histogram data, without requiring sensor or firmware expertise.
Made by UW Graphics Group, United States (checked on github.com/uwgraphics (opens in a new tab)).
Source on GitHub: github.com/uwgraphics/mini_tof (opens in a new tab). Facts read at commit 827b3a3 (opens in a new tab).
Licenses
- Code
- Apache-2.0 (opens in a new tab)
Read by Robotheca from LICENSE (opens in a new tab) (Apache-2.0) at commit 827b3a3 (opens in a new tab), on 16 Oct 2026.
- Commercial use
- Yes
What it does
- Supports the AMS TMF882X family (TMF8820, TMF8821, TMF8828) and the ST VL53L8CH sensor.
- A publisher node sends sensor data such as distance, ambient light and histograms to ROS 2 topics.
- A visualizer node shows the sensor data in real time using PyQtGraph.
- Raw histogram capture is intended for applications like object detection, 3D reconstruction and seeing around corners.
- Launchable from the command line or from ROS 2 launch files, with the microcontroller port and sensor model set as parameters.
- Requires a microcontroller connected to the sensor, running firmware from the companion mini_tof_firmware repository.
Written by Robotheca from the project's README (opens in a new tab) at commit 827b3a3.
Getting started
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- How to start
- The project's README (opens in a new tab)
Maintenance
- Status
- Maintained: a commit in the last 12 months
- Newest commit
- 18 Nov 2025 on main
- Latest release
- None published on GitHub
Checked on GitHub on 16 Oct 2026.
Links
Robots that can run it
No robot on Robotheca is linked to it yet. Links come from a robot's robot.yaml, from its dependency files read as text, or from Robotheca's editors.
Robotheca lists software as a reference: nothing is hosted or run here, and every fact links to where it was read.