mola_input_ouster

A MOLA input module that reads point clouds and IMU data from Ouster LiDAR sensors, live or replayed from PCAP or OSF files, without needing ROS.

Made by The MOLA SLAM framework, Spain (checked on github.com/MOLAorg (opens in a new tab)).

Licenses

Code: GPL-3.0-only (opens in a new tab)
Read by Robotheca from LICENSE (opens in a new tab) (GPL-3.0-only) at commit 5980912 (opens in a new tab), on 16 Oct 2026.
Commercial use: Yes

Copyleft: Modified source must be published.

Connects to a live Ouster sensor on the network by hostname or IP address.
Replays recorded PCAP captures, using a metadata JSON file, or OSF recordings that embed their own sensor metadata.
Produces point cloud and IMU observations for downstream consumers such as LiDAR odometry or state estimators.
Supports selectable lidar modes for resolution and spin rate, and PTP-based timestamping for live sensors.
Can decimate columns and rows of each scan to reduce per-scan cost on high-resolution sensors.
Bundles the Ouster SDK as a git submodule, preferring a system installation if one is present, and provides a playback panel for PCAP and OSF replay.

Written by Robotheca from the project's README (opens in a new tab) at commit 5980912.

Difficulty: Advanced
Hardware it needs, as the project states it: Ouster LiDAR sensor for live mode, or a recorded PCAP or OSF file for replay. Requires the mola_kernel, mola_yaml and mrpt build dependencies, and the Ouster SDK, which is bundled as a submodule.
How to start: The project's README (opens in a new tab)

Checked on GitHub on 16 Oct 2026.

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.