TOF Proximity Sensors as Mesh and zProbe
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I'd like to note I already use the IR sensor as a mesh and trigger'd zprobe at print start, but this is using a different set of tech that's collecting a lot more data, but used more coarsely.
Typically, TOF proximity sensors are for a course near/far detection in robotics, but there's some interesting work in applying these sensors for rapid plane geometry detection.
https://youtu.be/vJdfpmd6OE0
I can imagine you could poll a sensor like this across a bed at a distance to calculate a bed mesh at near distances or align it rapidly on print start, without the head needing to move across the surface to probe points.
There was a jetting printer that also collected lidar data every layer to improve quality, and a higher resolution TOF sensor could be used for arbitrary surface capture in QC of bridging or distortions as well.
