Method and device for measuring a distance to a target in a multi-user environment by means of at least one detector

A method for measuring a distance to a target in a multi-user environment comprising multiple time of flight (TOF) systems by means of at least one sensor, comprising:

• by an emission circuit, irradiating the environment by means of a series of radiation pulses, wherein the series of radiation pulses are emitted at a determined repetition rate and with an added random delay calculated by a logic circuit;
• by a detection circuit, collecting pulses that are reflected or scattered from the environment to at least one detector connected to at least one chronometer;
• by the detection circuit, assigning a timestamp at the detection of each of the collected pulses;
• by the logic circuit, subtracting the added random delay from the assigned timestamp coming from the chronometer to obtain the time of arrival (TOA) for each of the collected pulses;
• by a data processing unit (DPU), determining the statistical distribution of said time of arrivals;
• and
• by the DPU, determining the distance to the target from said statistical distribution.