A type of 3D sensing, stereo vision is a common choice for integrating machine vision into robotic applications in warehouses, AutomationWorld reports in a recent article.
In the article, AutomationWorld says that stereo vision offers numerous advantages for vision-guided robotics in warehouse environments. Stereo vision cameras operate at a wide range of distances from the scene being imaged while also providing "sufficient accuracy." Other advantages in warehouse environments include the relatively low cost of stereo vision cameras, their provision of both color images and 3D point clouds, and suitability for applications requiring ruggedized components.
Popular use cases for robotic applications using stereo vision in warehouses are pick-and-place and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs).
Related: Zalando Incorporating Mobile Robotics into Logistics Applications
In either case, the robot will not perform robustly without a high-quality 3D point cloud and minimal lag between image acquisiton and result. Fortunately, there are numerous options for improving the quality of a 3D point cloud, such as deploying a sensor with higher resolution, which will produce more points. Meanwhile, latency can be reduced by higher transmission bandwidth.
After deployment, it is important to monitor performance over time because issues—such as a camera dropping connection frequently or faltering calibration—do occur.
To learn more about improving stereo vision performance in warehouse applications using vision-guided robotics, including additional pointers, read How Stereo Depth Perception Enables Advanced Robotic Capabilities, which appeared on AutomationWorld, an Endeavor Business Media Partner site.
