Fast and precise 3D sensor insensitive to ambient lighting

Martin Rechsteiner; Bruno Schneuwly; Walter Guggenbuehl

doi:10.1117/12.141941

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23 March 1993 Fast and precise 3D sensor insensitive to ambient lighting

Martin Rechsteiner; Bruno Schneuwly; Walter Guggenbuehl

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Proceedings Volume 1822, Optics, Illumination, and Image Sensing for Machine Vision VII; (1993) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.141941
Event: Applications in Optical Science and Engineering, 1992, Boston, MA, United States

Abstract

Flexible handling by robots and form inspection require fast and precise three dimensional (3D) information. Therefore we developed a fast and precise range-image sensor based on triangulation and the coded light approach. We project gray-coded light patterns with a programmable LCD line-projector. The stroboscopic flash of the projector is synchronized with the electronic shutter of the camera; therefore the 3D-sensor is insensitive to normal ambient light. Using special image processing hardware based on the synchronous dataflow paradigm, we are able to acquire and process a range-image within 220 ms. We have used this 3D-sensor in conjunction with a robot to sort postal parcels of arbitrary size and orientation from a pile. A cycle time (image acquisition, processing, grasping and placing) of 3 s has been reached, limited by the speed of the robot. Some details of the image-processing and the methods to achieve a high robustness of the system are presented. Further we discuss the accuracy achieved with this 3D-sensor. Results of the tests with high ambient light and the system calibration methods are presented.

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Martin Rechsteiner, Bruno Schneuwly, and Walter Guggenbuehl "Fast and precise 3D sensor insensitive to ambient lighting", Proc. SPIE 1822, Optics, Illumination, and Image Sensing for Machine Vision VII, (23 March 1993); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.141941

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