A stereovision system for three-dimensional measurements of machines

The modern manufacturing or transportation machines that are used in industrial processes require continuous supervision in certain circumstances and even manual control by a human. Despite the fact the machines are more and more reliable and accurate than they used to be there is still the need for manual and time-consuming programming and safety control, especially when the external conditions change. For the operation of large machines, where the risk of damage and even disaster exists, an additional supervisory system based on vision devices could be utilized. The vision systems are commonly used in a range of simple 2D detection as well as very precise 3D reconstruction. The stereovision systems could be applied for unusual operations, especially in terms of safety and collision avoidance, such as crane observations while transporting a heavy load, robot and CNC machine preparation and normal operation. Through the use of optical devices the observed objects could be quickly positioned. In this research a test bench for stereovision reconstruction for the example of a robotic arm has been presented. The calibration procedures have been explained and accuracy tests in a large measuring volume were performed. Finally the possibilities of the applications and the utilization of such a system have been assessed.