Non-contact measurement systems in robotics and telerobotics

Sammanfattning: In robotics, and particularly in telerobotics, non-contact measurement methods are widely used. In this thesis, systems are investigated with the range camera as the main sensor component. It is desirable that remotely controlled robot systems have a high degree of autonomy. Two systems are described where a range camera is used to increase the autonomy of the system. The first is a system where a laser pointer tracks an edge of an object or a cable. In the second system a range camera is used to control the movement of a robot arm perpendicularly towards an object, in the intention of aligning a sensor probe to the surface of the object. A problem with range camera measurements is the occurrence of occlusion, i.e. the phenomenon when objects in the foreground hide the measured object. One example of such a system is when the range camera is used to measure irregular objects, as for example objects on a conveyor belt. In the thesis, we investigate a system where we use the range camera to estimate the size distribution of iron ore pellets on a conveyor belt while systematic errors in the measurements arise due to occlusion.