Assisted Operation of a Robotic Arm Based on Stereo Vision for Positioning near an Explosive Device

Abstract

This document presents an assisted operation system of a robotic arm for positioning near an explosive device selected by the user through the visualization of the cameras on the screen. Two non-converging cameras mounted on the robotic arm in camera-in-hand configuration provide the three-dimensional (3D) coordinates of the object being tracked, using a 3D reconstruction technique with the help of the continuously adaptive mean shift (CAMSHIFT) algorithm for object tracking and feature matching. The inverse kinematics of the robot is implemented to locate the end effector close to the explosive so that the operator can perform the operation of grabbing the grenade more easily. Inverse kinematics is implemented in its geometric form, thus reducing the computational load. Tests conducted with various explosive devices verified the effectiveness of the system in locating the robotic arm in the desired position.