An approach to object recognition for a power distribution line maintenance robot. The case of identifying a mechanical bolt to be tightened with a nut

Abstract

We are engaged in the development of a power distribution line maintenance robot to perform the task level instructions instead of human workers autonomously. This robot will receive directions of the tasks it should accomplish such as “Tightening a nut” and it should follow the instructed task to complete its mission. For the robot to accomplish those commands it needs to recognize the position of any object it will need to use. In this paper, we will analyze how the robot detects a bolt on a work object such as a cross-arm.