Object recognition for robots at Prodrive Technologies

Category: Internship jobs

Education Level: Bsc / MSc

Context

Prodrive Technologies is a developer and manufacturer of world-class electronics. It comprises over 1100 employees and is one of the fastest growing companies in Europe. Our organization is mostly based on two groups: Development and Operations. The Development department is oriented at developing first-class electronic, mechanic and software solutions. The operations department is responsible for production, assembly, testing and life-cycle-management of electronic products and systems in the range of 1 to more than a million pieces per year.

The Development department also develops machinery and tools for the automation of production steps in the Operations department. In that context, several robot solutions are currently being developed. For the sake of the flexibility of the robot solutions it is advantageous to automatically locate objects in the real world using visual sensors. Currently this is done using 2D cameras but the need arises to localize objects using 3D.

The 3D localization will be piloted in an application where stacks of delivered component reels on a conveyor belt are automatically destacked and booked into the warehouse by a robot with 3D vision. 3D algorithms vision must produce the location and thickness of the topmost reel. The tape reels can have various forms and colours and have a diameter of either 7” or 13”.

Assignment

The student will investigate the literature on 3D object-detection and -localization algorithms and evaluate their advantages and disadvantages. The training method and data (e.g. CAD, depth map, point cloud) used for localization is still open and part of the investigation. With the acquired knowledge, a suitable algorithm is designed and implemented given the constraints of the pilot application. The implemented algorithm is evaluated for performance using images of the reels captured with a 3D camera.

Deliverables

• Specification of localization algorithm requirements
• Exploration and selection of localization algorithms
• Design and implementation of selected algorithm with C# interface
• Evaluation of algorithm performance

Important note: all our graduation assignments are dependent on time. Please see them as an example of the many great things you can do at Prodrive Technologies. If you have the same passion for technology as we do, we always have an assignment for you!

Benefits as a student

Next to the benefits which are true for every Prodriver that are listed below, some special benefits must be highlighted for students. First of all you will be treated as a real Prodriver. Your opinion and ideas will be heard and treated as full. Next to this you will get the chance to work with colleagues with a very high level of knowledge in their field and get the chance to use our world class lab and production facilities for your graduation assignment.

Your benefits

When you are able to prove that you are the perfect fit for our job, you will be rewarded in many ways: you will get the chance to develop yourself as a person, gain extensive knowledge and develop your career in multiple directions. Besides that, you will “naturally“ be offered a market competitive salary and outstanding secondary conditions. Your salary growth is in line with your own professional development so it can grow fast and you will even get the opportunity to become a shareholder. All this at an employer that has achieved an average annual growth of 25% over the last 20 years!

Organization

There are only few companies in the world of technology which stand out. According to our customers Prodrive Technologies is one of them. Our company was founded in 1993 by technical professionals from the Eindhoven University of Technology. Since then every year Prodrive Technologies has shown a steep growth rate due to a very successful business concept in a young and dynamic organization (average age 28 years). Currently the total Prodrive Technologies organization consists of over 2.200 (1800 FTE) employees which are highly skilled, highly motivated, and focused on results.

Apply here!