This paper proposes a monocular camera-based depth estimation method to prevent accidents between moving heavy equipment, such as forklifts, and workers at manufacturing environments. Traditional depth estimation techniques, which rely on ultrasonic sensors, LiDAR, and stereo cameras, face challenges such as high costs, complex installation processes, and maintenance difficulties. As a result, monocular camera-based approaches have gained increasing research attention. In this paper, we introduce an improved Monocular Depth Estimation (MDE) method aimed at enhancing forklift collision avoidance. Our method incorporates a variant of the Split-Transform-Merge (STM) strategy, traditionally used in deep learning for image classification, to improve depth estimation performance. Conventional MDE techniques generally perform two tasks: regression, which inputs a single image into the network to produce depth outputs, and classification, where discrete depth value classes (i.e., bins) are predefined, and the network outputs the probability of each pixel belonging to a specific bin. However, a significant limitation of these methods arises when high-dimensional feature maps are projected into low-dimensional bins, leading to information loss. To address this, we propose a novel strategy that thoroughly analyzes the relationship between feature maps and bins estimation, applying a variant STM strategy to minimize information loss. To validate the performance of the proposed method, we compared it with a previous MDE method, i.e., AdaBins, and confirmed performance improvements across four evaluation metrics. The experimental results not only confirm enhanced performance in all quantitative metrics but also reveal significant improvements in visual quality.
Deep Learning-Based Monocular Depth Estimation Method for Forklift Collision Avoidance
Communic.Comp.Inf.Science
International Symposium on Intelligent Technology for Future Transportation ; 2024 ; Helsinki, Finland October 20, 2024 - October 22, 2024
12.03.2025
8 pages
Aufsatz/Kapitel (Buch)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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