EAAI Journal 2025 Journal Article
Applications of machine vision technology for conveyor belt deviation detection: A review and roadmap
- Jiaming Han
- Ting Fang
- Wensheng Liu
- Chenxiao Zhang
- Molin Zhu
- Jibin Xu
- Jie Ji
- Xianhua He
Conveyor belt deviation is a frequent challenge in product transportation filed, and failure to promptly detect and rectify this anomaly not only significantly reduces transport efficiency but also poses a risk of serious safety accidents, leading to enormous economic losses. Traditional contact-based deviation detection technologies, with their inherent limitations of high costs and complicated maintenance, have struggled to meet the practical demands of long-distance conveyor belt inspection. In this context, non-contact machine vision technology has emerged as a prominent solution in the field of conveyor belt deviation detection, thanks to its notable advantages of a simple hardware structure and round-the-clock operational capability. Recently, with the rapid development of artificial intelligence theories, this research field has accumulated a series of effective solutions that have been proven through machine vision practical applications. This paper delves into the technical principles of the existing solutions, systematically summarizes them and objectively evaluates their strengths and weaknesses in practical applications. Based on this foundation, this paper also provides an insight on the future development trends of intelligent monitoring for conveyor belt deviation, aiming to offer valuable reference and guidance to technicians in related fields.