The present work is part of the KTI research project ?NETHS-EASY?, which is being carried out at the Institute for Mechatronic systems in partnership with the industrial partners Neuweiler AG, Kreuzlingen and Tuchschmid AG, in Frauenfeld. NETHS-EASY (Neuweiler Tuchschmid horizontal system) refers to a basically horizontal working gantry crane, which can move ISO standard container and ?Wechselbehalter? automatically from the railway line to the road (or from the road to railway line) under the overhead wire of the railway. It can be used both as a small terminal in a siding and as an unloading module in the main railway terminals.

The subject of this diploma thesis is the clarification, investigation, conception and realization of prototypes and tests all undertaken with a view to demonstrating that with the help of such systems standard containers can be recognized with due levels of reliability and efficiency, automatically and reliably grabbed from the loading system, transported and set off to the destination.

With two photographs taken from different angles the 3D-Information can be obtained every time from an object (stereo vision). With two optical filters we try to reduce reflection and colour contrast. The site is illuminated with two 500W halogen spotlights, so that we are the ones who decide what kind of shadows can be created. We gain the object recognition in the Matrox Inspector 4.0. With the two pixel coordinates, which we obtained from the object recognition, we calculate with the triangulation method the 3D coordinate.

Because the pictures are distorted by the lenses, we first have to get the calibration data from the picture, so that these can be included into the 3D-calculation.

The coordinate received from this is written into a file and handed over, after examination of its accuracy to the SPS control.

This work serves on the one hand as a feasibility study and on the other hand as a basis for further project or diploma.