Cameras for Robotics, with the Vision Model Built for Your Robot

Robots need cameras that match how they work: fixed above a cell, depth for picking, or on board a mobile robot. Roboflow trains the model on your own images and runs it on the camera or computer your robot uses.

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Robotic arm with AI object detection identifies an aluminum can on a conveyor belt mixed with plastic and cardboard waste.

Cameras for Robotics AI Vision Solution

Vision-guided robots replace fixed coordinates and rigid fixtures with perception, so they can find randomly placed parts, check quality as they work, and move safely around people. The right camera depends on the robot: where it sits, whether it needs depth, and how much power and space it has.

  • Fixed robot cells: Roboflow AI1 (opens in a new tab), an 8 MP camera with an 8-LED ring light and an NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX, runs detection and segmentation models above the cell and sends results to the PLC over OPC UA, EtherNet/IP, Profinet, or Modbus TCP
  • 3D picking and depth: RealSense and Orbbec depth cameras tell the robot where an object is, and a Roboflow model tells it what the object is
  • Mobile robots and tight spaces: Luxonis OAK cameras run the model on the camera itself, or pair the camera of your choice with an NVIDIA Jetson on board

Whichever camera you choose, the model comes from your own images. Label frames from your robot's cameras in Roboflow, train a model such as RF-DETR, and deploy it to the camera or computer your robot runs on. Roboflow models also plug straight into Standard Bots' six-axis robots, so teams can add a trained model to a robot without moving files by hand.

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Already have cameras on the robot? Roboflow Inference also runs models on GigE Vision, USB, and RTSP streams from the cameras you already have, so you can add vision to existing robots and cells.

AI for Cameras for Robotics Workflows

Building a robot with a camera? Explore Workflows you can get started with to create computer vision apps in minutes. Try the top open and closed source models on frames from your robot's cameras for free, then deploy a Workflow that finds, measures, or checks objects for your robot in real time.

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How to Setup Cameras for Robotics with AI

Robot cameras connect over USB, GigE, or RTSP to the robot's own computer, an edge device such as an NVIDIA Jetson, or AI1. Train a model in Roboflow and run it with Roboflow Inference, sending results to the PLC or robot controller.

“The future of automation isn't about retrofitting facilities for robots. It's about building robots that see and adapt to the real world. Vision AI makes that possible and is at the core of everything we do at Peer Robotics. With Roboflow powering our perception pipeline, we're deploying in existing facilities from day one.”

Rishabh Agarwal

CEO, Peer Robotics

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Additional resources

  • Vision AI for Robotics

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