You Only Orient Once (YOOO): Vision-Driven Robotic Cable Insertion

Abdelrahman Mahmoud, Rodolfo Verde, Volker Willert, Tobias Kaupp
Code

Overview

Automotive wiring harness assembly remains predominantly manual despite increasing automation in manufacturing. YOOO (You Only Orient Once) addresses this challenge by introducing an advanced vision-driven pipeline that integrates collaborative robotics and computer vision for precise cable insertion into connector housings.

Our system leverages YOLOv11 models for simultaneous keypoint detection and segmentation to accurately determine cable orientation without requiring precise extrinsic camera calibration. This enables rapid deployment with minimal setup time (~1 minute) while maintaining high precision for sub-millimeter insertion accuracy.

Key Results: 94% insertion success rate under stable conditions, 12.75 seconds average insertion time per terminal, and robust performance across varying cable orientations and lighting conditions.

Methodology

Pitch Angle Pipeline

Pitch angle estimation pipeline

Roll Angle Pipeline

Roll angle detection pipeline

The YOOO system employs two specialized YOLOv11 models working in parallel to achieve precise cable orientation estimation without requiring complex extrinsic camera calibration.

🎯 Pitch Correction (YOLOv11-pose)

Our keypoint detection model identifies five critical points on the cable terminal: Left Midpoint, Center, Right Midpoint, Top, and Bottom. The pitch angle is calculated by connecting these midpoints and measuring the slope relative to the horizontal reference. This approach provides ~10° tolerance, ensuring robust insertion even with minor detection variations.

🔄 Roll Correction (YOLOv11-seg)

The segmentation model precisely outlines the terminal shape from a side view. The contour is approximated using four straight lines forming a rectangle, and the roll angle is computed from the horizontal edge gradients. A weighted average across multiple images improves accuracy, with smaller angles receiving higher weights to minimize outlier influence.

⚡ Fast Deployment

Unlike traditional methods requiring hours of precise camera calibration, YOOO needs only 1 minute to ensure the terminal is within the camera's field of view. This enables rapid deployment in dynamic industrial environments with frequently changing layouts.

Demo

See the YOOO system in action with our metal gripper demonstration. The video shows the complete pipeline from cable grasping to orientation detection and precision insertion into the connector housing.

YOOO demo: Cable insertion with metal gripper

Experimental Results

YOOO was evaluated across 50 trials under both stable and unstable lighting conditions to assess real-world robustness. The system demonstrates exceptional performance with minimal calibration requirements. During testing, four terminals were inserted in a total of 51 seconds, resulting in the average time of 12.75 seconds per terminal.

🎯 Insertion Success

94%

Under stable lighting conditions

81.6% under unstable conditions

👁️ Detection Rate

100%

Pitch & roll angle detection

92% under challenging lighting

⚡ Speed

12.75s

Average insertion time per terminal

Including grasp & measurement

🔍 Key Findings

  • Rapid Deployment: Only 1 minute calibration time vs hours for traditional methods
  • Lighting Robustness: System maintains 81.6% success rate even under unstable lighting
  • Material Sensitivity: Metal grippers significantly outperform plastic ones
  • Angle Tolerance: ~10° pitch detection tolerance prevents insertion failures
  • Force Feedback: Enables error recovery and insertion verification