# GelBelt: A Vision-based Tactile Sensor for Continuous Sensing of Large Surfaces

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.06263 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.06263/

## Key facts

- Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 14 of its 39 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 9 Jan 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 14 of 14)

- [More Than a Feeling: Learning to Grasp and Regrasp using Vision and Touch](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1805.11085/) (2018)
- [GelSlim: A High-Resolution, Compact, Robust, and Calibrated Tactile-sensing Finger](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1803.00628/) (2018)
- [GelSlim3.0: High-Resolution Measurement of Shape, Force and Slip in a Compact Tactile-Sensing Finger](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2103.12269/) (2021)
- [GelSight Wedge: Measuring High-Resolution 3D Contact Geometry with a Compact Robot Finger](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2106.08851/) (2021)
- [Improved GelSight Tactile Sensor for Measuring Geometry and Slip](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1708.00922/) (2017)
- [Simulation of Vision-based Tactile Sensors using Physics based Rendering](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2012.13184/) (2020)
- [Soft Biomimetic Optical Tactile Sensing with the TacTip: A Review](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2105.14455/) (2021)
- [GelSight Svelte: A Human Finger-shaped Single-camera Tactile Robot Finger with Large Sensing Coverage and Proprioceptive Sensing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.10885/) (2023)
- [GelSight Fin Ray: Incorporating Tactile Sensing into a Soft Compliant Robotic Gripper](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2204.07146/) (2022)
- [Soft, Round, High Resolution Tactile Fingertip Sensors for Dexterous Robotic Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2005.09068/) (2020)
- [In-Hand Manipulation of Unknown Objects with Tactile Sensing for Insertion](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.13403/) (2022)
- [GelSight360: An Omnidirectional Camera-Based Tactile Sensor for Dexterous Robotic Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2304.04268/) (2023)
- [Robotic Defect Inspection with Visual and Tactile Perception for Large-scale Components](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.04590/) (2023)
- [RoTip: A Finger-Shaped Tactile Sensor with Active Rotation Capability](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.01085/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [GelSLAM: A Real-time, High-Fidelity, and Robust 3D Tactile SLAM System](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.15990/) (2025)
- [A Modularized Design Approach for GelSight Family of Vision-based Tactile Sensors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.14739/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Scanning large-scale surfaces is widely demanded in surface reconstruction applications and detecting defects in industries' quality control and maintenance stages. Traditional vision-based tactile sensors have shown promising performance in high-resolution shape reconstruction while suffering limitations such as small sensing areas or susceptibility to damage when slid across surfaces, making them unsuitable for continuous sensing on large surfaces. To address these shortcomings, we introduce a novel vision-based tactile sensor designed for continuous surface sensing applications. Our design uses an elastomeric belt and two wheels to continuously scan the target surface. The proposed sensor showed promising results in both shape reconstruction and surface fusion, indicating its applicability. The dot product of the estimated and reference surface normal map is reported over the sensing area and for different scanning speeds. Results indicate that the proposed sensor can rapidly scan large-scale surfaces with high accuracy at speeds up to 45 mm/s.