An Enhanced Single-Stage Neural Network for Object Detection in Transmission Line Inspection

To address the issue of human object detection in transmission line inspection, an enhanced single-stage neural network is proposed, which is based on the improvement of the YOLOv7-tiny model. Firstly, a lighter GSConv module is utilized to optimize the original ELAN module, reducing the parameters in the network. In order to make the network less sensitive to the targets with an unconventional pose, a module based on CSPNeXt and GSConv is designed and integrated with the ELAN module to extract deep features from the targets. Moreover, a WIoU (Wise Intersection over Union) loss function is utilized to enhance the ability of the YOLOv7-tiny model to detect objects with an unconventional pose and the interference of the background. Finally, the experimental results on human targets in transmission line inspection demonstrate that the proposed network improves detection confidence and reduces missed detection. Compared to the YOLOv7-tiny model, the proposed method promotes the performance of accuracy while reducing the amount of parameters.