Method, system and apparatus for gap detection in support structures with peg regions

A method of detecting gaps on a support structure, the method comprising:

• obtaining, at an imaging controller, (i) a plurality of depth measurements representing the support structure according to a common frame of reference, and (ii) a plurality of label indicators each defining a boundary of a label mounted on either a peg or a shelf edge of the support structure in the common frame of reference;
• for each of the label indicators:
• assigning, to the label indicator, either a peg-mounted label class or a shelf edge-mounted label class, based on a first portion of the depth measurements within the boundary, and a second portion of the depth measurements outside the boundary and adjacent to the boundary;
• generating an item search space in the common frame of reference according to the class of the label indicator;
• and
• determining, based on a subset of the depth measurements within the item search space, whether the item search space contains an item.