Autonomous lift trucks can make warehouses safer and more efficient and can provide a quick return on investment, says Kenny Watson, automation sales manager at Linde Materials Handling.
Autonomous forklift trucks have long been used in intralogistics and, used effectively, can take efficiency to a new level. Working alongside people, they must assist without creating the risk of accidents.
In some cases, they need to communicate with other devices in real time in order to assure a smooth workflow. They must be flexible to meet the needs of many industries where production and logistics processes change as dynamically as the products and goods themselves.
The benefits
There are several benefits of automated technology in warehouses. AGVs can help to boost employees’ development and job satisfaction by performing many of the low value, repetitive and long-distance tasks that, previously, employees had to perform themselves. The scope for human error in warehouse operations can be hugely reduced, which improves process quality and aids efficiency.
Another benefit is safety. AGVs have built-in safety features to protect pedestrians, such as 360-degree scanners which detect obstacles and cause the vehicle to slow down or stop when necessary. All Linde AGVs have a safety performance level of PL-d to ISO 13849-1.
AGVs reduce the number of pedestrians needed on the warehouse floor, which in turn reduces the risk of accidents and will be important for many businesses seeking to get back to work while observing social distancing.
Flexibility
All Linde AGVs are based on traditional manual vehicles, which offers the flexibility to use them as manual vehicles if the situation requires it. The geonavigation system, which maps against multiple reference points and building infrastructure, makes this switch seamless. Unlike some other AGV systems operating from one or two reference points, where vehicles must be returned to a specific location in the warehouse to convert back from manual operation, Linde AGVs can be switched back into automated mode with the press of a button from any location on their automated path.
AGVs can undertake almost any process you can perform using a manual truck. At the moment, the main restrictions concern operating AGVs outside, and this is something the industry as a whole is seeking to address. If any moisture, such as rain or condensation, gets on the truck’s scanner, it can interpret it as an obstacle and safety mechanisms are activated, causing the truck to slow down or stop.
This often makes operating AGVs outside less practical than using manually operated vehicles. There are also some safety concerns in connection with automated loading and unloading, but this is something customers particularly want, so making this safer is a top priority for Linde’s development teams.
The cost
AGVs can be installed to fulfil simple transport from one point to the other with the press a button, without the need for sophisticated software. As with any technology, the more complex the system is the greater the investment will be.
The average cost for buying an AGV system on a longer-term lease works is such that the equivalent hourly rate of an automated truck can be significantly lower than the cost of a manual truck and operator. Most businesses could expect to see a return on investment in an average of around 18 months, depending on factors such as the number of shifts worked and employment costs.
Linde’s geonavigation system is completely bespoke and mapped to the customer’s warehouse, so it can be tailored to each customer’s specific needs. This approach means there is also scope to adjust the mapping if a warehouse expands, or a customer wants to invest in making their AGV system more complex – for example, by adding a higher lift height or additional processes like automated loading and unloading.
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