Automated Vehicles Drive Change in Warehouse Work

Efforts to improve automotive safety are trickling down to the smallest vehicles, including those that never hit the roads.

Automated Vehicles

The quest to develop safer cars is also influencing the design of smaller vehicles, benefitting manufacturing companies, warehouses, and the people who work in them. A new generation of autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs), also called autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), are essential to efforts to improve efficiency in manufacturing and warehouse distribution. New AGVs rely on autonomous technologies and sensors to guide robots that carry materials around factories.

Honeywell is partnering with Fetch to help its customers adopt autonomous mobile robots.

As online purchasing revolutionizes retailing, AGVs and AMRs are taking over many roles in the supply chain. Mass and e-commerce retailers such as Walmart, Target, and Kohl’s increasingly rely on these machines to move through their vast warehouses. Amazon may be the largest user, with over 45,000 robots in operation in over 320 warehouses throughout the US.

Equipment suppliers are moving quickly to gain market share. In October, Honeywell teamed up with Fetch Robotics to provide AMRs aimed primarily at distribution centers that fulfill e-commerce orders. “As staffing challenges and the continued growth of online shopping are pressuring supply chains, robotics can be an effective solution to help make large, integrated distribution centers more efficient,” said Pieter Krynauw, president of Honeywell Intelligrated.

Compact connectors trim size, which is a critical factor in mobile robot design. (Photo courtesy of Molex)

A recent survey from the Material Handling Institute showed that members expect adoption to rise from 34 to 73% over the next five years, with more than half of the respondents saying that driverless vehicles have the potential to create competitive advantages. Adoption is currently at 11%, but half the respondents expect to adopt them within the next five years.

Cameras, along with LiDAR and radar, are driving this con