Agilox Launches Autonomous Dolly Mover for Small Loads
Agilox North America, which manufactures automated material handling solutions, has announced adding an autonomous dolly mover to its range of intelligent transport systems controlled by its X-Swarm intelligence. The company said it has expanded its autonomous mobile robot (AMR) series with the Omnidirectional Dolly Mover (ODM).
The ODM can accept loads up to 300 kg (661 lbs) to a maximum lifting height of 250 mm (10 inches) and transport them to their destination. The ability to automate this equipment opens up new areas of applications and other industry segments where small load carriers (such as totes) are widely used, especially in the electronics and pharmaceutical industries, Agilox said.
The ODM is able to travel autonomously and navigate freely on a production floor or in the warehouse to ensure in-house material flow. Like the company’s Agilox ONE or the OCM, the ODM uses an omnidirectional drive concept, which lets it travel transversely into rack aisles and turn on the spot, enabling it to maneuver even in tight spaces, the company said. The system includes a lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) accumulator to ensure short charge times and long operating cycles.
“Agilox is a company that has built a strong foundation with the Agilox ONE and the Agilox OCF,” said Andreas Boedenauer, CEO of Agilox North America. “With the new Agilox ODM, we remain true to our brand DNA while simultaneously targeting the transport of small load carriers to support our growth plan to become the world’s leading AMR provider.”
Because Agilox AMRs have no central fleet management system and can navigate in the existing warehouse and production facility environment with millimeter precision, there is no need for time-consuming and costly modifications to existing infrastructure, the company said. The autonomous-route finding feature also lets vehicles avoid obstacles unaided. If it is impossible to get past a detected obstacle due to size or available clearance, the AMRs can calculate a new route within seconds to reach their destination as quickly as possible. This capability lets customers enjoy maximum freedom in existing processes, as the system adapts to the customer’s processes, not the other way around, Agilox said. This also ensures a safe workflow, even in mixed operations.
Deploying the AMRs into operation involves the Plug & Perform process, in which they are organized according to the decentralized architecture of swarm intelligence – exchanging information several times per second to enable the entire fleet to find the most efficient routes. The Agilox X-SWARM technology helps improve flexibility, letting users expand the vehicle’s area of operation within a few minutes. This also lets users move an AMR to be used temporarily in other areas of the facility, or even in subsidiaries. Because the vehicles also communicate with other technologies installed in the building infrastructure using IO boxes, even rolling doors or multiple floors are not a problem, Agilox said.
For more details on the ODM, visit the Agilox website here.
