Why is Automated Guided Vehicle best for assembly lines?

An assembly line is one of the main and more interesting Automated Guided Vehicle applications. The idea is to use AGVs instead of typical physical structures such floor chain, moving mat, conveyors, overhead cranes. All of them are lines that requires important civil works for installation.

Computer-controlled and wheel-based, automatic guided vehicles (AGV) are load carriers that travel along the floor of a facility without an onboard operator or driver. Typical AGV applications include transportation of raw materials, work-in-process, and finished goods in support of manufacturing production lines, and storage/retrieval or other movements in support of picking in warehousing and distribution applications

 The above-listed applications of AGV are driving this market. According to a research report by Astute Analytica, the global Automated Guided Vehicle Market will register a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 10.3% during the forecast period from 2022 to 2027.

Reasons for preference of AGV in assembly lines

·    Maintenance at a low cost. Different from the common solutions, the AGVs are very effective because they have a low belonging cost to the system. They also avoid preventive and corrective maintenance. The AGV or AGC systems assures to have a reliable solution that does not generate high costs of maintenance.

·    Flexibility. The assembly lines often used conveyors that were not very flexible, so it was necessary to calculate how many workstations would operate from the beginning. They were not flexible regarding the evolution and the market demands. In this trend, the AGV and AGC let us do flexible lines, where the workstation tracking and locations can be modified as many times as needed. It can also be adapted to the assembly of new products or parts because they are very versatile.

·    Control Software. These systems are also controlled by software that monitors the time the vehicle is on pause, the activities to do, the destinations, the battery charging system, and traffic control, among others. Besides the security in the operation, with these systems, one can also know and control the variables that have an impact on the competitiveness of the processes. Avoid the risk of processes in the assembly lines.

·    AGVs allow Assembly Line Relocation. One can easily relocate the AGV flexible assembly line to another area of the plant or can even move the line to another plant even if it is abroad without expensive civil work. AGVs can integrate with other PLCs, tools, and robots in the production line and exchange information with any element related to the production process. The AGV becomes an intelligent part of the whole production system with infinite possibilities of integration with factory MES.

·    Automated guided vehicles improve operator ergonomics and safety. AGVs can incorporate many tools to improve operator ergonomics such as lifting tables, rotating devices, etc. These tools will minimize operator movements and will avoid non-ergonomic operations. Safety sensors that will not allow AGV movement until a certain part is properly blocked or unblocked. Safety sensors that will block the AGV movement in case an operator is detected in a defined position.