Project objective is to develop, demonstrate and validate a generic automation system for factory logistics in modern factories based on advanced Automated Guided Vehicles (AGV).

Today, automation is only marginally applied to factory logistics. In fact, transportation of raw materials and final products from/to storage and shipment points usually requires manually operated forklifts. The use of robotic Automated Guided Vehicles (AGV) in factory logistics is not yet widespread in manufacturing plants. For this reason, factory logistics is not well integrated into the modern manufacturing processes so far.

The use of forklifts results in low efficiency and high energy consumption. Furthermore, the operation of forklifts is not safe for workers. It is listed among the most frequent causes of severe accidents in factories. This is mainly due to the fact that forklift drivers are prone to errors and not always sufficiently trained. In addition to that, manufacturing environments are often rather cluttered with numerous blind spots.

The PAN-Robots consortium stresses that the use of AGVs in factory operations will lead to:

• Higher flexibility,
• Cost efficient logistics,
• Low energy consumption and
• Enhanced work safety.