Battery-free, Info-enabled AGVs Bring Portable Assembly Lines to Automotive Industry

Editor's Notes

1. Who’s RedViking? We design, build, and integrate turnkey solutions for manufacturers.  Our Manufacturing Solutions group builds assembly lines and custom machines. Our Dynamic Test Systems Group builds powertrain test stands for aerospace and automotive companies. And our MES team integrates other companies’ MES systems, including Factory Talk ProductionCentre, as well as offering our own product line, Argonaut.
2. The challenge we received from one of the world’s largest automakers was this: Create a flexible assembly line with some very specific objectives. >>It had to run continuously, with no unplanned downtime. >>It had to handle 2 car models this year, and an unknown number of variants in the future. >>The line needed to index synchronously with very tight tolerances (is tolerance the right word?). >>They needed to easily scale up or down, based on market demand. >>And finally, they needed to be able to fully integrate this solution into their existing MES.
3. We’re currently installing the largest fleet of battery-free AGVs in the world for a global automaker. So why didn’t they choose skillets, like most other U.S. automakers?
4. Or if they wanted to be leading edge, why didn’t they choose battery-powered AGVs?
5. Skillets definitely meet their first 3 criteria – they run 24/7, they can support multi-model builds, and they have no other choice than to index synchronously. If you’ve never installed a skillet conveyor, here’s what it looks while it’s being built.
6. And as you can imagine, installation is a major project, with digging out the floor…
7. Installing side walls…
8. framing out for the concrete pour…
9. And of course, putting in all the motors and drives and infrastructure. This is not a flexible solution. And it’s not scalable.
10. Once a skillet is built, it has as many platforms as it will ever have, without an extremely expensive and time-consuming overhaul.
11. This is our Michigan test track, and we’re proving out an AGV line that syncs both the AGVs and their lifts. It’s kind of hard to get your head around if you haven’t seen it before, but this is the assembly line. No pits, no big dig, no miles of metal infrastructure. It’s flexible in a way that skillets can’t ever be.
12. These battery-free AGVs use the same kind of inductive power as your cell phone’s inductive charger,
13. Only instead of generating 5 watts of power, each power pickup on the AGV generates 2.5kw – 500 times more power.
14. And here’s how it’s installed. This is the installation of our Michigan Test Track. (Describe depth of groove, purpose of each cable, installation takes two days because you have to let the epoxy dry overnight….) It’s flexible and scalable. Our customers are typically operational within a week of receiving their AGVs, and changes can be made over a weekend.
15. Here’s one of our customers who needs to be able to adjust their capacity in response to rapidly changing market demands.
16. They needed to be able to reconfigure their line over a weekend, adding line length, spurs, and new paths as their capacity grew. They also wanted to reuse AGVs for new models, so we designed quick change fixtures for today’s models, with the ability to easily refixture for future models. Battery-free AGVs offer scalability, and they offer it efficiently.
17. Because you never need to buy surplus AGVs for recharging, battery powered AGVs are very cost-effective to scale. I’ve changed the numbers so I’m not revealing customer data, but the range is accurate. One of our longer-term customers has tripled their line’s capacity with only a 35% increase in the number of AGVs. That’s not an unusual outcome.
18. Which leads us to the next logical question, why not use battery powered AGVs? They offer all the flexibility and scalability that our customer was looking for.
19. But this line needs to run 24/7 without interruption, and here’s what you already know about batteries: 1.They need to be recharged, so you can either add many more AGVs than you need so that they can leave the line and go to a charging station, or…
20. You can have an operator remove the discharged battery and replace it. This is a page from an unnamed competitor’s information on swapping batteries for recharge, and the critical point here is that the battery life is APPROXIMATE. We do have some customers who can allow an AGV to be unavailable for 5-10 minutes for a battery swap, but none of them are willing to have their line grind to a halt because a battery depletes more quickly than expected.
21. Onboard automation reduces battery life. Automakers use lifts to ergonomically position the cars as they move through the line.
22. Battery life depletes as payloads grow. As the car goes through the line, it’s obviously becoming heavier along the way.
23. Finally, let’s talk about Intelligence. Battery-powered AGVs also aren’t a great fit for auto factories because they don’t have an onboard PLC. Inductively powered AGVs are smart devices, so they’ll recognize which model they’re carrying and can vary their path, their speeds, and how they interact other automation.
24. These AGVs create an automotive decking loop. The operator used to have a lift assist to guide the exhaust system into place and bolt it in. Instead, the lift automatically synchs with the overhead conveyor, and the operator bolts on the exhaust system from an ergonomic position. Because Wingspan AGVs have onboard PLCs, they become an intelligent piece of automation that can be fully integrated with other automation and with an MES. Each AGV can identify the vehicle it’s carrying at that moment to get its own set up of automated work instructions, error proofing gates, and traceability requirements.
25. So now let’s talk about the Rockwell Automation components that make this solution work so well.
26. Same as bullet text Embedded EtherNet/IP Communication for Fast Data Transfer to Supervisory Control Panel Integrated Safety Communication and Motion over EtherNet/IP to other Safety Processors to Stop One AGV with Line Level E-Stop Uses Studio 5000 Logix Software Platform for Customer-Initiated Configuration Changes
27. Rockwell Automation-powered battery-free AGVs met every single one of the automaker’s requirements in a way that skillets and traditional AGVs never could. We expect this to be the way forward for assembly line AGVs, and we’re glad to have Rockwell as our partner.