Central Fleet Control for Multi-Manufacturer AGV Traffic
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing driverless transport systems in production plants are limited by manufacturer-specific control systems, preventing the use of vehicles from different manufacturers on the same traffic area, leading to inefficiencies and the need for separate routes, which hinders flexible and cost-effective operation.
Innovation Solution
A central fleet controller with generic interfaces connects and coordinates multiple manufacturer-specific master controls, enabling the use of driverless transport vehicles from various manufacturers on a shared traffic area, providing real-time position data and traffic management to prevent collisions and optimize route distribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manufacturer-specific control systems are used for driverless transport vehicles, then each manufacturer's vehicles can be controlled reliably within their own fleet, but vehicles from different manufacturers cannot operate on the same traffic area
Solution Approach 1:
A central fleet controller is introduced as an intermediary between manufacturer-specific control systems. This central controller receives transport orders from a transport control system and distributes them to vehicles from different manufacturers through standardized interfaces, enabling multi-manufacturer operation while maintaining each manufacturer's proprietary control architecture
Solution Approach 2:
The central fleet controller implements universal communication interfaces that can interact with multiple different manufacturer-specific control systems. This universal interface layer enables the transport system to accommodate vehicles from various manufacturers on the same traffic area without requiring changes to the manufacturers' proprietary systems
2Reliability
If separate routes are provided for vehicles from different manufacturers, then each manufacturer's vehicles can operate independently, but the system complexity and infrastructure requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The central fleet controller acts as a mediator that coordinates traffic for all vehicles on shared routes. It manages route assignments and traffic flow for multiple manufacturers' vehicles, allowing them to use common infrastructure while maintaining operational independence through centralized coordination
3Adaptability or versatility
If a central fleet controller coordinates multiple manufacturer-specific control systems, then vehicles from different manufacturers can share traffic areas, but the overall system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented into distinct layers: manufacturer-specific control systems remain independent and unchanged, while a new central fleet controller layer is added above them. This segmentation allows multi-manufacturer integration without complicating the existing proprietary control architectures
Solution Approach 2:
The central fleet controller serves as an intermediary layer that standardizes communication between the transport control system and multiple manufacturer-specific systems. This intermediary absorbs the complexity of multi-manufacturer coordination, presenting simplified interfaces to both upper and lower system layers
4Reliability
If real-time position data is collected and visualized for all vehicles, then traffic coordination and collision prevention are improved, but the data processing and communication requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
Position data from all manufacturer-specific control systems is merged and centralized in the fleet controller. This consolidated view enables comprehensive traffic coordination and collision prevention across all vehicles while efficiently managing data processing through a single centralized point
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to a transport system (1), in particular for a production plant, comprising a first fleet (6) of driverless transport vehicles (7) and a first manufacturer-specific control unit (4) for controlling the driverless transport vehicles (7) of the first fleet (6); a second fleet (8) of driverless transport vehicles (9) and a second manufacturer-specific control unit (5) for controlling the driverless transport vehicles (9) of the second fleet (8), wherein the first control unit (4) and the second control unit (5) are not compatible with each other;a central fleet control unit (2) which is connected via respective interfaces (3) to the first control unit (4) and the second control unit (5) and is configured to distribute respective driving orders to the driverless transport vehicles of the first fleet (6) and the second fleet (8) and to perform traffic control for all driverless transport vehicles (7, 9) of the two fleets (6, 8) on a traffic area shared across the fleets. The invention further relates to a method for operating a transport system (1).