Autonomous mobile robot

A wheeled robot carries goods or leads a picker through the warehouse, finding its own way around people and obstacles instead of following a fixed track. It reads a map of the building, plans a route, and stops or goes round if something is in the way. Because it needs no wires or magnets in the floor, it can be added or redeployed with little change to the building; this kind of robot is called an autonomous mobile robot (AMR).

AMRs do different jobs: carrying totes or pallets from point to point, working alongside pickers and carrying the picks, or bringing shelves to stations. Some have a lifting platform or a conveyor top, and some have an arm.

An automated guided vehicle (AGV) is the older cousin that follows a fixed route; the difference is how freely the vehicle decides its own way.

When it pays off

AMRs pay off when people walk long distances carrying or pushing goods and the layout may change, since the fleet can grow robot by robot. They suit operations that peak and ease, where robots can be added or rented for the peak. They pay off less where the route is short and fixed, where loads are very heavy or awkward, where aisles are too narrow for robots and people to pass, or where the floor is rough or sloped. A pilot in one zone shows what the walking really costs.

What the warehouse system does with it

The warehouse system sends tasks to the robots, or to a fleet manager that coordinates them: for example, take this tote to station 4, or guide the picker to these locations. The robots confirm pickup and drop-off, and the WMS or the fleet manager chooses the next task. A picker who confirms a pick on the robot's screen sends it to the WMS. The fleet manager, not the WMS, usually handles traffic, charging and routes; the WMS only needs to know that the task is done.

Who makes it

Agilox, Karter, Locus Robotics, Lowpad, MiR, Neobotix

In alphabetical order. Not a ranking or a recommendation.