Edson Perin
Entrepreneurship in Brazil is part of the achievements that humanity can be proud of, because it isn’t really easy. Despite the scenario of difficulties and lack of government support, AGVS, which has a portfolio of self-guided vehicles with 100 per cent Brazilian development and construction projects, started to use the radio frequency identification (RFID) technology of another Brazilian, eSolutech, in order to gain even more competitiveness.
In an interview to the IoP Journal TV, the main executives of the two companies – Samuel Bloch, from eSolutech, and Thomaz Rocco, from AGVS – set the tone for the initiative. First, the idea is to make AGVS autonomous vehicles capable of self-guiding through eSolutech’s RFID system, which uses tags from HID Global and own reader, developed by the Brazilian.
But the project does not stop there: in the future, the objective includes allowing companies to offer an integrated solution capable of taking inventory of large warehouses, such as DCs (Distribution Centers), at the touch of a command, in periods when there is little movement or no operations in progress in the large inventories.
Watch the full IoP Journal TV interview [in Portuguese]: click here.
The ZF Group of Sorocaba (SP) is a case with the use of AGVS’s (Automated Guided Vehicles), by AGVS, for the transport of products such as transmissions, axles and components for manufacturing inside and between the unit’s buildings. The project is part of ZF’s strategy to make its processes increasingly aligned with the principles of industry 4.0 and automation.
The implementation, which began in 2019, was led by the logistics area of ZF Sorocaba, the first in the group in the world to adopt the technology with an interface for external areas. In 2020, the unit’s infrastructure was adapted to receive these vehicles. The first of them started operating in January 2021, and the four AGVs started operating simultaneously two months later.
Automation and digitalization are part of the strategy to meet the forecasts for expanding ZF’s logistics and operations in South America. Thus, these expectations are the main drivers for the creation and implementation of the new project, which has already brought an increase of 31 .8% productivity and 94.6% reduction in the variability of delivery time of materials.
RFID tags installed in the path of vehicles determine the speed, location, range of action and what the vehicle should and should not do. For this, variants such as external areas, flat floor, maximum speed, curves, walls, etc. are also considered. Flexibility is one of the great advantages of the AGV, since it is possible to change routes at any time, according to the need for each operation, complete.
Autonomous vehicles reach 14 kilometers per hour, but can be programmed to operate at reduced speeds, according to the stretch and the complexity offered by the environment. The equipment battery is charged at five stopping points. At no time is it necessary to interrupt the operation, as its movement capacity is 24 hours a day.
