Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) provide many advantages in automated smart factories, including increased efficiency and improved worker safety. But rugged industrial environments do pose challenges to AGV system designers, as dust, debris, electromagnetic interference (EMI), and extreme temperatures can damage or disrupt electronic components and signals. To overcome these challenges and take advantage of the benefits of AGVs, system designers require rugged computing platforms that provide the performance necessary for advanced applications as well as a robust design that can minimize the potential for faults and system failures. In an effort to provide such solutions, AGV subsystem vendors are turning to development principals from the rail industry.
In this article, AGV system designers and facility operators will learn:
- How standards and design practices from the rail industry can be applied to the development of AGVs
- How rugged, off-the-shelf system solutions can jump-start AGV system development through fanless designs that mitigate the effects of harsh industrial environments
- How these platforms, based on Intel Core™ and Intel Xeon processor technology, can provide the performance necessary for the advanced application requirements of the smart factor