Partnership created to build autonomous guided vehicles for paint shops

Switzerland-based autonomous navigation company BlueBotics SA has signed an exclusive agreement with Germany’s Dürr Systems, a provider of automation and digitalisation equipment for vehicle manufacturing, to create autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) that they claim will revolutionise paint shop efficiency, safety and flexibility. 

The three-year collaboration will see future generations of Dürr’s EcoProFleet vehicle, the first AGV designed specifically for paint shops, being built upon BlueBotics’ ANT natural-feature navigation technology – providing Dürr’s automotive customers with flexible, accurate and fleet-ready AGV technology.

Stefano Bell, product manager at Dürr, said: “A successful AGV within a paint shop environment has to be robust, safe, reliable and adaptable to changing conditions. Our EcoProFleet combined with ANT navigation technology meets all these requirements. The performance of ANT and BlueBotics’ excellent support make the company the perfect development partner for us to meet the logistical requirements in Dürr’s ‘paint shop of the future’.”

EcoProFleet AGVs are the first AGVs designed specifically to operate in paint shop environments. Using the AGVs to move car bodies between storage, work zones and final inspection points negates the need for permanent conveyor installations and makes the system adaptable for the introduction of new car models or changing production sequences. The AGVs are designed with a low profile, at an overall height of 225 mm, meaning they can drive under work zones and conveyor systems to transfer car bodies throughout the paint shop.

Dr. Nicola Tomatis, CEO of BlueBotics, said: “We are delighted to work with such a leader in vehicle manufacturing automation. By upgrading their EcoProFleet with ANT navigation technology, Dürr have created a future-proof AGV that will meet the demanding needs of its automotive customers.”

ANT navigation technology is used in 1,000 installed projects, with over 3,000 vehicles in operation. ANT-driven vehicles such as the EcoProFleet are claimed to be simple to use and cost-effective to install because no permanent changes to a site’s infrastructure are required. 

Using the BlueBotics ANT server platform, ANT vehicles can work together seamlessly in a scalable fleet. ANT server can also connect to Dürr’s DXQlogistics.control in order to bring AGV operational data inside this MES/SCADA software. 

BlueBotics ANT lab software further enables vehicle routes and actions to be quickly and easily updated to meet new production needs. Bell said: “We are extremely excited about the potential of ANT-driven EcoProFleet AGVs to help our vehicle OEMs increase manufacturing safety, efficiency and reliability, and lower production costs. This agreement really is a win-win, for both our companies and for vehicle manufacturers alike.”

BlueBotics https://bluebotics.com

Dürr Systems https://www.durr.com/en/

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