The Basics of Automatic Guided Vehicle Systems

Load Transfer: Power Lift/Lower

There are three general power lift/lower methods of load transfer:

• Pallet fork lift/lower
• Unit load lift/lower
• Fork truck lift/lower

In the pallet truck lift/lower method the AGVS pallet truck can pick up loads or drop them off directly to the floor. The vehicle must pull straight ahead after depositing a load on the floor so that the pallet forks clear the load before it reenters the main guide path.

The lift/lower unit load carrier can interface with special ‘horseshoe’ conveyor load stands or with fixed load pickup deposit stations. The vehicle approaches a load transfer area and makes a right angle turn into a horseshoe shaped load station. It decelerates and pulls into the load station where it accurately stops and lowers or lifts its load deck. The load is then transferred to/from the load stand and the vehicle reverses its direction, and proceeds to its next assignment.

The lift/lower fork truck is a concept that allows the guided vehicle to pick loads up off the floor and deposit them on the load stands or in racks. This gives the AGVS system more versatility in larger systems where not all of the conveyors or load stands are at the same height. The vehicle can service an infinite number of different heights within a given lifting range.