Simplified Automated Material Handling System

MAGNABOTS

Shorya Awtar
Sara Cinnamon
John Hart
Sean Montgomery
Abe Schnieder
Alexis Weber

http://pergatory.mit.edu/magnabots
 Material Handling: Key to Automation
• Factory Automation
• Cleanroom Automation
• Warehouse Automation
• Hospital Automation
• Building/Office Automation

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 Existing Medical Automation Systems
• Hyundai Elevator Co: Chutes/Elevators
based Building Automation system
• Shinko Electric: Monorail transport
based Hospital Conveyance System
• Daifuku: Instruments Storage and
Retrieval System
• California Computer Research Inc.
(CCRI): RoboCart for material transfer in
hospital environment

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 Problem Statement
• Develop a low cost high-performance intelligent material
transportation system

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 Fundamental Requirements: System Level
• Low Cost
– Simple Design
– Minimize Parts and Assembly
• High Performance
– Speed and Quality of Motion
– Flexibility in Layout and Transportation
• Expandability and Integrability
– Easy to Install in Existing Facilities
– Standardized Hardware / Software Interfaces and Communication
Protocols
• Minimize the System Footprint
• Operational Safety

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 What is needed to meet these Functional
Requirements?
• Automation Technology: A hardware and software technology
based on Deterministic Mechatronic Design that will meet the
cost and performance requirements
• Simulation: Good productivity and cost models for the client
industry that can verify the effectiveness of any automation
scheme before it is bought by an end user
• Standards: Automation standards enable seamless integration
of the automation technology with the products of an existing
equipment industry.

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 Development of Automation Technology
• Deterministic Mechatronic Design Methodology

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Automated Material Transportation Strategies
• Ground-based Automated Guided Vehicles
– Occupy valuable floor space
– Interfere with the movement of people and other equipment
– Very expensive
– Limited flexibility

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Automated Material Transportation Strategies
• Overhead Track-based Transport System
– Vehicles are guided along monorails
– Limited flexibility in motion: Rail tracks can be made 3-D to enhence
motion capability
– Track switching adds to number of components, complexity in
design and costs
– Zero foot print is a significant advantage

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Automated Material Transportation Strategies
• Overhead Track-less Transport System
– Zero footprint
– Need for track switching mechanisms is eliminated
– Immense flexibility in motion: Overhead ballroom
– Traffic control is a challenge: Tons of prior work available
– Need for elevators between levels can be eliminated (??)
– Power delivery can be a problem
– Safety issues: What if the vehicles fall off?

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 Implementation of Overhead Trackless
Transportation Strategy: Concept Generation
• Concept 1: MAGNABOTS

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 Implementation of Overhead Trackless
Transportation Strategy: Concept Generation
• Concept 1: Magnet wheel based vehicles moving on a
ferromagnetic ceiling
– Zero footprint, High degree of flexibility in motion
– Two-wheeled vehicles suspended from the ceiling by means
magnetic forces: Simple design allows for low costs
– Differential control of the drive motors: High maneuverability,
absence of track switching increases transportation speed,
expensive turn-table designs are avoided
– Mechatronic design ensures quality motion: Computer control
suppresses the pendulum like swing of vehicles
– Vehicle move up and down inclines and also on vertical tracks:
Avoid the need for expensive elevators
– Wireless communication between the vehicles and central server

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 Implementation of Overhead Trackless
Transportation Strategy: Concept Generation
• Concept 1 (contd.)
– Traffic control algorithm based on centralized or distributed controls
to avoid collisions and expedite transportation
– Kinematic coupling interface between vehicles and payloads allows
for a high degree of flexibility in the payload type
– Vehicles driven by batteries, storage areas equipped with battery
recharge stations
– Inductively coupled power transfer system on vertical tracks
– Passive ceiling design: Can be bent into any shape, easily
expandable and scalable
– Wall side storage system

• Other Concepts (???)

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 Time-line : First milestone conquered!

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 What have we accomplished?
• Proof-of-Concept for an overhead trackless transportation system
• Ceiling
– Considered various options
– Installed and tested one possible design
• Magnetic Wheels
– Simulations, bench-level experiments
– Need to test the proposed magwheel designs
• Carrier vehicle
– Preliminary design is ready
– Detail design needs to be done
• Carrier Payload Interface
– Considering various options
– Detailed design needs to be done
• Payload Transfer System
– Used a simple design for the demo
– Further work needs to be done

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 Modules of the Magnabots Concept
Inductive Power Supply
Material Rechargeable Batteries
Standard kinematic Thickness
Coupling Interface Active/Passive Ceiling
Payload Transfer
System Differential Motor Control
Swing suppression
Sensor Actuator
Selection
Power System
Wall Side Robot position Tracking
Ceiling Design Design
Storage System Cooperative Motion
Distributed Controls

Wall side shelves

Magnetic Wheels
Drawer System Carrier Vehicle Vehicle Control Traffic Control
Design System
Design System

Optimize flux path Data Handling

Optimize wheel size Carrier Payload System
Interface
Data management
Standard kinematic
Wireless Com
Coupling Interface

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 Time-line : Next eight weeks

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 Vehicle Design
• Detailed Vehicle Design and Fabrication
• Fabrication and Testing of Wheels
• Vehicle and payload carrier interface
• Payload Transfer System
• Power System Design

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 Control System Design

• Dynamic System Investigation

• Literature Search
• Detailing Modeling
• Computer Simulation
• Selection of System Parameters
• Sensors and Actuator Selection
• Prototype and test the Control Algorithm
• Programming of on-board microprocessor

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 Communication System Design

• Wireless command to individual vehicles

• Vehicle tracking and navigation
– Sensor Schemes
• Communication between vehicles
• Traffic Control Design
– Cooperative Motion Planning
– Distributed Control Vs. Centralized Control

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