International Journal of JOURNAL

INTERNATIONAL Electrical Engineering and Technology ENGINEERING

OF ELECTRICAL (IJEET), ISSN 0976 &
–
6545(Print), ISSN 0976 – 6553(Online) Volume 4, Issue 4, July-August (2013), © IAEME
TECHNOLOGY (IJEET)

ISSN 0976 – 6545(Print)

ISSN 0976 – 6553(Online) IJEET
Volume 4, Issue 4, July-August (2013), pp. 56-61
© IAEME: www.iaeme.com/ijeet.asp
Journal Impact Factor (2013): 5.5028 (Calculated by GISI)
©IAEME
www.jifactor.com

RFID BASED AUTOMATED GUIDED VEHICLE SYSTEM FOR

TRANSPORTATION

Amrita R.Palaskar
(PG Scholar)
Jawaharlal Nehru Engineering College, Aurangabad (M.S)
Prof Aruna P.Phatale
Asst.Prof
Jawaharlal Nehru Engineering College, Aurangabad(M.S)

ABSTRACT

An automated guided vehicle (AGV) is a material handling system that uses independently
operated, self-propelled vehicles (Robots) that are guided along defined pathways. AGVS are simply
robots that suit for automating material handling in batch and mixed model production system. The
AGV’s can be of different types and are used in hospitals, industries, warehouses, etc.
The RFID technology in its enhanced form has brought advantages that are related to resource
optimization, increased efficiency within business processes, and enhanced customer care, overall
improvements in business operations and industries. Here an attempt is made to build a prototype of
an “AGV” system, comprising of robot and numerous cheap RFID tags deployed on the ground to
automate the training process and, more importantly, to frequently update radio maps. This not only
significantly reduces human labors but also improves positioning accuracy and lead the material
through the robot by following the proper path. The AGV works on mechanical, electrical and
electronic components (sensors and circuit board). These sensors controls, co-ordinates and guide the
vehicle in order to transfer material from one place to another. The present project deals with the
design and manufacture of AGV which carries the desired load kept on it, using RFID Tags.

Index Terms: RFID, robot.

1. INTRODUCTION

Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) are computer-controlled systems; just another way to
sort containers, move products from one location to another, manage short-term storage of items, and
deliver them to assembly lines, shipping locations, and warehouses as needed. Automatic guided
vehicle systems help automate material handling even if your throughput does not warrant fixed path
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conveyors. Automatic guided vehicles can actually improve response time for material movement &
capability of adopting variable routes to deliver loads among workstations. This capability is referred
to as ``routing flexibility’’ [1]. An AVG is appropriate where different materials are moved from
various load points to various unload point.AGVs can carry loads or tow objects behind them in
trailers, fork lifts. AGVs are employed in nearly every industry, including, paper, metals, newspaper
and general manufacturing.
Vehicle Guidance Technology (VGT) [4] shows the path ways and control vehicles to follow
the pathway. Embedded wires being used more popularly. The only disadvantage being complexity,
of wire installation, maintenance and replacement. The better alternative to guide the AGV’s is using
the RFID tags. AGVs are typically wire or rail guided often use encoders to determine position.
Here the alternative of RFID in comparison to wired system is being considered. The RFID
tags placed at different locations act as fixed “zero points.” When an AGV reaches a tag, the
encoder-based location is reset. This eliminates cumulative errors due to encoder wheel slippage
or missed pulses. And if the AGV completely loses track of where it is, it only needs to slowly move
ahead until the next RFID tag is reached. This provides flexibility, time saving and redundancy and
following the correct path to reach the desired correct destination.

II. NAVIGATION MECHANISM FOR AGV’s

The Vehicle Guidance Technology defines the path ways and control vehicles to follow the
pathway. Three methods widely used are: 1. Imbedded Guide wires 2. Paint strips 3.Self guided

Wired Navigation:- The wire is embedded into the ground and so can not be easily damaged. The
wired sensor [5] is placed on the bottom of the robot facing the ground. Then a slot is cut in the
ground and a wire is placed an inch below the ground. The sensor on the AGV detects the radio
frequency being transmitted from the wire and follows it. The wires in the floor are then
energized from a frequency generator and a magnetic field is created around them. The
automatic guided vehicle is equipped with antennas which 'search out' the embedded
wires, following a given frequency until instructions are received to follow a different
frequency. In this way automatic movement of the automatic guided vehicle is
accomplished. Communication is used for various functions in an AGV system. It can be between
vehicles, between vehicles and a central device or for local interfaces. AGVs receive destination
information either locally (onboard the AGV) or remotely (via a central controller). Some AGV
system technologies support both methods, others support only one method. The need for one or both
dispatching capabilities depends on the system operation. Many times, especially in tow type AGV
systems, operators will key in destinations directly onboard the AGV using the AGV’s built-in
keypad. This would be the preferred and less expensive method to use when operators (like forklift
personnel) load or unload the AGVs and then desire to dispatch the AGV according to their needs.

III. PROBLEM DEFINITION

The installation of wire system and maintenance or replacement can be more difficult
(costly).The reinstallation of wired AGV at a different location may be difficult and costly. So as to
carry out communication between AGV systems and reduce the wired complexities RFID based
system can be much better possible solution. Also the problem of changing the path/direction may
arise, that may lead to the restructuring the building assets.

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IV. SOLUTION: PROPOSED SYSTEM

RFID techniques have been applied for navigation of robots in industries. Arrays of short
range “passive “RFID tags are deployed on the entire work field. Each tag represents a unique
location. On scanning these tags, the robot can calculate its location. Grid deployment or triangular
deployment can be used to provide pathways for AGV’s.Both above methods will need a large
number of RFID tags. One may also use a rotatable RFID reader to guide a robot to a stationary
target, which has an active tag as a location transponder. But, the cost of active tag may be too high.
An AoA-like model is adopted to guide the robot. This solution is more costly and it is mainly for
one single target. The work done in this project uses passive tags and it takes advantage of existing
Wi-Fi networks for meter-level positioning. Unlike barcode, an RFID system is resistant to soiling
and identifies without sight contact, besides offering much greater memory capacity on the data
medium.
Components of an RFID System mainly comprise of following five components
1. Tag (attached with an object, unique identification).
2. Antenna (tag detector, creates magnetic field).
3. Reader (receiver of tag information, manipulator).
4. Communication infrastructure (enable reader/RFID to work through IT infrastructure).
5. Application software (user database/application/ interface).

Fig 1. Block Diagram of Proposed AGV Vehicle

V. PROTOTYPE CONSTRUCTION

System Configuration
Every container on the robot bears an RFID transponder for its unique identification.
Vehicles and containers are located in stations at different points in the work area, from where the
personnel send them on their way online. As soon as a vehicle arrives at a branch point, a reader
installed there detects the transponder and sends its information to the management system. After
comparison of the data, a message comes back indicating the next destination for the vehicle. The
AGV starts moving again, and the identification process is repeated at all branch points on the way to
its destination. In AGV systems there are different identification variants with different RFID
hardware solutions:
1. Transponder attachment to the side of the Robot – the RFID reader is installed at the same height at
the identification points, and responds as soon as the container moves past or halts next to it.
2. Transponder attachment to the bottom of the container – the reader and antenna are installed in the
vehicle. Identification occurs when the container is positioned on the vehicle.
3. Transponder attachment to the bottom of the container – this time the reader is installed in a control
cabinet and the antenna in the floor of the building. The container is detected when it stops at an
identification point.
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Requirements of an RFID Reader

RFID technology is sensitive to metal in its close surroundings. The fact that both vehicles
and containers are made of metal is consequently a considerable challenge for RFID hardware in the
first variant described above, which is the one most commonly used. In this case the reader is
matched to its surroundings and shielded by a special rear wall against the metal. All necessary extra
components such as power supply, antenna or sensor reading are integrated directly in the reader
which minimizes installation costs enormously. A simple conducted test mode provides information
regarding the operational readiness of the RFID device.We have adopted Microcontroller
(Atmega32) based system (Robot) as the mobile platform and attach to it a RFID reader, an
electronic compass.The testing set up contains eight WiFi APs and six RFID tag groups. Our
experiments show that 5 to 10 seconds are needed for the robot to visit each tag group and totally 3
to 5 minutes to construct a new radio map in this environment.

Results and Observations

Equipment used

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The Experiment was conducted in a space with a concrete roof an columns, surrounded with
one concrete wall, two glass walls, and a open wall Eight passive tags with a separation of 1.2m were
located at 20 different locations of the reader and the segment at which the tags are installed is 2m.

VI. CONCLUSIONS

1. RFID will enable the identification of containers over long distances and in demanding
environments such as the material receive/dispatch area. This will help in real-time
identification and tracking of containers, reaching new levels of traceability and control.
2. RFID provides the ability to automatically collect real-time data without burdening employees.
FID is one of the technologies that would dramatically change the capabilities of an
organization to acquire a vast array of data about the location and properties of any entity that
can be physically tagged and wirelessly scanned within certain technical limitations.
3. Tags can be buried at regular intervals in the passageways to serve as location markers. These
tags can be read by readers and provide information on the exact location of the container and
also capture the identification number of the container being transported. In spite of the
potential advantages of RFID the capabilities this new technology has also engendered anxiety
from certain segments of the society where concerns about personal privacy are significant.
4. The proposed system provides the industrial and manufacturing environment with automated
operation. So that production can be increased with decreasing the time of selecting an
appropriate material. Also the accuracy of the material and expensive damages can be avoided.
Hence the system is expected to provide flexibility and secure environment. The usage of
intensive cabling can be avoided. The system will increase the profit due to saving of more
time. In future the system can be enhanced with complete centralization of control through
GPS, so that there is no need of human operator. Hence all the operations can be performed by
robots and after collecting the material they automatically load them in a vehicle and send them
to appropriate place inside the industry.

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