AGV transport systems ensure intelligent material flow
Neuenhauser, founded in 1955, has been continuously developing innovative automation solutions for the textile industry. The company has successfully automated the handling of yarn packages within the yarn spinning process for many of its customers throughout the world. It has developed specialized systems to automatically unload yarn packages from the spinning frame, transport and track the yarn package to a central area for palletizing or boxing, and bringing the finished pallet of yarn to the warehouse ready for storage or shipping.
Neuenhauser is now focused on solving the next challenge facing most of its yarn manufacturing customers. The automated handling of sliver cans which are used to transport cotton material within the yarn manufacturing process. Understanding the customer’s needs, it was clear that an automated solution for handling sliver cans was needed. After joint review and discussions with its customers, Neuenhauser developed an innovative solution helping to reduce costs and improve the manufacturing process. The company turned to a unique solution using Automatic Guided Vehicles, or better known within the industry as AGVs.
AGV technology has been around for many years and used commonly within general industry. With the recent advancements in autonomous vehicles and navigation systems, Neuenhauser realised that an AGV is a good solution for the textile markets.
Neuenhauser is excited to have recently received the first orders to automate the transport of sliver cans using a unique and innovative AGV design concept. With a motivated team of highly qualified design engineers and developers, Neuenhauser’s Transport Automation Group felt well prepared for the challenge.
The new AGV development required a high degree of precision and expertise. As Mr. Richard Borgers of Neuenhauser’s Transport Automation Group, stated: “We are glad and justifiably proud to have such highly motivated employees at Neuenhauser who have successfully taken on this task and able to rethink how to automate the labor-intensive operation now used to manually move sliver cans within the spinning plant”.
Within 12 months, Neuenhauser has developed “from a white piece of paper” a state-of-the-art transport system using a large fleet of intelligently controlled automated guided vehicles. First, a detailed “software simulation” was developed to determine the best system design for handling the customer’s material flow and throughput needs. Second, a prototype vehicle was produced as “proof-of-concept” to test out the vehicle design for handling the customer’s specific sliver cans, and to prove the control technology and vehicle navigation programming.
The final AGV production vehicles use both laser and natural navigation technology for routing themselves throughout the plant floor. The AGV will pick-up sliver cans which are filled with cotton sliver material and deliver them to the spinning frame where empty cans will be exchanged with full cans. The empty cans are then returned to the equipment which will refill the sliver can with cotton sliver to repeat the cycle. Within a typical spinning mill, very large numbers of sliver cans are required to be moved each hour.
The vehicles are equipped with the latest state-of-the-art safety sensors to ensure the vehicles operate safely alongside plant personnel who need to share the same floor space and aisles within the spinning mill. The plant personnel are also equipped with specialized sensors they wear on their safety vest, to inform the AGV where the operators are working and moving around within the manufacturing floor. With such a system both the AGVs and local plant personnel can work safely together within the same manufacturing area.
Neuenhauser in co-operation with its sister company Genkinger is also developing a specialized AGV for handling warp beams and cloth rolls to complement its family of products they manufacture for the weaving markets within the textile industry. “We will be presenting both AGV types, to our specialized audience, for the first time at the ITMA trade show in Barcelona, June 2019, and are very excited about the market response”, said Wilhelm Langius, Business Unit Manager for Neuenhauser Automation, and Richard Borgers Business Area Manager and Sales.