AMR Robot vs AGV Robot: which technology is the best-fit for your warehouse?

Automatic Guided Vehicles or Autonomous Mobile Robots? Navigation, ease of installation and modification, purchase cost, use cases: read our article to compare the two technologies and choose the right autonomous warehouse robots for you!

Before we compare their performance, let’s take a look at the fundamentals of AGV and AMR technologies.

Definition of AGV

AGV robots, or Automated Guided Vehicles, were born in the 1950s in response to the needs of the automobile industry, and have long held a monopoly on moving goods around warehouses. They are fitted with laser sensors or onboard cameras to detect the path reflectors or tracks wired into the floor to guide them.

Definition of AMR

More compact than their big brothers, AMR robots, or Autonomous Mobile Robots, are usually dedicated to picking activities. Unlike AGVs, the technology allows their routes to be programmed, and therefore modified as needed. AMRs are classified according to the recipient of the goods they move in the warehouse, i.e. earmarked as “Goods to Person” or “Goods to Robot”.

Focus on AS/RS Technology

In the warehouse, AMR-enabled automation can be supplemented with an AS/RS system (or Automatic Storage and Retrieval System) to automate picking tasks from end to end. Both types of robots can communicate within a single system, retrieving and delivering goods to facilitate order fulfilment.

3 Key Features of AGVs

• AGV navigation is not fully autonomous: AGV robots stop when faced with obstacles along their path.
• Incorporating AGVs into a warehouse requires considering the entire system, making any subsequent changes difficult, whether to adjust the routes or the fleet size.
• Their purchase price is generally lower than AMRs. However, their maintenance costs are higher in the long term.

Use Case: The “Stable” Warehouse

AGV robots perform best in warehouses where there is ample space to navigate, and where their routes will rarely need to be changed. AGVs may therefore not be the ideal choice for warehouses subjected to growth peaks or seasonal fluctuations. You can count on their reliability, provided you are certain that the warehouse operational conditions will not change.

Although the initial investment cost is lower than for AMRs, the final bill could end up much more expensive if you need to modify or adjust the fixed route after the initial installation. A key point to take into consideration!

3 Key Features of AMRs

• AMR robots have their own embedded (artificial) intelligence, and can therefore navigate autonomously, enabling them to manoeuvre around obstacles along their route.
• They can be seamlessly integrated into warehouses, and their route layout is easier to reconfigure compared to AGVs.
• AMRs can be more expensive to deploy than AGV robots, but the cost of later modifications will be lower. Thus, their technology is the most flexible, agile and resilient.

Use Case: The “Resilient” Warehouse, with Seasonal Peaks and Space Constraints

AMRs were initially preferred for moving light-weight loads while AGVs were used for heavier loads. However, advances in AMR technology mean that this distinction no longer applies today.

AMR logistics is recommended in resilient warehouses, in other words, warehouses subjected to seasonal or growth peaks, or facing space constraints with limited room to manoeuvre. In this type of warehouse, where conditions can change quickly, AMRs easily adjust to different routes and to different fleet sizes.

Exotec’s AS/RS Skypod® system, blending AMR and AS/RS technologies, was designed around four pillars:

• Standardised racks for storage, designed for easy installation of the system, along with storage bins or trays.
• Agnostic AMR robots: They keep working even in case of system breakdown, by prioritising the picking orders. These robots are the only movable part of the system.
• Order picking stations avoid needless walks up and down the aisles for operators. The Goods To Person system is ergonomically designed to reduce operator strain and fatigue.
• The warehouse software orchestrates the entire Skypod® system, and coordinates with third-party systems.