Flexible trucks for auto and manned use

Automated industrial trucks offer a wide range of clear advantages, says Linde Material Handling, which has updated its product range with a second-generation Linde R-MATIC reach truck and an additional Linde L-MATIC HD model. The experience Linde has gained from past projects has gone into the further development of its reach trucks. The resulting performance characteristics ensure greater productivity, safety and flexibility, says the company.

Pallet warehouses play a central role as material buffers both in industrial manufacturing processes and in distribution centres. Storage and retrieval operations in high-bay racking systems are usually standardised processes entailing a high degree of repetition. As a rule, the narrower the distances between the rows of shelves and the more precise the positioning of the individual pallets, the more efficient the warehouse. This is what makes pallet storage systems the ideal field of application for automated equipment such as the Linde R-MATIC reach truck and the Linde L-MATIC HD pallet stacker.

The new Linde trucks can work with maximum precision even in the tightest of spaces: With a length of 2,520 millimetres and a width of 1,565 millimetres, the Linde R-MATIC (1.6-ton load capacity) is said to be the only automated hybrid reach truck on the EMEA-market that can maneuver in aisles as narrow as 2.90 metres. Software-controlled, the vehicle can store pallets with extremely high accuracy even at lifting heights of more than eleven metres. 

With the help of an infrastructure-free laser navigation system, the trucks dynamically steer their way through the warehouse, receiving transport orders directly from the warehouse management system via the central control unit.

The trucks receive a noticeable productivity boost from the auto-calibrating 3D camera that is equipped with a new software generation. Not only does this camera recognize the dimensions of the pallet markedly better, it can also see deeper into the pallet, which makes picking up the pallet and placing it down much more precise – whether on the ground, on roller conveyors or on the shelves. At the same time, the automated vehicles are able to transport a greater variety of pallets. This is ensured by relative image recognition algorithms developed exclusively for Linde Material Handling that have been validated in extensive tests.

For safety, four scanners are integrated into the vehicle at floor level, producing a 360-degree safety field around the vehicle and constantly screening for obstacles. The standard equipment also includes additional emergency stop switches, the well-known Linde Blue Spot and the Dynamic Mast Control system, which provides valuable assistance at great lifting heights. Optionally available equipment includes a sensor that detects overhanging loads and a second, higher-positioned 3D camera that can generate time savings in load handling.

The two Linde L-MATIC HD models with 1.6- and 2.0-ton load capacity feature all around safety equipment as well, including side bumpers, standard and optional scanners, emergency stop switches and optical and acoustic warning systems. Here too, load detection is via the 3D camera.

Reach trucks and pallet stackers are designed as a hybrid solution, allowing the operator to take control of the truck at any time and switch to manual mode. Another new feature is the autonomous charging ability. Equipped with fast-charging batteries, the automated industrial trucks drive to the charging station independently for recharging.

Linde has set up an implementation team to ensure the reliable commissioning of the vehicles.

For more information, visit www.linde-mh.co.uk