Is BMW seeking to ‘do an Ocado’?
By developing its robot logistics platform from simply a function into a system for sale, BMW is seeking to offer its logistics expertise to third parties in production settings.
BMW Group has set up a subsidiary IDEALworks to develop and distribute robots and management software for logistics solutions.
The aim is to become a leading supplier of autonomous robotics solutions in the logistics sector. IDEA" stands for Industry Driven Engineering for Autonomous Logistics.
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BMW’s Milan Nedeljković said: “In founding IDEALworks, we are creating a new business segment for our logistics solutions. In recent years, our logistics innovation team has been working in depth on the digitalisation and automatisation of production logistics and has developed some unique solutions. The Smart Transport Robot, STR, in particular has met with great response and has seen demand from both within and outside of the BMW Group.”
IDEALworks CTO Jimmy Nassif added: “Up until now, our development has focused on automotive production and its logistics. Our perspective is changing now. We are becoming a provider of logistics robotics beyond the automotive industry. We are preparing some innovations for the coming months."
Outdoor logistics robots
Since 2015, the innovations team from BMW Group Logistics has been working on future-focused industry 4.0 solutions in the fields of virtual reality, augmented reality, in- and outdoor logistics robots, paperless logistics and smart devices. Many of these solutions are already in series production at BMW Group production locations.
Smart Transport Robot
The Smart Transport Robot, STR, was developed in 2015 in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute. The flat, autonomous and mobile robots can transport goods weighing up to one ton to their destination. They independently calculate the best route and move freely around the space using the SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) navigation method. The SLAM algorithm does not require permanent navigation transmitters to be installed in buildings and can therefore be set up quickly in a new environment without requiring any structural adjustments. An integrated battery module from the BMW i3 is able to supply the STR with power for at least an entire shift. The next generation of the STR will be rolled out at the end of 2020. Currently, more than 130 STRs are already in series production at several different BMW Group production sites.
BMW has carried out STR pilot projects in the non-automotive sector. The new company IDEALworks is located in Munich, and in its initial phase, the team consists of around 30 experts from a wide range of fields and nationalities.
For more information, visit https://idealworks.com/
