Safety and Certification for Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs)

With the global market for automated guided vehicles (AGVs) growing quickly, manufac-turers in this sector must comply with increasingly strict requirements for product safety, reliability and market access.

What Are Automated Guided Vehicles?
AGVs are electric motor vehicles pre-programmed to autonomously complete tasks such as path selection, collision avoidance and arrival at a destination. Since they provide signifi-cant logistical advantages through their ability to manage material flows automatically, manufacturers wishing to increase productivity and expand production plants are turning to AGVs to manage complex logistical structures, to reduce operational costs and improve turnaround times.

Controlled by computers through built-in microprocessors, without needing conveyors and pulleys, AGVs use positional feedback and guidance systems to control their path to a pre-defined destination. These systems can be:
• Wire guided
• Optical
• Infrared
• Laser

AGVs also incorporate routing systems that ensure the vehicle is constantly maneuvered in the right direction.

AGV Product Safety and Certification
Due to the complex systems and components that enable AGVs to increase a plant’s effi-ciency and decrease its costs, manufacturers must pay close attention to the production process. This is particularly true when AGVs are deployed to work alongside humans and safety and reliability must be rigorously tested.

Therefore, AGV manufacturers need to ensure that their units not only satisfy the re-quirements and regulations covering traditional industrial machinery, but also meet the specialized regulations covering the use of wireless technologies, batteries and safety-critical components.

To understand more about current EU and US regulatory requirements covering AGVs as a whole, plus the requirements for some of their most critical components, go to: www.sgs.com/en/news/2017/01/market-access-requirements-for-automated-guided-vehicles-agvs

SGS Testing Expertise For AGVs
SGS has the expertise and experience to help AGV manufacturers to stay on top of all ap-plicable regulatory changes. The company’s services in this area extend from the screening and selection of reliable component suppliers, through the design and production phases, all the way to product testing and market certification.

SGS has a global network of experts and labs ready to support all types of AGV manufac-turer, with the knowledge and facilities for machinery and wireless testing and certifica-tion.

For more information on SGS services for AGV manufacturers, visit SGS’s Electrical and Electronics website or contact:

Jerry Zheng
Consumer and Retail Services
SGS-CSTC Standards Technical Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd
t: +86 (0)21 6191 5693
Email: cts.media@sgs.com
Website: www.sgs.com/ee

About SGS
SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 90,000 em-ployees, SGS operates a network of over 2,000 offices and laboratories around the world.

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This release was published on openPR.