Development of a navigation and control system for an autonomous outdoor vehicle in a steel plant

This paper describes the navigation and control system for an autonomous gu ided outdoor vehicle (AGV) which is used to transport heavy steel slabs in a steel plant area. The vehicle has unconventional kinematics. It has six a xles all pair wise steerable by three bogie structures. The weight of the m achine is 17,000 kg and its load may weigh up to 95,000 kg. The navigation is based on a fusion of dead reckoning and transponder positioning. The tra nsponders are passive and are buried in the ground every 5-10 m along the r outes of the AGV. A wireless communication has been built to connect the ve hicle control system and a remote control station. This article concentrate s mainly on describing the navigation system including the kinematics and p osition control as well as the safety system and the remote control system. (C) 2001 Elsevier science Ltd. All rights reserved.