Analysis of Automatic through Autonomous - Unmanned Ground Vehicles (A-UGVs) Towards Performance Standards

Automatic through Autonomous - Unmanned Ground Vehicles (A-UGVs), as termed by ASTM Standards Committee F45 for Driverless Industrial Vehicles, have much potential for use in manufacturing operations thanks to their versatility and flexibility. To utilize A-UGVs efficiently and effectively, it is needed to specify how the vehicle will be used, in what environment, and how best to control it. By understanding the detailed performance of the A-UGV and the facility environment, the vehicle can potentially operate with maximized productivity. In this paper, various parameters of the A-UGV are analyzed to measure navigation and obstacle avoidance performance. A-UGV aspects related to various facility environments are defined in structural form with organic relations. Performance test methods were developed and verified in a mock facility environment combining ramps and obstacles to measure navigation and obstacle avoidance performance.