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 guided outdoor vehicle (AGV) which is used to transport heavy steel slabs in a steel plant area. The vehicle has unconventional kinematics. It has six axles all pair wise steerable by three bogie structures. The weight of the machine 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 transponders are passive and are buried in the ground every 5–10 m along the routes of the AGV. A wireless communication has been built to connect the vehicle control system and a remote control station. This article concentrates mainly on describing the navigation system including the kinematics and position control as well as the safety system and the remote control system.