INDUSTRY UPDATE SICK’s World-first Solid-state Safety Scanner Boosts Productivity for Small Autonomous Vehicles
to enable small autonomous vehicles and line-guided shuttle systems to operate more quickly and productively. With the SICK scanGrid2, small transport vehicles like
S
Automated Mobile Robots (AMRs) can operate safely at higher speeds and with higher payloads for a much lower cost-of ownership than has been previously possible using conventional safety laser scanners. The SICK scanGrid2 is a Type 2 device (BS EN 61496-3)
and can be used in safety functions up to SIL2 / PLd (BS EN ISO 13849), as well as for collision avoidance duties. Thanks to the safe, solid-state LiDAR technology of scanGrid2, switching to a safety sensor now offers a rapid return on investment for these smaller vehicles, with the first pilot installations showing productivity increases between 50 and 70%.
Rapid Return on Investment Dr Martin Kidman, SICK’s UK machine safety product manager explains: “Small shuttle systems are designed to be very simple and cost-effective materials handling assistants, so machinebuilders and operators have often not been able to justify the economics of fitting conventional laser scanners to protect personnel in hazardous areas and avoid collisions. Instead, operators must limit the speed or the payload, or simply avoid using them in unfenced areas altogether. “In the first pilots using the scanGrid2 on a small AMR,
we were able to demonstrate that the maximum vehicle speed could be increased by about 75% from 0.4 m/s to 0.7 m/s. That represents a significant return on investment in terms of productivity and can justify removing barriers and fencing to improve materials handling flexibility and throughput for more efficient workflows.”
SICK has launched the first multibeam safety scanner in the world to use safe, solid-state LiDAR technology
SICK engineers have designed the compact scanGrid2
to offer users everything they need for safe operation in a simple package, while ensuring rapid commissioning and maximum vehicle uptime. With a space-saving height of just 43 mm, the device can be retrofitted into existing vehicles, as well as designed into new machines.
Novel Solid-State Technology The SICK scanGrid2’s novel, in-house developed solid-state LiDAR solution operates with no moving parts using pure semi-conductor technology, with several transmitters, receivers and specialist optics arranged in a semi-circular array in the machine. The scanGrid2 determines the distance to objects using the multibeam time-of-flight principle to scan a protective field of 150 degrees. The SICK scanGrid2 safely detects objects of a variety
of sizes within freely configurable protective field zones. It can evaluate multiple fields and can execute configurable monitoring cases. A warning field zone
extends up to four meters beyond the safe 1.1 metre working range for non-safety actions. It is therefore ideal for safeguarding the main driving direction of small and guided AMRs as well as for side protection and safeguarding the reverse drive of mobile platforms. Installation of the scanGrid2 is rapid using easily
accessible interfaces on the front of the sensor housing. It is easy to configure and integrate using familiar and intuitive software tools, such as SICK’s Safety Designer. Using the SICK Safety Assistant app, diagnostics and
servicing can be performed on the sensor quickly and easily, including with a smartphone. Thanks to the addition of a Near Field Communication (NFC) interface, sensor configurations can be transferred wirelessly from one sensor to another using a cloning function within the app.
SICK u 01727 831121 u
www.sick.co.uk
automationmagazine.co.uk
Automation | May 2021 15
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46
