Audi Tests Agile Robots' Mobile Humanoids for Factory Logistics

INGOLSTADT, Germany -- German carmaker Audi has initiated trials of mobile humanoid robots made by German firm Agile Robots to automate the process of sorting and sequencing of components for automobiles at its Ingolstadt factory in collaboration with Dassault Systèmes and Nvidia for simulation and validation.

The four firms said Oct. 21 during Nvidia GTC Berlin event that a proof of concept for such automation process has been started at Audi's Production Lab where robots produced by Agile Robots are used to take out components from boxes and sort them in the sequence they would be needed for production.

According to the firms, logistics activities of Audi involve about one million picking operations per day. Sorting and sequencing of mixed, flexible and irregularly positioned components is a challenge to automate with traditional industrial robots.

Mobile humanoid robots made by Agile Robots feature two robotic arms mounted on the wheeled platform that allows them to work at the same level as humans. AI-based vision system of such robots is meant to recognize and grab components in various positions and packaging.

A virtual copy of the logistics processes is going to be developed by the firms using DELMIA software developed by Dassault Systèmes and libraries from Nvidia Omniverse. Engineers will use the simulation to assess the robot's movements, operation time, ergonomics, and safety before they deploy them to logistics processes.

This collaboration comes after the work done by Audi on automation of picking processes with the Fraunhofer institutes in Germany, involving mobile manipulators, computer vision, and simulations of vehicle orders.

Munich-based Agile Robots has deployed over 20,000 robotic solutions for customers around the world, although that number applies to its entire product line and not the humanoids specifically.

The parties have not revealed the number of humanoids used in the Audi experiment, their efficiency against human labor, or a timeline for deployment in the plant.