Autonomous mobile robot from igus promises simple configuration with flexible superstructures and easy commissioning.
Cost and efficiency pressures demand a lot from modern production. With the ReBeLMove Pro, igus is launching a modular autonomous mobile robot (AMR) on the market that can be easily customized according to the modular principle - from small load carrier transport to robot solutions. It can be integrated into company processes without any previous experience. The ReBeLMove Pro is available from just EUR 39,800 and is therefore around 25 percent cheaper than most competitor models.
The ReBeLMove Pro is based on a compact, rectangular transport robot on four wheels with an electric drive. The AMR is 795 mm long, 560 mm wide, 195 mm high, weighs 60 kg and is painted in black with typical igus orange accents. The robot can navigate autonomously at a speed of up to 2 m/s and can carry up to 250 kg or pull up to 900 kg in intralogistics applications. One battery charge is sufficient for a full working day of eight hours. The ReBeLMove Pro can be customized with attachments for various intralogistics tasks. These can include height-adjustable conveyor belts and a cobot articulated arm robot for assembly workstations, a trailer for transporting materials or a shelf with light signals for more productive order picking. The new robot can also be used outdoors. "igus itself already uses the ReBeLMove Pro as a shuttle to transport products away from injection molding machines in production," says Sebastian Thorwarth-Kienbaum, expert for low-cost automation at igus. "These are tedious, routine intralogistics tasks that companies find difficult to get people excited about." Within just two months, for example, a fully automated container transport system, including interface integration from conception to implementation, was realized in igus production. Ball bearing components are transported from the injection molding machine to the fully automatic assembly machine without any manual intervention.
Return on investment after just 12 months
However, companies not only save on the purchase of the AMR, but also on commissioning and control. "System integrators and software licenses often result in high follow-up costs, which cause companies to put the topic of automation on ice again in frustration," says Sebastian Thorwarth-Kienbaum. "We have therefore attached great importance to ensuring that the ReBeLMove Pro can be integrated and operated without outside help or automation experience." During a simple round trip, the robot automatically creates a 3D digital map of the room. To do this, it uses LIDAR sensors, 3D sensors and a Realsense camera. In just under three minutes, a 200 square meter room is mapped. The robot can then move autonomously without the need for complex guidelines or tracks on the floor. Programming is also quick and intuitive: users can create movements with software in just 15 minutes and without any programming knowledge. Integration into existing IT landscapes with open interfaces such as IoT, VDA 5050, REST, SAP or ERP is just as straightforward. The ReBeLMove Pro is also compatible with external fleet management solutions such as Fleetexecuter, Kinexon or Naise. "Thanks to the low investment costs and uncomplicated commissioning and operation, the average return on investment for a ReBeLMove Pro is twelve months. The cost of the ReBeLMove Pro is just 38,900 euros, which is around 25 percent lower than standard market solutions, which generally start at 50,000 euros - without having to compromise on functionality," summarizes Sebastian Thorwarth-Kienbaum.