As the world adopts more and more automation, lots of businesses are turning to the use of robots in their warehouse. According to ABI Research, warehouse robotics is expected to reach $22.4 billion globally in the next 10 years. The International Federation of Robotics also reports the use of robots can lead to a 50% increase in productivity within the logistics industry.
Types of Robots Used in Warehouses:
Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs): self-navigating robots that can move around a warehouse without human intervention.
Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs): self-guided vehicles that are used to transport goods around.
Collaborative Robots (Cobots): designed to work alongside human workers in a warehouse or manufacturing setting.
Pick-and-Place Robots: used to move products from one location to another.
Robots and Warehouse Flooring
Warehouse flooring can impact robots in warehouse environments and how they perform. If a floor has a certain texture, slope or hardness, robots may struggle to operate on the surface.
Traditional health and safety signage and floor markings can be difficult for robots to recognise and navigate around. For example, if there are thick vinyl stickers on the floor, the robot may consider this an obstacle. Another issue with traditional floor markings, such as painted signs, is that they can chip and fade easily in high traffic areas, limiting the visibility of the signs and the robots ability to read and comprehend the health and safety regulations or routes around the warehouse.
What is virtual safety signage?
Virtual signage is a durable and highly visible alternative to traditional safety signage and warehouse floor markings. Using LED gobo projectors, our warehouse safety signage provides highly visible and durable health and safety signs.
How Robots Can Read Virtual Signage
With the advancement of robotics, the ability for them to navigate and interact with the environment around them is increasing, such as warehouses and reading health and safety signage. Virtual signage is safety signage that can transform and adapt to changes in warehouses, such as shutter doors being activated, or layouts which move and are rerouted. But how do robots read this innovative safety signage?
Capturing the Image: Cameras or sensors are mounted onto the robot, this enables the robot to scan the warehouse environment and capture the safety signage projected in the warehouse.
Analysing the Image: Once the image is captured, the robot will utilise computer algorithms to detect specific shapes and patterns within the gobo signage projection. For example, the algorithms can be trained to recognise elements of the virtual signage, such as directions in arrows, text on safety signs or colours of caution signage.
Determining the Instruction: Using the information from the image to capture and analyse, the robot can determine the instructions provided by the projected safety signs, such as an arrow point in a specific direction, or stopping before a loading bay or zebra crossing sign.
Why Choose Virtual Signage Over Traditional Floor Markings?
Visibility: Virtual signage provides highly visible warehouse safety signs, ensuring that automated vehicles and robots do not miss any safety messages or instructions on-site.
Durability: Unlike vinyl stickers and painted floor markings, projected signs do not wear and tear from busy warehouse environments with heavy machinery and high foot traffic, ensuring your safety signs remain highly visible and unchanged for robots.
Adaptability: Whether you need to change the route of robots, or activate a sign when robots are approaching, our virtual safety signage ensures that your safety signs can adapt to the conditions required for your robot to navigate safely on-site.
If you use automated vehicles and robots on your site, and are looking for a reliable and bright safety signage solution, contact our projection experts who can get started on a bespoke safety signage quote for you. Alternatively, find out more about the benefit of projected safety signage on our website.