Fives sets up MARS project in collaboration with major research institutions

To meet the challenges of parcel processing, Fives sets up MARS (Mobile Autonomous Robot for Safe Sorting) project, an innovative sorting system, in collaboration with BIBA (Bremer Institut für Produktion und Logistik GmbH), SICK, and LMS (Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems and Automation) and the financial support of EIT Manufacturing, co-funded by the European Union.

The MARS project was born to introduce a new sorting solution on the market, dedicated to small and flexible automated sorting centers, allowing to switch between two distinct principles.

With the growth of e-commerce, the processing and sorting of parcels represent a real challenge for the major postal and e-commerce players. To cope with the exponential volume of parcels to be processed in record time, Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) are widely used as they increase the flexibility and scalability of logistics sorting centers.

Collaborative sorting robots operates besides and with humans. However, for safety reasons, they run at reduced speed and thus lower performance. On the other hand, non-collaborative systems operate separately from humans inside safety cages, with high speed and performance, but thus limiting potential usage scenarios.

In partnership with BIBA and SICK, Fives developed a new system equipped with a unique and safe localization method. Based on the localization zone, the vehicles independently adapt their sorting behavior to the specific situation. In collaborative areas, they intelligently avoid people, vehicles, and other obstacles thanks to safety functions, such as collision detection with LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) technology. If vehicles detect that they are in a restricted area, they increase their operating speed, maximizing system performance. The innovation lies in the ability to switch from one principle to another very easily and quickly. The result is a high degree of flexibility in operations.

The prototype is currently being tested at Fives’ facilities in Italy to prove all functionalities, including safety aspects.

“The MARS project aims to give our customers the benefit of both worlds. A sorting system using vehicles capable of operating at high speed and with maximum efficiency while in a confined zone, but also capable of exiting the cage and behaving safely when it is necessary to deliver or pick an object in the same area where operators are moving”, says Lorenzo CHIEREGO, Chief Technology Officer at Fives Intralogistics SpA (Italy).

The MARS project is fully in line with Fives’ commitment to pursue innovative approaches to the challenges faced by its customers and thus develop solutions that advance the industry of the future.