Flexible Control Technology Keeps Warehouse Shuttles Moving

Intralogistics is changing. In many warehouses, mobile and flexible automated systems are replacing rigid transport units and manual processes.

One company bringing the benefits of automation to warehousing operations is Dambach Lagersysteme of Bischweier, Germany. The company got its start in 1974 making rail-guided storage and retrieval machines. Today, the company manufactures a variety of warehouse technologies, including conveyors, load-handling devices and material flow systems.

One of the company’s newest products is the Compact Shuttle 2.0, which allows pallets in high-bay warehouses to be stored and retrieved more efficiently. It takes less than 2 seconds to pick up or put down a load. Up to 1,500 kilograms can be picked up and transported quickly and reliably, making the shuttle ideal for storing and retrieving large load carriers, such as Euro pallets, in high-bay warehouse channels. Together with storage and retrieval machines or a transport vehicle, pallets can be stored in a particularly compact manner with multi-depth storage.

“Our previous technology was in use for over 10 years, but was reaching its limits due to problems with keeping spare parts and increased performance and flexibility requirements,” explains Thorsten Veit, head of control technology at Dambach. “We therefore decided to upgrade the existing shuttle or develop a new one. This resulted in the new Compact Shuttle 2.0.”

A key requirement when developing the new shuttle system was that it could achieve an even higher packing density on the shelves with optimized energy requirements. The channel depth—and thus the number of storage places—would be increased as a result.

Dambach relies on the ctrlX Automation family of products from Bosch Rexroth to drive and control its new automated warehousing technology. Photo courtesy Dambach Lagersysteme

“Short storage and retrieval times are also important to make a warehouse as efficient as possible. To achieve these aims, we needed a compact design with a high-power density. We therefore decided to integrate ctrlX Core [from Bosch Rexroth] into our shuttle as the control system,” says Veit.

CtrlX Core is part of Bosch Rexroth’s ctrlX Automation family of products, which surmounts the classic boundaries between machine controls, the IT world and the Internet of Things. With a Linux real-time operating system, open standards, app programming technology, web-based engineering and a comprehensive IoT connection, ctrlX Automation can reduce component and engineering costs by 30 to 50 percent.

The platform consists of many components, including IIoT devices, PLCs, PCs, software, motion controllers, safety controls, drives and motors, I/O, HMIs, and even a linear motion system, ctrlX Flow, for transferring and positioning parts and assemblies quickly and precisely.

CtrlX Core serves as the platform’s control system. It is available as a stand-alone device, or integrated into an industrial PC or a servo drive. The controller is flexible enough to use with different apps and interfaces as the application requires. Three Ethernet ports are provided for factory level connectivity, automation and HMIs. Other ports include those for a microSD card and USB-C connector.

The ctrlX Core offers scalable control of simple single-axis movements to highly complex multiple-axis movements. It is ready for current and future communication standards, including 5G, OPC UA and TSN. The controller also offers security with a broad toolbox of programming and engineering capabilities.

The Compact Shuttle 2.0 can pick up or put down a load in less than 2 seconds. Photo courtesy Dambach Lagersysteme

The Dambach shuttle is driven by IndraDrive Mi servo drives with integrated motors from Bosch Rexroth. IndraDrive Mi is a modular, cabinet-free drive system consisting of motor-integrated and near-motor servo-drives as well as corresponding components for the common supply of power to the drives. It allows all electrical drive components to be integrated directly into the machine. Up to 30 IndraDrive Mi drives can be operated in a single drive string up to 200 meters long.

CtrlX Core governs the running and lifting motions of the shuttle, which runs independently with its own power supply. This is provided via onboard batteries. As a result, the system can run independently of the storage and retrieval machine in the warehouse channels and store and retrieve goods. The batteries can be recharged in just a few seconds on the storage and retrieval machine or transport vehicle, which means that the system can operate 24/7 without interruptions.

“We decided to use components from Bosch Rexroth because of their compact, high-performance design,” says Veit. “This is a key advantage compared to other rival technologies. It saves even more space in the shuttle, and we can use the freed-up space to store our batteries.”

When looking for motion control technology for its warehousing equipment, Dambach wanted compactness, connectivity and power. Photo courtesy Dambach Lagersysteme

Development of the shuttle was a joint effort between Dambach and Bosch Rexroth. “The actual development time was about half a year and included electrical planning and software creation,” says Veit. “One of our customers agreed to test the new shuttle system. As a result, we could see how it performed when operating in an existing warehouse.”

The exterior dimensions were a key technical requirement, since the shuttle had to fit in existing setups, as well as new ones. Existing facilities can adapt the shuttle to their equipment through the use of adapter plates.

Communication with higher-level control systems is possible via Profinet/IO and Ethernet/IP.

“The ctrlX CORE is light, small and open,” says Veit. “These properties made it extremely easy to integrate. The engineering and operation are equally straightforward. Programming the system requires no specialist knowledge. And the solution grows along with your requirements. It can easily be expanded with apps such as NodeRed for IoT applications. Thanks to the open platform design, new functions can be added to the shuttle at any time, thus ensuring that it remains future-proof and always on the move.”

For more information on ctrlX Automation, click here.

For more information on automated warehouse technology, click here.