SwarmRail represents a novel solution to overhead manipulation from a mobile unit that drives in an aboveground rail-structure.
The system was presented to the public for the first time at the ICRA 2020.
Specifications of the Functional Demonstrator
Video
System description
The SwarmRail-concept is based on the combination of omnidirectional mobile platform and L-shaped rail profiles that form a through-going central gap. This gap makes possible mounting a robotic manipulator arm overhead at the underside of the mobile platform. Compared to existing solutions, SwarmRail enables continuous overhead manipulation while traversing rail crossings. It also can be operated in a robot swarm, as it allows for concurrent operation of a group of mobile SwarmRail units inside a single rail network. Experiments on a first functional demonstrator confirm the functional capability of the concept. Potential fields of applications reach from industry over logistics to vertical farming.