WOOD DALE, IL -- Danaher Motion announced that it has formed a strategic relationship with Sky-Trax Inc. (Sky-Trax) to jointly develop and market the "world's first Indoor Collision Avoidance System (ICAS) for industrial vehicles."
The companies will strategically align their respective technologies and marketing efforts to address the growing number of costly accidents automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) incur when struck by free roaming forklift trucks and other mobile industrial equipment. By design, AGV's are precise in their execution of instructions, such as route, speed, and direction. The random nature of free-roaming vehicles, such as forklift trucks, however, can cause concern not only for potential AGV damage, but also for personnel safety and lost productivity. The new system will also improve overall AGV route planning, thanks to the knowledge of forklift truck locations.
"We look forward to introducing this technology as a means of enhancing operations in mixed manned and unmanned environments," says Jonas Rahm, Director of Engineering for Danaher Motion.
Users will have their AGV's, forklift trucks, and other free-roaming or guided vehicles equipped with the Sky-Trax Indoor Positioning System (IPS). IPS determines each vehicle's precise position and instantaneously broadcasts it to other vehicles to forewarn drivers or AGV navigation systems of impending collisions.
"We believe the global reach of the Danaher Motion brand and their leadership in driving innovation makes them an ideal technology partner for utilizing IPS technology into material handling safety applications. Early feedback from customers indicates this solution will be eagerly embraced in modern material handling operations worldwide," says Larry Mahan, Sky-Trax President.
The capital costs of repairing or replacing AGV's disabled by collision are typically dwarfed by supply-chain disruption to warehouse operations. Together, Danaher Motion and Sky-Trax will endeavor to greatly reduce these costs and improve employee safety.
About Sky-Trax Inc.
Sky-Trax develops revolutionary inch-accurate tracking systems for warehouse vehicles. Safety and productivity applications employing IPSs are economical and practical to deploy, allowing warehouse professionals to substantially increase safety and improve warehouse efficiency. The results are fewer safety incidents, much lower operating costs, and greater throughput. For more information, please visit the Sky-Trax Web site.
About Danaher Motion
Danaher Motion is a leading global manufacturer of motion control products that improve the efficiency and productivity of complex manufacturing operations. Danaher Motion's product innovations have been revolutionizing the motion control industry for over 60 years through trusted brand names, including Dover, Kollmorgen and Thomson. For more information, please visit the company's Web site.