Self-driving vehicle for automated material transport

To work together with robots!

When you hear “robot,” do you imagine something that has the form of a person or an animal? When I was a child, I liked anime about robots, so I have a strong image of them being shaped like people. In truth, however robots come in many forms depending on their applications. The robot I designed is a “self-driving vehicle for automated material transport” that carries things inside factories, and it is shaped like a box. Even so, since it is the size of a car, it has large curves at the corners so people working with it feel safe and comfortable. Moreover, so this robot that moves quickly could work alongside people, I designed it with “safety for people” as my first thought above all else. In particular, arrangement of indicators that show the running status of the robot and allow people to check it quickly from every direction is important. In design investigations, I built a full-scale model and made small adjustments over and over while checking how it related with people. This robot can also be customized according to user wishes. With a structure that can be changed and adjusted freely, it really is like a transforming robot!

I still treasure toys bought for me when I was a child. Then, I had dreams of piloting robots that existed in my imagination. Decades later, I believe that I have approached these childhood dreams a little by actually being involved in the design of things called robots.

Related information

• Automatic transport solutions site

Note: The department that the author belongs to and the content of the article are correct at the time of writing.