unit-5 Material Handling System pvpsit 2015

Introduction
Material handling can be defined as an integrated system involving such activities as moving, handling, storing and
controlling of materials by means of gravity, manual effort or power activated machinery. Moving materials utilize
time and space. Any movement of materials requires that the size, shape, weight and condition of the material, as
well as the path and frequency of the move be analyzed. Storing materials provide a buffer between operations. It
facilitates the efficient use of people and machines and provides an efficient organization of materials. The
considerations for material system design include the size,weight, condition and stack ability of materials; the
required throughput; and building constraints such as floor loading, floor condition, column spacing etc. The
protection of materials include both packaging and protecting against damage and theft of material as well as the
use of safeguards on the information system to include protection against the material being mishandled,
misplaced, misappropriated and processed in a wrong sequence. Controlling material includes both physical
control as well as status of material control. Physical control is the orientation of sequence and space between
material movements. Status control is the real time awareness of the location, amount, destination, origin,
ownership and schedule of material. Maintaining the correct degree of control is a challenge because the right
amount of control depends upon the culture of the organization and the people who manage and perform material
handling functions. Material handling is an important area of concern in flexible manufacturing systems because
more than 80 % of time that material spends on a shop floor is spent either in waiting or in transportation,
although both these activities are non-value added activities. Efficient material handling is needed for less
congestion, timely delivery and reduced idle time of machines due to non-availability or accumulation of materials
at workstations. Safe handling of materials is important in a plant as it reduces wastage, breakage, loss and scrapes
etc.
What is a material-handling system?
 A material-handling system can be simply defined as an integrated system involving such activities as
handling, storing, and controlling of materials.
 The word material has very broad meaning, covering all kinds of raw materials, work in process,
subassemblies, and finished assemblies.
 The primary objective of using a material handling system is to ensure that the material in the right amount
is safely delivered to the desired destination at the right time and at minimum cost.
 The material handling system is properly designed not only to ensure the minimum cost and compatibility
with other manufacturing equipment but also to meet safety concerns.

Principles of material handlings

The material handling principles provide fundamentals of material handling practices and provide guidance to
material handling system designers.
20 basic guidelines for designing and operating material-handling systems
1. Planning principle
All material handling should be the result of a deliberate plan where the needs, performance objectives and
functional specification of the proposed methods are completely defined at the outset. In its simplest form a
material handing plan defines the material (what) and the moves (when and where); together they define the
method (how and who).
2. Standardization principle
Standardize handling methods and equipments wherever possible. Material handling methods, equipment,
controls and software should be standardized within the limits of achieving overall performance objectives and
without sacrificing needed flexibility, modularity and throughout anticipation of changing future requirements.

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3.Ergonomic principle
Human capabilities and limitations must be recognized and respected in the design of material handling tasks and
equipment to ensure safe and effective operations. Equipments should be selected that eliminates repetitive and
strenuous manual labor and which effectively interacts with human operators and users.
4. Flexibility principle
Use methods and equipments that can perform a variety of tasks under varying operating conditions.
5. Simplification
Simplify material handling by eliminating, reducing or combining unnecessary movements and equipments.
6. Gravity
Utilize gravity to move material wherever possible.
7.Layout
Prepare an operation sequence and equipment layout for all viable system solutions and then select the best
possible configuration.
8.Cost
Compare the economic justification of alternate solutions with equipment and methods on the basis of economic
effectiveness as measured by expenses per unit handled.
9.Maintenance
Prepare a plan for preventive maintenance and scheduled repairs on all material handling equipments.
10. Unit load principle
A unit load is one that can be stored or moved as a single entity at one time, such as a pallet, container or tote,
regardless of the number of individual items that make up the load. Unit loads shall be appropriately sized and
configured in a way which achieves the material flow and inventory objectives at each stage in the supply chain.
11.Space utilization principle
Effective and efficient use must be made of all available space. In work areas, cluttered and unorganized spaces
and blocked aisles should be eliminated. When transporting loads within a facility, the use of overhead space
should be considered as an option.
12.System principle
Material movement and storage activities should be fully integrated to form a coordinated, operational system
which spans receiving, inspection, storage, production, assembly, packaging, unitizing, order selection, shipping,
transportation and the handling of returns. Systems integration should encompass the entire supply chain
including reverse logistics. It should include suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and customers.
13. Automation principle
Material handling operations should be mechanized and/or automated where feasible to improve operational
efficiency, increase responsiveness, and improve consistency and predictability.
14.Environmental principle
Environmental impact and energy consumption should be considered as criteria when designing or selecting
alternative equipment and material handling systems.
15.Life cycle cost principle
thorough economic analysis should account for the entire life cycle of all material handling equipment and
resulting systems. Life cycle costs include capital investment, installation, setup and equipment programming,
training, system testing and acceptance, operating (labor, utilities, etc.), maintenance and repair, reuse value, and
ultimate disposal

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 unit-5 Material Handling System pvpsit 2015

Material Transport Equipment

International Materials Management Society has classified equipment as (1) conveyor, (2) cranes, elevators, and
hoists, (3) positioning, weighing, and control equipment, (4) industrial vehicles, (5) motor vehicles, (6) railroad cars,
(7) marine carriers, (8) aircraft, and (9) containers and supports.
The following provides the details of material transport equipments.
Conveyor Systems
A Conveyor is used when a material is moved very frequently between specific points and the path between points
is fixed. Conveyors combined with modern identification and recognition systems like bar code technologies have
played a significant role in the transportation and sorting of a large variety of products in modern warehouses.
Some of the common types of conveyors are:
 Roller conveyor
 Skate- wheel conveyor
 Belt conveyor
 In- floor towline conveyor
 Overhead trolley conveyor
 Cart-on-track conveyor
Roller Conveyor
In roller conveyors, the pathway consists of a series of rollers that are perpendicular to the
direction of travel. Loads must possess a flat bottom to span several rollers which can be
either powered or non-powered. Powered rollers rotate to drive the loads forward in roller
conveyor. The following figure shows a roller conveyor.

Fig. Roller conveyor

Skate-Wheel Conveyor
Skate-wheel conveyors are similar in operation to roller conveyor but use skate wheels instead of rollers and are
generally lighter weight and non-powered. Sometimes, these are built as portable units that can be used for
loading and unloading truck trailers in shipping and receiving. Figure shows a skate-wheel roller.

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Fig.Skate-wheel conveyor
Belt Conveyor
A belt conveyor is a continuous loop with forward path to move loads in which the belt is made of reinforced
elastomeric support slider or rollers used to support forward loop. There are two common forms:
 Flat belt (shown)
 V-shaped for bulk materials

Fig. Belt conveyor

In-Floor Tow-Line Conveyor
These are four-wheel carts powered by moving chains or cables in trenches in the floor. Carts use steel pins (or
grippers) to project below floor level and engage the chain (or pulley) for towing. This allows carts to be
disengaged from towline for loading and unloading purpose as is shown in Figure

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Fig. In-floor two-line conveyor.

Overhead Trolley Conveyor
A trolley is a wheeled carriage running on an overhead track from which loads can be suspended. Trolleys are
connected and moved by a chain or cable that forms a complete loop and are often used to move parts and
assemblies between major production areas. Figure shows an overhead trolley conveyor.

Fig. Over-head trolley conveyor

Cart-On-Track Conveyor
Carts ride on a track above floor level and are driven by a spinning tube. The forward motion of cart is controlled
by a drive wheel whose angle can be changed from zero (idle) to 45 degrees (forward). It is shown in the following
figure.

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Fig.Cart-on-track coveyor.
Cranes and Hoists
Cranes are normally used for transferring materials with some considerable size and weight and for intermittent
flow of material. In general, loads handled by cranes are more varied with respect to their shape and weight than
those handled by a conveyor. Hoists are frequently attached to cranes for vertical translation that is, lifting and
lowering of loads. They can be operated manually, electrically, or pneumatically. Cranes usually include hoists
so that the crane-and-hoist combination provides
 Horizontal transport
 Vertical lifting and lowering
This class of material handling equipments can typically lift & move a material up to 100 tons. A hoist consists of
one or more fixed pulley & one or more rotatable pulley & a hook to attach load with it. The number of pulleys in
hoist determines its mechanical advantage which is the ratio of load lifted & deriving force. Hoist with mechanical
advantage of four are shown below:

Fig. (a) Sketch of the hoist (b) diagram to illustrate mechanical advantage
There are different types of cranes that are used in industrial applications. Some of these are discussed below.
Bridge Crane
A bridge crane consist of one or two horizontal girder or beam suspended between fixed rail on either end which
are connected to the structure of building. The hoist trolley can be moved along the length of bridge & bridge can
be moved the length of rail in building. These two capabilities provide motion along X-axis & Y-axis whereas hoist
can provide motion in the z-axis. Their application includes heavy machinery fabrication. They have ability to carry
load up to 100 tons.

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Fig. Bridge crane

Half-gantry crane
Half gantry crane is distinguished from bridge crane by the presence of one or two vertical supporting elements
which support horizontal girder. Gantry cranes may be half or double.Half gantry has one supporting vertical
element whereas double gantry crane has two vertical supporting legs.

Fig. Half gantry crane

Jib Crane
Jib cranes consist of a rotating arm with a hoist that runs along its length. The arm usually revolves on an axis which
can be a fixed, ground-mounted post, or can be a wall or ceiling mounted pin.

Fig. Jib Crane

Wall-bracket mounted jib cranes are usually the least expensive jib cranes, but they require the most headroom
and exert more force on their mounting wall. Cantilever jib cranes place the arm at the top, allowing for maximum
lift when used in situations with limited head room. They also exert less force on the wall on which they're
mounted. Tie rod jib cranes make use of a tie rod between the arm and the mounting area. More inexpensive jib
cranes feature manually operated chain hoists, while sophisticated cranes use an electric chain hoist. Jib cranes are
used when the desired lifting area resides within a (semi-)circular arc.

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 unit-5 Material Handling System pvpsit 2015

Stacker Crane
It is similar to a bridge crane. The major difference is that, instead of using a hoist, the stacker crane uses a mast
with forks or a platform to handle unit loads. Stacker cranes are generally used for storing and retrieving unit loads
in storage racks, especially in high-rise applications.
Material Handling Equipment
 Industrial trucks include hand trucks such as two-wheeled, four-wheeled, hand lift, and forklift
and powered trucks such as forklift, tractor-trailer trains, industrial crane trucks, and side loaders.
 Conveyors such as belt, chute, roller, wheel, slat, chain, bucket, trolley, tow, screw, vibrating,and
pneumatic.
 Monorails, hoists, and cranes such as bridge, gantry, tower, and stacker.
 Automated guided vehicle systems such as unit load carriers, towing, pallet trucks, fork trucks,and
assembly line.
 Automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) such as unit load, mini-load, person-on-board, deep lane,
and storage carousel systems.
Automated guided vehicle systems
 An automated guided vehicle system is a battery-powered driver-less vehicle with programming capabilities
for destination, path selection, and positioning.
 The AGVS belongs to a class of highly flexible, intelligent, and versatile material handling systems used to
transport materials from various loading locations to various unloading locations throughout the facility.
The components of an AGVS
1. The vehicle. It is used to move the material within the system without a human operator.
2. The guide path. It guides the vehicle to move along the path.
3. The control unit. It monitors and directs system operations including feedback on moves, inventory, and
vehicle status.
4. The computer interface. It interfaces with other computers and systems such as the mainframe host
computer, the automated storage and retrieval system, and the flexible manufacturing system.
The type of AGVSs
1. AGVS towing vehicles: usually, towing applications involve the bulk movement of product into and out of
warehouse areas. Towing vehicles are better used for large volumes with long moving distances of 1000 ft
or more.
2. AGVS unit load transporters: are equipped with decks that permit transportation of an individual unit
load on board the vehicle. The deck can be powered or non-powered roller, chain or belt deck, lift-and-
lower type, or custom deck with multiple compartments. Unit load transporters are often equipped with
automatic load transfer and normally used in warehousing and distribution systems where the guide path
lengths are relatively short but the volumes are high.
3. AGVS pallet trucks: are designed to lift, maneuver, and transport palletized loads. The vehicle is used for
picking up and dropping off loads from and to floor level, thus eliminating the need for fixed load stands. It
can be loaded and unloaded in automatically or manually. For load transportation, the vehicle normally
proceeds along the path to a specific storage area destination, pulls off onto a spur, lowers the pallet forks
to the floor,pulls from the pallet, and then automatically returns empty to the loading area.
4. AGVS forklift trucks: has the ability to pick up and drop off palletized loads both at floor level and on
stands, and pickup height can be different from the drop-off height. The vehicles can position its forks at

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any height so that conveyors or load stands with different height in the material handling system can all be
served. It is one of the most expensive AGVS types, so they are applied only in systems where full automation is
required. A system with these vehicles requires a more intricate path layout and a method for accurately
positioning the loads on the floor or on stands. It also requires greater discipline than other systems.
5. AGVS light-load transporters: They are used to handle small, light parts over a moderate distance and to
distribute the parts between storage and number of workstations. They are designed to operate in areas with
limited space.
6. AGVS assembly-line vehicles: are adaptation of the light-load transporter for applications involving serial
assembly processes. The guided vehicle carries major subassemblies such motors, transmissions, or even
automobiles. As the vehicle moves from one station to the next, succeeding assembly operations are performed.
The major advantage of the AGVS assembly line is lower expense and ease of installation compared with hard
assembly lines. The line can easily be changed by adjusting the guide path if necessary and by reprogramming.
An automated guided vehicle system is a battery-powered driver-less.
Automated Guided Vehicles
An Automated Guided Vehicle System (AGVS) is a material handling system that uses independently operated, self-
propelled vehicles guided along defined pathways in the facility floor. It is an automated material handling system
which moves along predefined and preprogrammed path along an aisle from one station to another. The main
parts of an AGV include structure, drive system, steering mechanism, power source (battery) and on board
computer for control.
Types of AGV
The following are common types of AGVs.
Driverless Automated Guided Train
These are the first type of AGVS to be introduced around 1954.Its typical application is moving heavy payloads over
long distances in warehouses and factories without intermediate stops along the route.

Fig. Driverless automated guided vehicle

AGV Pallet Truck : These are used to move palletized loads along predetermined routes. Vehicle is backed into
loaded pallet by worker; pallet is then elevated from floor. Worker drives pallet truck to AGV guide path and
programs destination.

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Fig. AGV pallet truck

Unit Load Carrier
These are used to move unit loads from station to station and are often equipped for automatic loading/unloading
of pallets using roller conveyors, moving belts, or mechanized lift platforms.

Fig. Unit load carrier

Light load AGV
It can be applied for smaller loads. These are typically used in electronics assembly and office environments as mail
and snack carriers.
Assembly AGV
These are used as assembly platforms, for example car chassis, engines etc., by carrying products and transport
them through assembly stations.
Forklift AGV
It has the ability to pick up and drop off palletized loads both at floor level and on stands. Generally, these fork lift
AGVs have sensors on forks for pallet interfacing.
Rail-Guided Vehicles
These are self-propelled vehicles that ride on a fixed-rail system. These vehicles operate
independently and are driven by electric motors that pick up power from an electrified rail.
Fixed rail system may be:
i. Overhead monorail - suspended overhead from the ceiling
ii. On-floor - parallel fixed rails, tracks generally protrude up from the floor
Fig. Rail guided vehicle

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AGVS System Management

AGVS is a complex system and a number of parameters need to be considered which include:
Guide-path layout
Number of AGVs required
Operational and transportation control
Guide-path layout
The guide-path layout defines the possible vehicle movement path. Links and nodes that represent the action
points such as pick-up and drop-off points, maintenance areas and intersections represent the path. The guide-
path can be divided into four types:
1. Unidirectional single lane guide-path
2. Bi-directional single lane guide-path
3. Multiple lanes
4. Mixed guide-path.
Generally bidirectional single lane is considered the most cost effective and widely used layout.
Number of AGVs required
It is important to estimate the optimum number of AGVs required for a system as too many AGVs will congest the
traffic while too few means larger idle time for workstations in a system. Generally, the number of AGVs required is
the sum of the total loaded and empty travel time and waiting time of the AGVs divided by the time an AGV is
available.
Operational and Transportation Control
The operation and transportation consists of vehicle dispatching, vehicle routing and traffic control issues. Once a
demand arises for an AGV, a choice needs to be made regarding the vehicle to be dispatched among the pool of
vehicles available. In an event when several workstations need servicing, a choice is to be made as to which
workstation is to be serviced. The selection criteria can be applied for assigning the vehicles or workstations
based on one or a combination of the following:
A random vehicle
Longest idle vehicle
Nearest vehicle
Farthest vehicle
Least utilized vehicle
Random workstation
Nearest workstation
Farthest workstation

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Maximum queue size

Minimum remaining queue size
First come fist served
Unit load arrival time, due time or priority.
In order to dispatch an AGV to any workstation, it is necessary to find the shortest feasible path from the existing
position. While selecting the shortest path it is necessary to consider only those paths which are free and not
occupied by vehicles. It may also be necessary to consider the future positions of the vehicles in the route in
addition to their current occupied positions. In identifying the traffic control systems for AGVs movement, the
approaches that can be used are forward sensing control, zone sensing control and combinatorial control. In
forward sensing control, an AGV is equipped with obstruction detecting sensors that can identify another AGV in
front of it and slow down or stop. This helps in improving the AGV utilization due to closer allowable distance
between vehicles. However, this approach may not be able to detect the obstacles at intersections and around
corners. This is generally useful for long and straight path which is divided into zones. Once an AGV enters a zone,
it becomes unavailable for other AGVs which may introduce system inefficiency. The main advantages derived
from the use of AGVs in manufacturing environment are: Dispatching, tracking and monitoring under real time
control which help in planned delivery. Better resource utilization as AGVs can be economically justified. Increased
control over material flow and movement Reduced product damage and routing flexibility Increased throughput
because of dependable on-time delivery.
AGVS guidance systems
 The primary objective of a guidance system is to keep the vehicle in the pre-designated path.
The main advantage of AGVS guidance is that the guide path can be changed easily at low cost compared with the
high cost of modifying fixed-path equipment such as conveyors, chains, and low lines. The selection will depend on
need, application, and environmental constraints.
1. Wire-Guided guidance system: an energized wire is embedded in the floor along the AGV guide path.
2. Optical guidance: colorless fluorescent particles are painted or taped on to the carpeted, tiled, or concrete floor.
Photo-sensors on the vehicle read and track these colorless particles.
3. Inertial guidance system: the system has an onboard microprocessor that is used to steer the vehicle on a
preprogrammed path. A sonar system is used for obstacle detection and a gyroscope for directional change.
4. Infrared guidance system: this system consists of infrared light transmitters, reflectors mounted in the roof of the
facility to reflect the light, and radar-like detectors to relay reflected light signals to the computer. The computer then
determines the position and direction of travel of the vehicle.
5. Laser guidance system: a laser beam is used to scan wall-mounted bar-coded reflectors. Accurate location and
maneuvering of an AGV are achieved through known distances.
6. Teaching-Type guidance system: neural network concepts are used. A programmed vehicle learns the guide
path by “walking through” the desired route. It then informs the host computer what is has learned about the new
path. The host computer, in turn, passes information about the new path to other automated guided vehicles.
AGVS Steering Control
 The steering control of an AGVS can control the vehicle to negotiate a turn and to maneuver physically in
different ways. Two basic type of AGVS steering control systems are used for this purpose:
1. Differential-speed steer control: uses an amplitude-detection type of guidance sensor. The control is based on
balancing of signals from the left and right sensors in front of the vehicle. Whenever a difference exists between the
amplitudes of the right and left signals, the steering system compensates by correcting the steering.

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2. Steered-wheel steer control: uses a phase-detection type of guidance sensor to determine whether the vehicle is to
the left or right of the path by detecting the positive or negative phase of the sensor signal received from the guided
path wore. Vehicles with steered-wheel steer control have excellent tolerance along the guide path.
AGVS Routing
AGVS routing means determining how the vehicle negotiates the path to take the shortest route
from one point to another. The commonly used methods are:
1. Frequency select method: Demonstrated in Figure, the location where a path splits into two or more than two
separate directions is called a decision point. At the decision point the vehicle reads a marker (a passive code device
in form of magnet, or code device) in the floor, where multiple frequencies are present to allow the vehicle to go into
multiple directions. The vehicle selects a frequency for the direction it wants to follow.
2. Path-switch select: the guide path is divided into segments that are switch on and off by separate floor controls.
Only one frequency is used. At the decision points the controls are switched on and off depending on the path to be
followed. The vehicle chooses the proper path in the frequency select method. For this reason the path-switch select
method is less preferred than the frequency select method.
AGVS control systems
Three types of AGVS control systems are available:
1. Computer-controlled system: is most efficient, but it is also the most expensive and complex type of control
system.
2. Remote dispatch control system: most remote dispatch control systems have automatic loading and unloading
capability.
3. Manual control system: is simple and the least expensive of all control systems. The efficiency of the system
depends on the skill and performance of the operator.
Interface with other subsystems
 The computer-controlled system may interface the AGVS materials-handling system with other
subsystems in the organization. The subsystem include:
1. Automated storage and retrieval systems
2. Flexible manufacturing systems
3. Computer numerical control (CNC) machines
4. Process control equipment
5. Shop floor control system
 This interface may be through either a distributed data processing network or the host computer.
AGVS load transfer
Loading and unloading the AGVS vehicle is also known as AGVS load transfer. The load transfer operations can be
separated into two categories:
1. Manual load transfer:
 Manually coupling and uncoupling towed trailers
 Loading and unloading for forklift truck
 Loading and unloading by roller
 Manually loading and unloading the AGVS vehicle
2. Automatic loading and unloading can be accomplished in many different ways:
 Automatic couple and uncouple
 Powered roller, belt, and chain
 Powered lift and lower device
 Powered push or pull device

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A simple analysis to determine the number of vehicles:

Dd = total average loaded travel distance
De = total average empty travel distance
Ndr = number of deliveries required per hour
Th = loading and unloading time
Tf = traffic factor that accounts for blocking of vehicles and waiting of vehicles in line and at
intersections. If there is no congestion, the traffic factor is 1. Whoever, when more vehicles
are involved, the traffic factor value will certainly be less than 1. Normally, Tf lies between
0.85 to 1.

Automated Retrieval and storage equipments

Storage equipments can be in the form of racks, shelves, bins and drawers. Among these, storage rack is probably
the most common form of storage equipment. There are numerous variants and configurations of storage racks,
which include single-deep, double-deep rack, cantilever rack etc. and configurations that are designed to facilitate
specific storage and retrieval operations drive-through, flow-through etc. More sophisticated retrieval and storage
system combine the use of storage equipment, storing and retrieval machines and control that are manifested in a
modern automated storage/ retrieval system.

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