AUTOMATED ROLL CAGE HANDLING
A new approach to roll cage handling
ICART now offers an efficient and reliable solution for automated handling and buffering of roll cages.
Challenge
Roll cages are a key link in the transfer of product from the production process to the supermarket shelf, no more so than in the Food and Drink sector. Typically, these are products with a large physical volume and vast production quantities that combine to form a massive internal logistics headache normally solved in the most inefficient manner, by using manual labour. At the heart of the problem? The roll cage itself. It was never designed to be handled automatically. Until now solutions to this problem have often been unwieldy, unreliable, and largely unaffordable.
The iCart Solution
ICART tackles the problem in a revolutionary way. There are no conveyors or complex mechanisms spread around the production area. Instead, iCart Trucks move roll cages between processes and iCart shuttles transfer, buffer and queue roll cages without human involvement.
Trolley handling has always been a key feature of iCart. The iCart shuttle was specifically created to support buffering and queuing of trolleys. The iCart shuttle is a “game changer”. It can handle the buffering, queuing and transfer of trolleys and roll cages without the need for complex push-pull mechanisms or conveyors. It moves under the roll cage or trolley, using laser sensors to build a profile of the roll cage and can adjust its position and connection mechanisms accordingly. It can recognise gaps in the buffer and quickly moves nearby roll cages to ensure there’s space available where needed. This profiling also enables it to compensate for significant variations in manufacturing tolerances. The shuttles are battery powered and automatically move to a floor mounted charging point when they have no work to do. Energy Costs are another key benefit. A shuttle typically uses less than £50 of electricity per year.
The integration of truck and shuttle enables a complete hands-free load-unload solution. The shuttle can load and unload trolleys and roll cages automatically. Roll cages can be transferred in and out from the system either directly via shuttle buffers or at manual load unload stations.