Fortunately, the number of serious accidents involving machinery has fallen significantly in recent years. Unfortunately, this does not apply to accidents involving forklift trucks. In 2016, the German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV) registered a total of 33,868 accidents involving industrial trucks in German factories. These included wheelbarrows, sack trucks and hand trucks as well as roll containers and hand pallet trucks. Forklift trucks and automated guided vehicles (AGVs) were also included in this category. In 2016, 12,674 accidents with and caused by people-operated forklift trucks in the workplace were reported here. What is worrying is that not only were a significantly higher number of accidents reported with manned forklift trucks compared to AGVs, but in some cases people were even killed. In comparison, the accident rate with AGVs that resulted in fatal injuries is zero.

To a considerable extent, the drivers themselves are injured, for example in collisions with other vehicles or structural installations or due to the truck tipping over. According to another study, 44 percent of cases involve bystanders who are hit, crushed or even run over. This happens approximately equally when driving forwards or backwards and when turning.

Forklift truck drivers are severely restricted in their field of vision and often work under high time pressure. Bystanders are often unaware of this restricted visibility and suddenly enter or cross the forklift's traffic area without paying attention. The forklift trucks sometimes drive through the factory at high speed. If you don't fasten your seatbelt, you are putting your life at risk, just like in a car. "The forklift truck tips over because the driver drives too fast into a bend, for example, because he accelerates too much when reversing or hits a road boundary," explains Marcus Gaub, Industrial Trucks Officer at the Retail and Logistics Division (FBHL).

The vehicle works continuously and does not require any breaks. © Stöcklin Logistics

The Berufsgenossenschaft für Fahrzeughaltungen (BGF, source: DGUV Information 208-004) has summarized the most common causes of accidents involving forklift trucks: Hitting people, overturning the forklift truck, incorrect load pick-up, driving and operating errors, incorrect loading and unloading of vehicles, assembly and repair work as well as unauthorized passengers and unauthorized use.

Are driverless transportation systems a solution? Looking at the accident statistics alone, the answer has to be "yes". Automated forklift trucks move through warehouses at a fixed maximum speed of usually no more than around 1.6 meters per second (which is roughly the walking speed of a human). Automatic forklift trucks are equipped with safety laser scanners that detect people and obstacles well in advance. The vehicles then react immediately and reduce their speed. They also move along defined routes so that they do not change direction unexpectedly. Experience has shown that the slower and anticipatory driving of the automated forklift truck results in a greater sense of safety among the workers.

However, the slow speed does not mean that the transport robot is inferior in performance to pallet trucks driven by people. The vehicle works continuously and does not need any breaks, even the charging times are quite short thanks to modern battery technology. Fleets of driverless vehicles are easily scalable, so if the vehicles in the fleet are not sufficient, another one can easily be added. The investment in a driverless pallet truck is manageable and pays for itself in a short time.

Of course, personal safety is always the first and highest priority when using AGVs and potential hazards should be considered as part of a holistic material flow concept right from the planning stage.

InSystems Automation implements the transport robots individually in the customer's production environment and creates a specification to eliminate potential risks in advance. In cooperation with Stöcklin Logistik and Bluebotics, Insystems offers the Proant 576 for pallets up to a maximum load of 1,200 kilograms. The driverless pallet truck picks up pallets fully automatically and navigates fully automatically along virtual lines to its destination based on an environment contour that has been taught in once.

The vehicle has various safety systems: two safety laser scanners at the rear and two safety laser scanners at the front of the vehicle continuously monitor the driving area. Two light scanners on the forks ensure that the load is picked up safely. This means that pallets can only be set down when the deposit area is clear. Additional laser scanners on both sides of the vehicle check the route for possible obstacles. The Proant adapts its speed to its surroundings and always comes to a safe stop. This is ensured by the speed-dependent warning and protective fields defined in the safety laser scanners, which cause the vehicle to reduce or stop its speed. as