Magnetic Navigation by DS AUTOMOTION GmbH - Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV)

Magnetic-point referencing:

this approach is a popular free navigation enabler, which involves the anchoring of small magnets into the floor; navigation becomes "free" in the sense that the vehicle's route is not defined by a physical path, but rather virtually, through the calculations of an internal processor and the use of the appropriately spaced floor magnets as reference points. The principle of dead reckoning is at the heart of the approach: vehicle positioning is calculated based on its prior known position, the distance traveled and direction of travel. Magnetic sensors on the vehicle detect the anchored magnets and, on the basis of field strength, calculate the absolute position of the vehicle. An odometer measures distance traveled and a gyroscope the direction of movement. An on-board computer cross-references all of this information with the known location of the magnets to make course corrections as needed.
This technology is used by DS AUTOMOTION GmbH. www.ds-automotion.com