1、 AGV robot navigation situation
With the emergence of unmanned supermarkets, automated logistics and other industries, AGV automatic robots have developed on a large scale. AGV robots refer to transport vehicles equipped with electromagnetic or optical automatic guidance devices that can travel along specified guidance paths, have safety protection and various transplanting functions. In industrial applications, Chinese style automated unmanned driving can be powered by rechargeable batteries. Generally, the driving route can be controlled through a computer, or the route can be set using an electromagnetic track. The electromagnetic track is fixed on the ground, and the AGV moves according to the information brought by the electromagnetic track.
Several key technologies of AGV robots: 1) positioning and navigation 2) AGV scheduling. Mobile robots first need to know "where I am", which is the positioning problem, then "where I want to go", which is the scheduling problem, and then "how to get there", which is the navigation problem. Positioning and navigation often complement each other to solve the problem. For indoor positioning and navigation, traditional positioning methods mainly include magnetic strips, tapes, magnetic nails, etc. The advantages and limitations of these methods are obvious: the advantages are controllable motion paths and higher safety, while the disadvantages are greater path limitations. A slightly more flexible positioning solution, such as laser reflectors, QR codes, and ceiling features, utilizes manually pre-set features to locate, like a lighthouse in the ocean. When the mobile robot sees the lighthouse, it knows where it is. A typical example of using QR codes is Amazon's Kiva. A more flexible option is SLAM, while the more mature one is laser SLAM. By pre constructing a map of the environment and matching it with the environmental features obtained from the current sensor, the current location is obtained, eliminating the need for manual setting of road signs and searching for them. Another approach is similar to GPS positioning, such as WIFI and iBeacons. This method may not have high positioning accuracy, but it has low environmental requirements and relatively simple positioning algorithms, which need to be combined with other positioning methods. As for inertial navigation and odometry, they are mostly used for auxiliary positioning and integrated with the previous navigation methods. The most commonly used method for outdoor positioning is still magnetic nails, such as AGVs used for transportation at ports and docks. The recently popular Qingdao Port should use magnetic nails. Another type that does not require construction is differential GPS, which uses a standard GPS position reference platform to correct the AGV's position. The positioning accuracy and delay may need to be addressed.
The use of UWB positioning system has the characteristics of high positioning accuracy, simple deployment, and high cost-effectiveness. Therefore, AGV based on UWB positioning technology has broad prospects.

2、 Characteristics of UWB Navigation
Consider introducing UWB positioning technology, mainly because UWB positioning has a high positioning accuracy of up to 10cm. In some applications, 10cm accuracy may be sufficient, but in general, 10cm accuracy is still slightly insufficient. Therefore, a combination of UWB positioning and other positioning technologies can be considered. For example, RFID barcodes, magnetic nails, and other methods have been introduced at the end. When positioning in the middle section, UWB positioning and anti-collision algorithms are used to increase the flexibility of AGV driving. At the end, RFID is used for precise matching to achieve the goal of improving accuracy.

1. Reduce labor intensity for workers, allocate resources reasonably, and improve factory operation and efficiency

2. Can reduce damage to goods caused by non-standard manual operations

3. The internal intelligent control of the system makes the placement of goods more orderly and the workshop cleaner

4. By deploying multiple UWB positioning base stations in the factory, effective positioning coverage can be achieved in all areas, with a positioning accuracy of 10cm

5. Deploy positioning terminals on AGV automatic feeding vehicles, and the positioning base station determines the position of the positioning terminal by detecting its pulse signal

6. The positioning engine determines the two-dimensional coordinates of the AGV by calculating the data reported by the positioning base station

7. The AGV terminal receives position coordinate guidance from the system side and travels according to the destination

8. The system has strong flexibility and allows for maximum changes to path planning
9. Mainly used in the field of material handling in manufacturing industries such as mechanical processing and home appliance production

System principle:

1. Install an RFID reader directly below the front of the AGV feeding vehicle, place pallets, shelves, boxes, and other goods on the transport vehicle for transportation, and install UWB positioning terminals on the AGV feeding vehicle

2. The UWB terminal and UWB positioning base station complete the position information acquisition of the AGV car on the material transportation route. After placing the materials on the AGV feeding vehicle, the control center issues instructions (feeding route) to the PLC controller. After receiving the instructions, the PLC controls the feeding vehicle to start and start transporting the materials according to the instructions

3. After the UWB positioning system determines that the AGV car has arrived at the destination, the position information is fed back to the PLC controller (control system module). The PLC receives the encoded data and processes the information to control the AGV feeding vehicle to choose a station to stop according to the feeding route. The RFID reader of the AGV car searches for the information on the destination tag and confirms that the material has been delivered

4. After the materials are delivered to the station, the AGV feeding vehicle can transport the materials to the next station according to the instructions. After all the feeding instructions are completed, the feeding vehicle returns to the starting point according to the set route
3、 Summary of AGV Navigation Based on UWB
The application of UWB technology in AGV vehicles has much higher accuracy than WIFI, inertial navigation and other methods, and can greatly increase the flexibility of AGV, with a wide range of prospects for use. UWB positioning technology not onlyPersonnel positioning systemIt has a wide range of applications and great prospects in the industrial field.