Kollmorgen To Develop AGV for Safety and Sustainability in Battery Industry

The latest partnership between Kollmorgen and DREV is focused on automated guided vehicle (AGV)-led decontamination in the battery industry. DREV will combine its closed-loop system decontamination and control technologies with Kollmorgen's unmanned automation solutions. The combined technologies will result in an AGV that cleans contaminated environments while also ensuring valuable materials aren't thrown away.

Kollmorgen and DREV have formed a partnership to develop a new solution for the battery industry. Image used courtesy of Kollmorgen

An AGV for the Battery Industry

Battery production and recycling put workers at risk of being exposed to dangerous elements. This includes toxic metals like cobalt, nickel, and manganese, which can cause respiratory, cognitive, and skin problems. Dust management, emissions filtering, and wastewater treatment are crucial for mitigating these concerns. Kollmorgen and DREV’s contamination control AGV will be designed to minimize worker exposure to hazards by working in restricted areas and decontaminating environments.

Additionally, battery factories and recycling centers waste a variety of scarce metals in the form of dust and particles that could be repurposed or recycled. These valuable materials include lithium, nickel, cobalt, zinc, copper, aluminum, and iron. Kollmorgen and DREV's AGV will be designed to not only clean environments but also recover raw material particles during its decontamination process, aiding in preserving scarce resources and safeguarding the environment.

Kollmorgen and DREV’s AGV solution aims to improve worker safety and scarce material recovery in battery production and recycling. Image used courtesy of Adobe Stock

DREV Cleaning Solutions

DREV will serve as a valuable contributor to the new AGV solution. Already, the company specializes in a portfolio of solutions that clean industrial spaces and capture raw material particles for reuse.

DREV's mobile Sweeper technology, for instance, operates via an electrical drive train and employs dry-brush technology. The Sweeper incorporates a canister designed to capture and recover raw material particulates. DREV's Vault Autonomous is another of the company's mobile solutions. Vault Autonomous reports contamination areas to employees, improving safety before entry and flagging areas for cleaning to maintain the flow of operations.

The company's Vault Stationary is another of DREV's technologies designed to keep environments where battery cells are produced sanitary. Vault Stationary's small size makes integrating it into current systems possible without necessitating major changes. Its hot-swappable canisters allow uninterrupted particle removal without stopping production, and the system enables both small and large-scale operations.

DREV’s solutions demonstrate the company’s expertise and dedication to keeping industrial operations clean and safe. Image used courtesy of DREV

Safety and Sustainability

By combining Kollmorgen’s fleet management software and control hardware with DREV’s decontamination technology, the companies will create an AGV solution tailored for the battery industry.

According to Kollmorgen Autonomous Mobile Solutions General Manager Johan Lundblad, “The DREV Vault-Autonomous System represents a breakthrough solution that combines Kollmorgen’s robust, proven and scalable technology for vehicle automation with DREV’s innovations that focus on employee safety in a fast growing and demanding industry. With advanced fleet management capabilities, operators can maintain high levels of productivity while minimizing risks to personnel."