An AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) is a battery-powered, driverless transport vehicle that follows a defined physical or virtual path and integrates load-handling, safety, and traffic-control functions. Compact-class AGVs such as the Rocla ACT carry 1.6 t and lift up to 6 m inside 2.6 m aisles, defining the lower bound of what a "compact truck-class AGV" can do in 2026 [S1].
The procurement decision is rarely about brand; it is about matching the AGV variant to aisle width, load weight and dimensions, lift requirement, and traffic density in a mixed environment with manual forklifts. Specifying these five parameters first removes roughly 70% of vendor options before any commercial negotiation begins [S1][S2].
Class by Load and Aisle Geometry
AGV classes break first by rated capacity and minimum aisle width, because those two values are set by the chassis and cannot be retrofitted [S1]. Compact trucks, with payloads up to 1.6 t, work in aisles as narrow as 2.6 m and lift up to 6 m, making them the right starting class for retrofit brownfield warehouses and mezzanine operations [S1]. Heavy-class counterbalance or unit-load AGVs handle 2.5-6 t and need 3.5-4.5 m aisles, while tow tractors pulling 4-20 t of trailers suit end-of-line production and cross-dock yards.
For under-100 kg tote handling, the answer is often an AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot) using SLAM-based free navigation rather than a guided-path AGV, because the unit cost per payload kg is lower and no floor infrastructure is needed. An AGV in tote duty only pays back when the route count exceeds roughly 30 fixed pick-up/drop-off pairs.
Navigation Technology Selection
Four navigation families dominate: magnetic tape/rail, inductive wire, QR-code/2D-barcode floor tags, and laser-SLAM or vision-SLAM free navigation [S1][S2]. Magnetic tape and inductive wire are the lowest-capex but highest-disruption options, requiring floor cutting and offering poor flexibility; laser-SLAM offers no floor modification and reroute-friendly paths but demands a stable map of vertical reflectors and suffers in dynamic, frequently re-racked warehouses.
Use 2D-code tag navigation when the facility layout is fixed for 3-5 years, payload uniformity is high, and aisle cleaning is part of SOP, because the tags are cheap (cents each) but must stay clean. Use laser-SLAM when route changes exceed 4 per year or when the AGV must share space with manual forklifts in mixed-traffic aisles [S1]. For facilities with frequent rack moves, free-navigation AMRs outperform guided AGVs on route-change cost but underperform on positional repeatability (±10 mm vs ±5 mm).
Battery, Charging, and Duty Cycle
AGV battery selection is governed by three numbers: nominal voltage (24/48/80 V DC), capacity (kWh), and opportunity-charge acceptance rate (C-rate) [S1]. Lead-acid remains cheapest per kWh but needs 6-8 h cool-down between cycles, capping a 2-shift operation at roughly 14 h of active duty with one battery-swap. Lithium-ion (LFP) at 1C continuous charge enables opportunity charging at every load station, supporting 22-24 h/day utilization and is now the default for new 2026 builds.
For freezer or cold-storage duty below -10 °C, specify low-temperature LiFePO4 or NMC chemistry with heated battery compartments; standard LFP cells derate to roughly 60% capacity at -20 °C. Battery thermal management also drives floor-space planning, because opportunity-charge stations need a 1.5-2 m buffer zone for safe mating and cable clearance.
Safety, Standards, and Mixed Traffic
AGVs operating in shared spaces with pedestrians must meet ISO 3691-4 (driverless industrial trucks) and EN 1525 for safety functions, with category 3 PL d performance level on stop and obstacle-detection functions as the typical minimum. Onboard safety usually layers a 2-D safety laser scanner (typically SICK microScan3 or equivalent) with bumpers and emergency-stop circuits hard-wired to a category-1 stop [S1].
Avoid specifying AGVs without functional-safety documentation: every drive-and-steer command path must trace to a PL d or PL e safety integrity claim, validated by an independent TÜV or similar notified-body report. Sites with frequent human-pedestrian traffic should require 360° laser coverage with a configurable warning field (typically 2-3 m) and a protective stop field (typically 1-1.5 m), not just front-facing scanners.
Fleet Management, WMS Integration, and Traffic Control
A single AGV is a curiosity; a fleet of 5+ is a control-systems project. Every modern AGV ships with a fleet manager (often vendor-proprietary, e.g., Rocla's control suite, or open protocols like VDA 5050) that handles traffic, blocking, and job dispatch [S1][S2]. For 2026 multi-vendor sites, require VDA 5050 interface compliance so mixed AGV and AMR fleets can share traffic control without parallel supervisory systems.
WMS/WCS integration is typically handled via REST API or OPC UA; confirm the vendor's integration track record on your specific WMS platform and the lead time for a new interface (typically 4-12 weeks). Avoid single-vendor lock-in on the fleet manager: a vendor that will not expose job-dispatch, map-edit, and status telemetry over documented APIs forces costly middleware later.
Cost, TCO, and Vendor Shortlist Logic
Compact-class AGV unit price in 2026 typically falls in the €80,000-€180,000 range, with installation and fleet-management software adding 15-30% on top; for a 5-vehicle fleet including integration, expect €600,000-€1,200,000 all-in [S1]. Lead time from PO to commissioned first vehicle is 6-9 months, so align procurement to a 9-12 month project horizon. Payback in mixed-traffic 2-shift operations typically lands at 24-36 months when measured against manned forklift hours and damage reduction.
Use the following shortlist logic: (1) define aisle, payload, and lift envelope first; (2) pick navigation family by route-change frequency; (3) require VDA 5050 or open-API fleet management; (4) verify ISO 3691-4 certification and PL d safety claim with documentation; (5) benchmark at least two vendors with a paid pilot or PoC before fleet commitment. Facilities with existing conveyor or WMS investments should also weigh flow-meter and industrial-valve integration where line-side material handoff is required, because AGV handoff points often become bottlenecks if not engineered as part of the same project. For mixed-fleet operations with manual forklifts, validate the AGV's obstacle-detection response against the pressure-sensor-driven bumper circuit and the control-loop response time, since slower bumper-only stops are a recurring accident root cause in brownfield retrofits. To extend service life, also review our linear-encoder selection guide, which covers the position-feedback hardware that determines AGV docking repeatability.