Giant robotic vehicle moves aircraft parts

The OmniMove is used by Airbus to move parts during the construction of its A380 aircraft in Hamburg

Robot maker Kuka has developed a robotic heavy-duty vehicle that can move components weighing up to 90 tonnes with “millimetre precision” in confined spaces.

The OmniMove is used by Airbus to move parts during the construction of its A380 aircraft in Hamburg, Germany.

The vehicle uses omni-directional Mecanum wheels. The special alignment of spherical rollers – at an angle of 45° to the centre of the wheel – causes the wheel to replicate the shape of a sphere. This way the wheel’s rotating direction and speed influence the vehicle’s movement. A vehicle with at least four driven wheels can manoeuvre in any direction and rotate around a spot from standstill without the need for steering wheels.

Robert Witte, industrial business development manager at Kuka, said that the OmniMove’s ability to turn from a standing start is its “greatest advantage”. He added: “This enables implementation of the desired cycle time for transportation of the fuselage sections and the parts are moved along the production line.”

Airbus has been using two of the vehicles for the past year in the hangar in which the A380 is produced because of the limited space. To achieve its ±1mm precision the OmniMove can be equipped with laser sensors, guidance cameras or antennas. 

Witte said: “The OmniMove gives advanced automation options compared to standard wheel-based transport units, air-cushion vehicles and crane systems. Every A380 being produced by Airbus is being handled by Kuka’s OmniMove vehicles.”

Operation can be manual via a remote control, semi-automatic using guidance systems or fully automatic with guidance or a laser scanner-based navigation system called Slam. Witte said: “The Slam-based navigation is very robust against a cluttered environment.”