AUDI Concept study order picking

Initial situation and project goal

For the provision in the assembly of the automobile production at AUDI, parts are picked and provided in exact sequence in containers or on trolleys with compartments at the assembly line. Staging for order picking is often realized in large load carriers from which the parts are picked manually. The range of articles is very heterogeneous with regard to size, shape and variety of variants for each component.

This kind of staging is space-intensive, which is why the Fraunhofer IML was assigned by AUDI with a concept study to increase space efficiency. The primary goal was to prove that the picking of the article spectrum typical for AUDI for the sequence-exact supply of the final assembly can be carried out by means of a dynamic provision according to the principle goods-to-person with a simultaneous increase of space efficiency.

Structured approach

Within the scope of the concept study, Fraunhofer IML has identified and evaluated possible solution alternatives in a three-step process. For this purpose, a generic solution approach was first developed on a high level of abstraction, taking into account the application-specific requirements. With this approach, possible arrangement variants were identified and analysed. Starting from different two- and three-dimensional spatial arrangement variants, already more precisely specified process variants were elaborated by the targeted combination with further process dimensions. Subsequently, Fraunhofer IML concretized these process and structure variants by adding technology alternatives to overall solution variants.

Against the background of the desired target parameters performance, flexibility, process reliability and space requirements, the overall solution variants were finally systematically evaluated and ranked against the current solution.

Status at project completion

As a project result, a comprehensive solution space could be set up for the described task and condensed to three particularly advantageous overall solution variants on the basis of specific evaluation criteria. In particular, a further consideration of the variant in which automated guided vehicles (AGVs) pass under the staging units like large load carriers and then transport them to the pick stations was recommended.

Use of the project results by the project partner

For AUDI, the project result was the basis for the further development of automated provisioning with AGV. The "Supermarket 2.0" project, for example, has now implemented a provisioning system based on the goods-to-person principle in productive operation. According to AUDI, up to 25% space can be saved in the future.