BlueBotics, a provider of autonomous navigation and fleet management, has introduced ANT locator – a versatile tracking solution designed to enhance the management of manual forklifts and their integration with automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs).
Building upon the company’s established vehicle positioning technology, ANT locator offers precise tracking capabilities for both indoor and outdoor environments, facilitating improved operational efficiency and safety.
Dr Nicola Tomatis, CEO of BlueBotics, says: “ANT locator enables companies to accurately determine the location of their forklifts and associated payloads, addressing the evolving challenge of coordinating manual and automated vehicles within shared spaces.”
The system supports the implementation of traffic control measures, such as traffic light systems, and allows for smart interactions in predefined zones, ensuring seamless integration between different vehicle types.
Key features of ANT locator include:
- Transport Flow Optimization: By integrating live coordinates of manual trucks into BlueBotics’ ANT server fleet manager, the system can automatically manage interactions among AGVs, manual trucks, and personnel, optimizing space utilization and enhancing safety.
- Precise Asset Tracking: ANT locator provides real-time tracking of manually moved goods, ensuring accurate pallet location data and improving inventory management.
- Flexible Integration: The solution is compatible with existing warehouse management systems (WMS), manufacturing execution systems (MES), enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, and other fleet management platforms. Additional modules are available for outdoor tracking and monitoring other mobile assets, such as pallet jacks and staff.
ANT locator is designed to meet the needs of AGV/AMR and manual forklift manufacturers, third-party software providers, and end-users seeking to enhance their internal logistics operations.
The solution will be commercially available from June 2025.