4QD controllers are used in AGVs. Most of these have historically been small scale with little input from us and little customer feedback to us. However as I write this (17th October 2007) we are co-operation with a major car manufacturer in UK and with their subcontractors on a re-design of their existing system to give much better control. Their existing fleet is around 200 machines.
Their AGVs originally were made using standard production line car parts as far as possible (strangely - they seem to have unlimited supply of these bits!) but design requirements kept increasing as the AGVs themselves improved.
The system we are working on is based on our existing DCI with two VTX controllers. However, although this prototype is working fine as proof of concept, a proper AGV does need overall feedback so that mechanical changes (wear, corrosion, dust, obstacles etc) do not significantly alter the steering.
The system will use a magnetic stripe on the floor with an analogue sensor. This will feed our new interface (which will be physically similar to the DMR). Two slotted opto sensors will sense wheel speed which is fed back to the microcontroller to maintain steering stability.
We should then, with our partners in the project, be able to offer AGV systems for a wide variety of factory automation projects. Contact us, and watch this space.