Standardization News

ASTM International, at the request of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), will hold an organizational meeting for the establishment of a new ASTM standards development activity for automated guided vehicle (AGV) systems. The no-fee meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, October 2, 2013 and will be held in conjunction with the MHI 2013 Annual Meeting and Executive Conference in Orlando, Fla.

Key stakeholders are invited to participate in this initial planning meeting with the goal of charting a path toward the development of a consensus standardization program. The meeting will begin at 9:00 a.m. and end at approximately 12:00 p.m.

The objectives of the organizational meeting are to:

ASTM staff manager Pat Picariello will present an overview of the standards development process, while Roger Bostelman of the National Institute of Standards and Technology will provide background on NIST's request for an AGV standards development activity.

In use since 1953, automated guided vehicles currently range from mail-handling AGVs to highly automated trailer-loading AGVs using laser and natural target navigation technologies. Potential users of AGV technology can be confident that AGVs are safe when manufacturers conform to the American National Standards Institute/Industrial Truck Safety Development Foundation (ANSI/ITSDF) B56.5:2012, Safety Standard for Driverless, Automatic Guided Industrial Vehicles and Automated Functions of Manned Industrial Vehicles. However, there are no current standards to allow direct comparisons of AGV's intelligent performance and users cannot fully appreciate their potential AGV investment without conducting their own tests and evaluations.

CONTACT ASTM Staff: Pat Picariello • Phone: 610-832-9720 | Upcoming Meeting: Oct. 2, 2013 • In conjunction with MHI 2013 Annual Meeting and Executive Conference • Orlando, Fla.