Types of semi-automated handling equipments are
- Automated-Guided Vehicle (AGV)
- Sortation
- Robotics
- Live Racks
1. Automated-Guided Vehicle (AGV)
The Automated Guided Vehicle or Automatic Guided Vehicle(AGV) is a mobile robot used in Manufacturing and Distribution operations to move materials around a the facility or a warehouse.
Characteristics
- incorporate battery-powered driverless vehicles with programming capabilities for path selection and positioning.
- They are equipped to navigate a flexible guide path network that can be easily modified and expanded.
An AGV system can vary in size from a short pick-up and delivery arrangement to a complex layout with computer controlled vehicles automatically interfacing with other automated manufacturing equipment.
Navigation
AGVs navigate around with sensors. There are two main sensors AGVs use for navigation, a wired and a wireless sensor.
Wired Sensors
The wired sensor is placed on the bottom of the robot and is placed facing the ground. Another wires is placed 1 inch below the ground. The sensor detects the radio frequency being transmitted from the wire and follows it. If the AGV is put off course the AGV will correct itself and continue to follow the wire.
Wireless Sensors (Laser Target Navigation)
The wireless navigation is done by mounting reflective targets on poles or machines. The AGV carry a laser transmitter and receiver on a rotating turret. The laser is sent off then received again the angle and distance are automatically calculated and stored into the AGV’s memory. The AGV has a grid stored in its memory and can find its location by reflecting the laser off the targets.It can then navigate to a destination target through the grid and the constantly updating sensor.
Wireless Sensors (Gyroscopic Navigation)
Another form of a wireless AGV is gyroscope navigation. This method involves using a gyroscope to detect the slightest change in the direction of the robot. Magnets are installed in the ground of the work place and the AGV detects these magnets with a sensor. The magnets is an insurance factor that it is on course. The gyro detects the slightest turn and corrects it in order to keep the AGV on its path.
Steering Control
To help and AGV navigate it can use two different steer control systems. The differential speed control is the most common and has two sets of wheels being driven.
Each set is connected to a common drive train. These drive trains are driven at different speeds in order to turn or the same speed to allow the AGV to go forwards and/or backwards.
This method of steering is good as it is easy to maneuver in small spaces. More often than not, this is seen on an AGV that is used to transport and turn in tight spaces or when the AGV is working near machines. This setup for the wheels is not used in towing applications because the AGV would cause the trailer to jackknife when it turned.
The other type of steering used is steered wheel control AGV. This type of steering is similar to a cars steering. It is more precise in following the wire program than the differential speed controlled method.
This type of AGV has smoother turning but cannot make sharp turns in tight spots. Steered wheel control AGV can be used in all applications; unlike the differential controlled.Steered wheel control is used for towing and can also at times have an operator control it.
Battery charging
AGVs utilize a number of battery charging options. Each option is dependent on the users preference.
There are three ways to do AGV battery charging:
- Battery Swap
- Automatic/Opportunity Charging
- Automatic Battery Swap
Battery Swap-Out
It requires an operator to manually remove the discharged battery from the AGV and place a fully charged battery in its place approximately 8 - 12 hours (about one shift) of AGVs operation.
Most AGVs have rollers in the battery compartment to facilitate the battery exchange. Typically, the battery is rolled on to a battery cart. This cart then moves transversely across the face of a row of battery charges, each equipped with a battery stand. The used battery is exchanged with the fresh battery, which is then replaced in the vehicle. Batteries in vehicles can also be exchanged using an overhead hoist. Battery swap-out can also be performed by an automated battery change system.
Each AGV utilizes a single maintenance-free battery that normally stays in the AGV. The AGV has an automatic charge shoe mechanism that allows the AGV to make contact with a copper contact plate in the floor. This contact plate is wired through the floor to an automatic charger mounted on a column or wall nearby.
When the AGV stops over the contact plate and its charge mechanism contacts the plate, the charger automatically turns on. The AGV remains on charge until needed for a load transport task.
When it departs, the charger automatically turns off. On average an AGV charges for 12 minutes every hour for automatic charging and no manual intervention is required
It is an alternative to manual battery swap. It requires an additional piece of automation machinery, an automatic battery changer, to the overall AGV system. AGVs will pull up to the battery swap station and have their batteries automatically replaced with fully charged batteries. The automatic battery changer then places the removed batteries into a charging slot for automatic recharging. The automatic battery changer keeps track of the batteries in the system and pulls them only when they are fully charged.
Tow Type/ Cart Vehicles Fork Type Utilizes a fork/mast lift mechanism for interfacing with loads at various elevations. Often loads are at floor or stand level and are retrieved and deposited automatically. How safe are AGVs compared with other material handling methods? It is due to a number of factors. They travel at 2 mph, which is walking speed. They have numerous safety devices to prevent accidents such as flashing lights, audible devices, physical emergency bumpers, passive infrared and sonar devices. In addition, ANSI regulations specify layout requirements, stopping distances and other safety related items to insure safe implementation of AGV systems. Conveyor systems allow quick and efficient transportation for a wide variety of materials, which make them very popular in the material handling and packaging industries. Many kinds of conveying systems are available, and are used according to the various needs of different industries. Stationary or movable arms that deflect, push, or pull a product to desired destination Sortation Conveyor: Pop-Up Device One or more rows of powered rollers or wheels or chains that pop up above surface of conveyor to lift product and guide it off conveyor at an angle; wheels are lowered when products not required to be diverted Sortation Conveyor: Sliding Shoe Sorter Sortation Conveyor: Tilting Device Trays or slats provide combined sorting mechanism and product transporter Sortation Conveyor: Cross-Belt Transfer Device Either continuous loop, where individual carriages are linked together to form an endless loop, or train style (asynchronous), where a small number of carriers tied together with potential for several trains running track simultaneously Vertical sortation conveyor Sorter –sort the baggage flow from one transport conveyor to two transport conveyors at different vertical levels. Merger –merge the baggage flows from two transport conveyors at different vertical levels into one transport conveyor either in upward or downward direction. 3. Robotics Robotics are also used to meet the high demands of palletizing .Especially useful in present highly competitive marketplace,the demand for just-in-time deliveries, flexible packaging, the freshest products, safe work environments, and the highest production line efficiencies. 4. Live Racks Live pallet gravity flow rack permits dense storage by eliminating all aisles except the entrance and exit aisles. Carton gravity flow rack Carton and Pallet Flow Rack Styles provides lanes of pallet storage that store pallets at an angle. Each lane of pallet positions has frames with built-in wheels that act like conveyors for advancing pallets forward by gravity as pallets are removed from the rack system. Pallet Flow Rack is used to store multiple pallets of each SKU. Flow Storage consists of two clearly defined elements: Rack Structure and Dynamic Flow Rails. The flow rails are set at an incline in the rack structure, allowing pallet loads placed on one end of the rack to move down ot the unloading end. Rollers facilitate smooth rolling, while self-energizing brakes control the speed. As each load is removed, the loads behind move forward automatically. Flow system depth, height and width is limited only by the size of your facility and capabilities of your material handling equipment. Various rack structure designs may be used to support the flow rail system being used. A roll formed or structural rack design may be used. A flow storage system is only as good as the rack structure used to support the flow rail system. Conveyor rail components consisting of various types of wheel or roller rail best suited to flow the product stored. These components are the most decisive to determine whether a flow system will be successful. These components are set at a decline to move product from one location to another. The flow rails allow loads to move by gravity from the loading end to the unloading end. Each flow lane includes self-energized speed controllers (brakes) to gently control the speed of movement within the flow lanes. As a load is removed, the loads behind it move forward to the unloading position. Pallets Types of Pallets Stringer Pallet Stringer pallets are also known as "two-way" pallets, since a pallet-jack may only lift it from two directions instead of four. The stringers are the boards located between the top deck boards and the bottom deck boards. The pallets name is derived from these boards, which are actually called the stringer boards. Block Pallet Wooden pallets are used as: Many of these "four way" pallets are color coded according to the loads they can bear, and other attributes. Paper Pallets Plastic Pallets Made of a plastic resin which is more durable and lighter weight than most plastics.
In manufacturing industry
In warehouse or distribution 
Unit Load Type
Commercial/Office Type/ Light Load AGVS
Smaller type units with capacities of less than 500 pounds. Designed to transport small totes or small loads in light manufacturing or clean environments. Versions are also used to distribute mail in offices.
Heavy Carrier Type
Designed to transport large or very heavy loads. Typically used in primary metal and paper industries. Capable of transporting dies, rolls, coils, ingots weighing in excess of 250,000 pounds.
Benefits
AGVs are very safe, particularly when compared with manual material handling methods. There are hundreds of injuries per year resulting from manual forklifts, however there are probably less than a dozen AGV injuries per year.
2. Sortation
Conveyors have limited access area and high hardware cost, therefore is only suitable for very high volume operations.
A conveyor system is a common piece of mechanical handling equipment that moves materials from one location to another. Conveyors are especially useful in applications involving the transportation of heavy or bulky materials.
Conveyor systems are used widespread across a range of industries due to the numerous benefits they provide. 
Sortation conveyors are used for merging, identifying, inducting, and separating products to be conveyed to specific destinations
Since they do not come in contact with the conveyor, they can be used with almost any flat surface conveyor
Usually hydraulically or pneumatically operated, but also can be motor driven
Simple and low cost
Only capable of sorting flat-bottomed items
Pop-up rollers are generally faster than pop-up wheels
Sliding shoe sorter (a.k.a. moving slat sorter) uses series of diverter slats that slide across the horizontal surface to engage product and guide it off conveyor
Slats move from side to side as product flows in order to divert the product to either sideGentle and gradual handling of products
Can accommodate elevation changes
Tilt tray sorters usually designed in continuous loops with a compact layout and recirculation of products not sorted the first time
Tilt slat sorters carry products on flat-surface slat conveyor and can handle wider variety of products compared to tilt tray
Each carriage equipped with small belt conveyor, called the cell, that is mounted perpendicular to direction of travel of loop and discharges product at appropriate destinationAutomatically separates single line of products into multiple in-line discharge lines
The Vertical sortation conveyor is used to perform either of the following types of functions in a baggage handling system.
This application makes use of the robot's capability to transport objects. By fitting the robot with an appropriate end-effector (e.g., gripper), the robot can grasp the object that needs to be moved.
The robot may be mounted either stationary on the floor, enabling it to move from one workstation to another. The robot can also be ceiling mounted.
The primary benefits of using robots for material handling are:
Robots that are used for material handling can interface with other material handling equipment such as:
The following are examples of material handling applications:
Examples of palletizing functions include: 
The configuration of live pallet gravity flow rack makes it ideal for
Live pallet gravity flow rack can be integrated into an automated and storage retrieval system (AS/RS)for even greater efficiency. This versatile rack design saves space, labor costs, and energy by efficiently utilizing gravity. The advantage of gravity flow rack include: 
provides an economical method for both split and full carton order picking. With carton gravity flow rack, stockers load the rack from the back while the cartons glide down wheel tracks to the picking faces utilizing gravity as the free power source.
The advantages of carton gravity flow rack include:
Pallet Flow Racking
Because product flows down tracks to the face of the rack, empty slots are at the rear of the rack and can be replenished without sacrificing first-in/first-out stock rotation, and without interrupting order picking. Pallet flow rack is often used for picking cases and in high volume applications that use a conveyor, as in a “pick-to-belt” system that handles fast moving SKUs.
Rack Structure 
Dynamic Flow Rails
The flow system depth, height, and width are limited only by the size of your facility and the capabilities of your material handling equipment.
designed to support a variety of goods in a stable fashion while being lifted by any mobile forklift, pallet jack, or other jacking device. The goods are placed on top of the pallet, and can be secured to it by straps or stretch-wrapped plastic film.
All pallets fall into two very broad categories: "stringer" pallets and "block" pallets.
Stringer pallets use a frame of three parallel pieces of timber (called stringers). The top deckboards are then affixed to the stringers to create the pallet structure.
The stringer boards are either solid or notched depending on the application. If the stringer boards are notched as shown it allows for a partial 4-way entry into the pallet. It is only a partial 4-way entry pallet because you can only get under the pallet with a pallet jack from the front and not the side.
Block pallets are typically stronger than stringer pallets. Block pallets utilize both parallel and perpendicular stringers to better facilitate efficient handling. A block pallet is also known as a "four-way" pallet, since a pallet-jack may be used from any side to move it. The side picture is of a Block design pallet. Block or Post pallets can be partial or full four-way entry. The typical block pallets can have 4-12 blocks as support for the top deck boards or mat. The length of the stringer board determines a Block pallets length, which is located between the top deck and the top of the blocks. The length perpendicular to the stringer length determines the width. Block pallets can have a variety of bottom deck configurations. There may be no bottom boards, boards parallel to the deck boards or a full parameter base similar to a picture frame.
pallets are of a very simple construction which permits lifting from one of two opposite positions only. Slightly more complex hardwood pallets and most plastic pallets and metal pallets can be lifted from all four sides. These costlier pallets usually require a deposit and are returned to the sender or resold as used.
Wooden pallet construction specifications can depend on the pallet's intended use: general, FDA, storage, chemical, export; the expected load weight; type of wood desired: recycled, hard, soft, kiln Dried or combo (new & recycle); and even the type of fasteners desired to hold the pallet together: staples or nails.
Plastic pallets can not easily be repaired when broken which is why they are mostly used by logistics service providers who can easily replenish stock for its customers.
Plastic pallets offer several benefits over traditional materials like wood: depending on the type of plastic,
· they can be weather
· odour-resistant
· easily be sanitized for international shipping
· work better with toxic materials for purposes of sanitation and plastics are impervious to most acids.
