What is an AMR?
An AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot) is a mobile robot that navigates independently through a factory, warehouse or plant without fixed physical guidance such as rails, magnetic tape or reflectors, avoiding obstacles and recalculating its own route as it goes. Within industrial automation and Industry 4.0, AMRs handle internal transport, line-side replenishment, order picking and inspection rounds. They combine sensors, navigation software, wireless communication and safety functions into a cyber-physical system that adapts to a changing environment. That also makes AMRs connected OT assets that fall under both machinery safety and cybersecurity.
🧠 How does an AMR work?
An AMR runs through the same cycle over and over: perceive, localise, plan and drive.
- Perceive - LiDAR scanners, 3D cameras, ultrasonic sensors and an IMU build up a picture of the surroundings
- Localise - with SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) the robot first builds a map and then continuously determines its position on it, supported by wheel encoders
- Plan - a global planner chooses the route across the map, while a local planner steers around people, pallets and forklifts
- Drive and protect - the motion controller drives the motors, while a separate safety system with safety laser scanners limits speed or stops the robot
At its core, SLAM is probabilistic estimation (filters and graph optimisation), not artificial intelligence. AI and vision systems are, however, increasingly used for object recognition, for example to tell a person from a pallet and adjust driving behaviour accordingly.
| Component | Function |
|---|---|
| Safety laser scanner | Person detection and protective fields, usually PL d |
| LiDAR / 3D camera | Navigation, mapping and obstacle detection |
| IMU and wheel encoders | Orientation and distance travelled (odometry) |
| Motion controller | Control of motors and brakes |
| Safety controller | Speed monitoring, emergency stop, field switching, often a safety PLC |
| Battery system | Lithium-ion or LiFePO4 with automatic charging |
| Communication module | Wifi or private 5G to the fleet manager |
🔄 What is the difference between an AMR and an AGV?
A classic AGV follows a predefined path, for example using magnetic tape, wires in the floor, reflectors or QR markers, and stops at an obstacle until the way is clear. An AMR plans its own route and drives around obstacles. The distinction is blurring: many modern AGVs also use contour-based navigation, and safety standards treat both as driverless industrial trucks.
| Property | AGV | AMR |
|---|---|---|
| Navigation | Fixed path or fixed markers | Free, based on a map |
| At an obstacle | Stops and waits | Drives around or replans |
| Infrastructure | Changes to floor or building | Minimal, the map is taught in |
| Changing routes | Reconfiguration by a specialist | Adjusted in the fleet software |
| Predictability | High, deterministic travel times | Lower, travel time depends on traffic |
| Typical use | Heavy, repetitive flows | Variable flows between people and machines |
A cobot mounted on an AMR is called a mobile manipulator. The requirements for mobile vehicles then apply alongside ISO 10218 for the robot arm.
🏭 Where are AMRs used?
- Manufacturing - supplying raw materials and semi-finished goods to workstations, removing finished products, transport between lines in automotive, electronics, food and pharma
- Warehouses and distribution centres - goods-to-person picking, pallet transport, sorting and stock movements, linked to a WMS, RFID and barcodes
- Process industry and utilities - inspection rounds with cameras, thermography and gas detection, where the AMR becomes a mobile sensor platform for asset monitoring
- Hospitals - transport of linen, meals and medication between departments
Typical values for commercial AMRs:
| Parameter | Typical value |
|---|---|
| Payload | A few tens of kg (shelf robots) to well over 1,000 kg (pallet robots) |
| Maximum speed | 1 to 2 m/s; often set lower in shared areas |
| Run time per charge | Roughly 8 to 16 hours, with opportunity charging between jobs |
| Minimum passage width | From about 80 cm for compact models |
| Positioning accuracy | A few centimetres, down to millimetres with markers or docking |
🧭 How do you integrate AMRs with MES, WMS and the shop floor?
AMRs are rarely controlled individually. A fleet manager assigns jobs, manages traffic at intersections, schedules charging and monitors the status of every robot. Upwards, the fleet manager connects to the MES, WMS and ERP; downwards, to doors, lifts, conveyors and PLCs.
| Layer | System | Role for the AMR |
|---|---|---|
| Business planning | ERP | Orders and material requirements |
| Execution | MES / WMS | Transport jobs at the right moment |
| Orchestration | Fleet manager | Task allocation, traffic, charging, maps |
| Vehicle | AMR | Navigation and safe execution |
| Installation | PLC / SCADA | Doors, lifts, hand-over points, alarms |
Three standards matter for communication. VDA 5050 is the interface between driverless vehicles and a central fleet manager, drawn up by the German VDA and VDMA, using JSON messages over an MQTT broker; version 3.0 (March 2026) explicitly adds freely navigating mobile robots and zones. It allows robots from different vendors to run under one fleet manager. OPC UA is used for links to machines and the MES, and REST APIs over HTTP(S) for integration with IT systems. Position and status data often flow to a historian, digital twin or edge platform for analysis and Industrial AI.
The wireless infrastructure is critical: with poor wifi roaming an AMR loses its connection to the fleet manager and stops. Low latency, seamless roaming between access points and full coverage, including behind racking and metal structures, are therefore design requirements. Private 5G is used where wifi is not reliable enough. At transport level this traffic runs over TCP and sometimes UDP.
🛡️ Which safety standards apply to AMRs?
AMRs share space with people, so machinery safety comes first. The core standard is ISO 3691-4:2023, the second edition of the standard for driverless industrial trucks and their systems, which explicitly names AMRs alongside AGVs and tugger systems. It covers, among other things, person detection, speed limitation, braking within the detection range and the layout of operating zones. A revision is in preparation.
| Standard or law | Subject |
|---|---|
| ISO 3691-4:2023 | Safety requirements for driverless industrial trucks, including AMRs |
| ISO 13849 / IEC 62061 | Design of safety functions and the required Performance Level or SIL |
| IEC 61508 | Basic standard for functional safety of electronic systems |
| ANSI/A3 R15.08 | US standard for industrial mobile robots: robot (2020), system integration (2023) and use (2026) |
| Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 | Legal framework from 20 January 2027, with requirements for autonomous mobile machinery |
The Machinery Regulation introduces a supervisory function for autonomous mobile machinery: a person must be able to follow the machine remotely, stop it and bring it into a safe state. At the same time, the AMR’s control system must keep performing its safety functions by itself, even when commands are given remotely. The regulation also requires protection against corruption of safety-relevant software, which makes cybersecurity part of CE marking.
🔐 How do you protect AMRs against cyberattacks?
An AMR is a computer on wheels with cameras, a map of the building and a wireless link to the MES or WMS. Attack vectors include unauthorised access to the fleet manager, spoofing of messages, man-in-the-middle attacks on unencrypted MQTT traffic, tampered firmware, malware on the fleet server and attacks on the wireless network. A compromised fleet manager can halt robots or send them the wrong way; the local safety functions should still prevent injury.
| Measure | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Network Segmentation | AMRs and fleet manager in their own zone in line with IEC 62443 |
| 802.1X and NAC | Only authorised robots on the wireless network |
| TLS | Encryption and authentication of MQTT and API traffic |
| Secure remote access | Vendor maintenance via VPN or a jump server with logging |
| Logging and IDS | Detecting unusual commands or connections |
| Patch Management | Controlled updates of firmware and fleet software |
Networked AMRs also fall under the Cyber Resilience Act as products with digital elements: the obligation to report actively exploited vulnerabilities applies from 11 September 2026, and the full requirements from 11 December 2027.
🔧 How do you approach introducing AMRs?
- Analyse the material flow - which trips, how often, which loads and which peak moments
- Carry out a risk assessment - in line with ISO 3691-4 and ISO 12100, including crossings with pedestrians and forklifts, and define the operating zones
- Check the environment - floor flatness, slopes, door widths and wireless coverage through a site survey
- Choose the integration - VDA 5050, OPC UA or APIs to the MES and WMS, and signals to doors and lifts via PLCs
- Design the security - a dedicated network zone, certificate management, access rights and monitoring
- Start with a pilot - one route, measuring lead time and availability, then scale up
- Organise maintenance - map changes, batteries, wheel wear and sensor cleaning; the diagnostics feed predictive maintenance
A common mistake in first AMR projects is underestimating traffic density: an AMR that keeps having to stop for people or forklifts will not hit the planned cycle time. Simulating the material flow before purchase, with realistic traffic at peak times, prevents that.
❓ Frequently asked questions
Is an AMR the same as an AGV?
No, an AGV follows a fixed path or fixed markers and waits at an obstacle, whereas an AMR plans its own route from a map and drives around obstacles. Both do fall under the same safety standard, ISO 3691-4, for driverless industrial trucks.
Which standard applies to AMR safety?
For an AMR in Europe, ISO 3691-4:2023 is the main safety standard, supplemented by ISO 13849 or IEC 62061 for the design of the safety functions. The legal framework is the Machinery Directive and, from 20 January 2027, the Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230.
What is VDA 5050?
VDA 5050 is an open communication standard between driverless vehicles, including AMRs, and a central fleet manager, based on MQTT and JSON. It lets robots from different manufacturers be controlled as one fleet; version 3.0 from 2026 explicitly supports freely navigating robots.
Does an AMR need wifi?
An AMR navigates and protects itself locally, but needs wifi or private 5G to receive jobs from the fleet manager and report its status. Poor coverage or slow roaming leaves robots standing still, so a wireless site survey belongs in every AMR rollout.
How fast can an AMR drive and how much can it carry?
Commercial AMRs typically drive at a maximum of 1 to 2 m/s and carry anything from a few tens of kilograms to more than 1,000 kg. In areas with pedestrians, the speed of an AMR is usually set lower based on the risk assessment.
Does IEC 62443 apply to an AMR?
IEC 62443 is not a legal obligation, but it is the common standard for securing AMRs, fleet managers and the wireless network as an OT zone. Vendors increasingly use IEC 62443-4-2 as a basis for showing that their AMR is secure by design, which also helps with the requirements of the Cyber Resilience Act and the Machinery Regulation.
📌 In summary
An AMR is an autonomous mobile robot that uses LiDAR, SLAM and its own safety system to navigate freely through a factory or warehouse, working with the MES, WMS and PLCs through a fleet manager. ISO 3691-4:2023 sets the safety requirements, VDA 5050 makes mixed-brand fleets possible and IEC 62443 provides the basis for security. With the Machinery Regulation (from 20 January 2027) and the Cyber Resilience Act, safety and cybersecurity of AMRs also become a single legal task.