Experimental Validation of a Mobile Manipulator for Heterogeneous Industrial Intralogistics

Abstract

The evolution of Industry 4.0 paradigms requires increasingly flexible intralogistics systems, overcoming the limitations of traditional Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and fixed robotic stations. A major open challenge in line-feeding operations is the mobile manipulation of highly heterogeneous objects, ranging from dense metal components to light porous materials, using a single autonomous platform without frequent manual tool changes. Developed as part of the “iCold Line” (A new data-driven automated process) project by Rivacold S.r.l., Vitrifrigo S.r.l., and the Polytechnic University of Marche, this paper presents the mechatronic design, software architecture, and experimental validation of a hybrid mobile manipulator system comprising an Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) and a 6-DoF collaborative arm. The main contribution consists of the systematic design and mechatronic integration of a peakshaving pneumatic system, customized adaptive grippers, and a decoupled cyber-physical architecture. To assess the proposed framework, the complete system was physically prototyped and experimentally validated at the iLabs Industry laboratory.