Autonomous Guided Vehicle Deliveries & Tending – Hospital

New Royal Adelaide Hospital
New Royal Adelaide Hospital – Artist’s impression

The New Royal Adelaide Hospital construction is nearing completion (already resembling the artist’s impression above) and RA Health P/L have installed the 25-strong fleet of RA-GV ‘s (Robotic Automation’s Guided Vehicles). The fleet installation passed technical completion and site acceptance testing (SAT) on schedule and now awaits the grand opening of the hospital and its first patients to serve!

AGV's in lift lobby
Above: The RA-GV’s stop beneath, then lift up specialised trolleys containing the waste or supplies for delivery.

“At 25 vehicles, this is the largest hospital AGV fleet in Aus & NZ”

The fleet is set to deliver Food & Beverage (hot & cold), Laundry, Pharmaceuticals, Mail, Sterilised Items and other supplies as well as several forms of Waste between the Patient Wards and the Kitchens, Stores and the many other functional areas within the hospital.

AGV charging area
Above: The RA-GV’s automatically stop to recharge at opportune times between missions or at low power levels when another vehicle can take over.

Equipment in Focus :

  • A fleet of  25 RA-GVs.
  • Contour/Range-sensing navigation.
  • Trolley pick/drop stations with automatic RFID signalling.
  • Automatic Park’n’Charge area.
  • Central fleet control station with automatic scheduling of RA-GV movements plus elevator & auto-door activation controls.

Benefits include :

  • Greater efficiency & traceability.
  • Increased safety.
  • Reduced costs.
  • Less damage to equipment.
  • More staff time can be reallocated to direct patient care.

Application in Action :