The LoadRunner's distributed intelligent vehicle coordination makes the autonomous high-speed vehicle a milestone in swarm robotics. With the licensing by the KION Group and the launch of the joint Enterprise Lab, the technology is now on the verge of a breakthrough.

"With its artificial intelligence, the LoadRunner will become the blueprint for the intralogistics industry on the way to a real-time networked, digital platform economy. The vehicle swarms combine the capabilities of high-performance sorting and conveyor technology with the potential of autonomous AI-based systems. The launch of the joint Enterprise Lab with the KION Group impressively underlines the disruptive potential of this technology. With KION, we have gained an intralogistics think tank as a partner that will open up markets worldwide with the LoadRunner," emphasizes Prof. Michael ten Hompel, Managing Director of the Fraunhofer IML.

"Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the industry, and we are actively involved in this. The expansion of artificial intelligence for our products and software solutions is an important part of our 'KION 2027' strategy," says Gordon Riske, Chief Executive Officer of KION GROUP AG. "The innovative LoadRunner technology and the partnership with Fraunhofer IML will help us to make the processes in our customers' warehouses even simpler, faster and more efficient - a great relief for the logistics teams on site and a significant increase in efficiency."

In the Enterprise Lab at the Fraunhofer IML in Dortmund, eight employees from both partners will work together on the further development of the LoadRunner technology. The lab is expected to commence operations this September and is designed to run for at least three years. The common goal is the industrialization and optimization of AI-based swarm technology from the sensor to the superimposed platform.

A LoadRunner can currently move highly dynamically at up to 10 m/s in a swarm and, if required, several vehicles and up to four passive trailers can be magnetically coupled together to transport large and bulky parts. With its dynamics and omnidirectional chassis, the LoadRunner is perfect for sorting and distribution processes. The load is transferred without additional actuators solely by means of inertia when the vehicle brakes. The individual LoadRunner can transport and sort loads weighing up to around 30 kg on its own. It can therefore also be used for transporting and sorting luggage at airports, for example.