Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV)
An Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) is a driverless, computer-controlled vehicle that transports goods along predefined, fixed guide paths — following wires, magnetic tape, markers or lasers embedded in or mapped to the floor. AGVs move pallets, containers, carts and materials in warehouses, distribution centres, factories and automated ports, operating continuously and safely alongside (or separated from) people.
Because they follow set routes, AGVs excel at repetitive, high-volume transport tasks on stable layouts — and at automated container terminals, fleets of AGVs shuttle containers between the quay cranes and the yard. This fixed-path nature is the key difference from the newer Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR), which navigates flexibly without fixed infrastructure. AGVs deliver reliable, labour-saving materials movement but with less flexibility to change routes. Coordinated by a control system, AGVs are a well-established pillar of warehouse and port automation, and a stepping stone toward fully automated materials handling.
AGVs automate the endless, repetitive job of moving materials from A to B — reliably, continuously, without a driver — which is why they run automated container terminals and warehouses. Their fixed-path design is what distinguishes them from the more flexible AMR, and understanding that difference is key to grasping how automated materials handling is evolving.
How does an AGV navigate?
It follows predefined fixed paths using wires, magnetic tape, markers or lasers, moving goods along set routes.
How is an AGV different from an AMR?
An AGV follows fixed guide paths; an AMR navigates flexibly and dynamically without fixed infrastructure.