Autonomous Forklifts: What Each Maker Publishes

What an Autonomous Forklift Is

An autonomous forklift is a standard production lift truck with navigation, localization and safety hardware added on top. At The Bot Scout, we read Toyota's product page for the 8HBC40A and Jungheinrich's specification sheet for the EKS 215a to see how each maker describes its own machine.

Toyota says its Center-Controlled Rider Automated Forklift is "Built on a base of the reliable Toyota Center-Controlled Rider Pallet Jack." The same page calls that base "Toyota's industry-leading Class III forklifts" and says the 8HBC40A can be "operated manually as needed."

Jungheinrich describes the EKS 215a in the same terms. Its sheet reads, "The EKS 215a is an automated guided vehicle system based on our vertical order pickers," and line 1.4 lists "Type of operation: AGV," short for automated guided vehicle.

Because each machine starts as a truck, each document reads like a truck specification. You compare rated capacity, load center, fork height, travel speed and battery voltage line by line.

The automation layer needs its own set of questions. Navigation method, positioning accuracy, obstacle detection and the link to your warehouse software sit outside the standard truck figures, and Toyota and Jungheinrich document them very differently.

The truck figures tell you whether the machine can lift your loads. The automation figures tell you whether it can do that around your racking and your people.

Toyota states that the 8HBC40A can run manually. For the EKS 215a, get manual operation in writing from Jungheinrich, citing the EKS 215a sheet, because the lines we quote from it say nothing about driving it by hand.

Both makers place these machines in the automated guided vehicle category, and Toyota's page sits under "Automated Guided Vehicles" in its breadcrumb. If you are weighing a guided truck against an autonomous mobile robot (AMR), our autonomous mobile robots guide covers that difference.

Navigation Methods on the Toyota 8HBC40A and Jungheinrich EKS 215a

The Toyota 8HBC40A finds its way by mapping features that already exist in the building, and the Jungheinrich EKS 215a uses laser navigation that can rely on reflectors mounted along the route. That difference decides what has to be installed before either machine moves a pallet.

Toyota lists light detection and ranging (LiDAR) for the 8HBC40A, describing "LiDAR-based natural features navigation" and naming "LiDAR Technology" as a special feature. Toyota says it will "create a map of the area," and that the product needs "little to no infrastructure or burdensome setup."

Toyota's page does not say who updates that map when your racking moves. Ask Toyota for that arrangement in writing through the 8HBC40A product page.

Jungheinrich's sheet is more specific about what goes on your walls. It reads: "The Jungheinrich AGV is navigated by means of laser navigation. No floor work is required. For the laser navigation, reflectors are attached to suitable objects along the travel route such as racking, columns and walls or natural landmarks."

The sheet adds that "different navigation types can be used as hybrid navigation for the EKS 215a," and that these "are designed and specified according to project and environment." So the navigation method is set per project. Write the type you expect into your quote request.

Jungheinrich states outright that no floor work is required, and Toyota describes little to no infrastructure for the 8HBC40A. Neither maker asks you to cut channels in the slab in the lines we read.

Ask each maker what has to be mounted in your building and who resurveys the route when your racking moves. If reflectors go on your racking for an EKS 215a, moving that racking moves the reflectors with it, so put the resurvey arrangement in the quote.

Positioning Accuracy Each Maker Puts in Writing

Toyota publishes a positioning tolerance for the 8HBC40A, and Jungheinrich publishes no accuracy figure for the EKS 215a. Toyota says its machine operates "with accuracy tolerance ranges within half an inch when positioning and delivering loads."

Jungheinrich's sheet makes a claim with no number attached: "High degree of precision allows for pinpoint accuracy in the positioning of trucks and loads at defined stations." That sentence does not tell you how far an EKS 215a may stop from a station.

Require a written positioning figure from both. It has to cover your own load at your own stations. Toyota's half-inch figure is a product-page statement, so ask Toyota to state it for your pallet and pick-up point through the 8HBC40A page.

The gaps run in both directions. Toyota publishes no mast table and lists lift speed, gradeability and basic right-angle stack as "N/A." Jungheinrich publishes four mast heights, lift speeds, motor ratings and a sound level of 62 A-weighted decibels (dB(A)) at the driver's ear.

Treat each missing figure as a line to request in writing. A blank in a document tells you what the maker left out, and it says nothing about how the machine performs.

Both documents carry their own warnings. Jungheinrich's sheet is dated "Technical data as of: 01/2019" and says it "only provides technical values for the standard truck," while Toyota's undated page warns that "Product specifications may not reflect the most current product details."

Confirm current figures on the 8HBC40A product page and the EKS 215a sheet with each maker or dealer before you specify.

Standard and Optional Obstacle Detection

Toyota describes obstacle detection on the 8HBC40A as part of the machine, while Jungheinrich lists the obstacle detection scanner for the EKS 215a as additional equipment. That difference changes what a quoted configuration includes.

Toyota's page says the 8HBC40A "comes with advanced sensors for obstacle detection" and mentions "cutting-edge, mapped-object detection." Toyota does not publish sensor range or detection specifications.

Jungheinrich's sheet lists four items "available for the EKS 215a on a project-specific basis": a floor spot, a bar code scanner, an obstacle detection scanner and sensors for detecting faulty pallets. Each of those has to appear in the quote if you want it fitted to your EKS 215a.

Go through each quote line by line and mark which safety and detection hardware is in the quoted configuration. Do not assume a category default, because these two documents place the same hardware on opposite sides of the standard-or-option line.

The two documents also say different things about people. Jungheinrich's sheet states, "The EKS 215a can be used in mixed operations mode with manual trucks and pedestrians."

Toyota's page does not explain how the 8HBC40A treats an obstacle compared with a mapped structure such as racking. Ask Toyota how the 8HBC40A responds to a person in its path, using the 8HBC40A product page as your reference, and get the answer in writing.

Ask Jungheinrich one follow-up as well. Find out whether the mixed-operations statement assumes the optional obstacle detection scanner is fitted, citing the EKS 215a sheet.

Autonomous Forklift Fit Checks for the Building

Fit an autonomous forklift to the building by matching lift height, capacity, footprint, travel speed, power and network access against the published figures before you request quotes. The table below lists what each document prints and what to measure on your own floor.

Jungheinrich's Duplex ZT mast table offers maximum fork heights of 137, 157, 196 and 236 in (3,500 / 4,000 / 5,000 / 6,000 mm). The tallest is 19 ft 8 in. Toyota publishes no mast table for the 8HBC40A, so request the fork height through the 8HBC40A page once you have measured your highest beam.

Toyota rates the 8HBC40A at 8,000 lb, and its specification table carries the footnote "Based on 24" Load center." Jungheinrich rates the EKS 215a at 3,300 lb (1,500 kg) at a 24.0 in (600 mm) load center. Both ratings sit at the same 24 in load center. Read them as the ceiling for two different base trucks, a pallet jack and an order picker, rather than as a ranking. Weigh your heaviest pallet and note its load center before you shortlist either one.

Jungheinrich warns that different masts and additional equipment "could produce other values," so request the rated load at your chosen mast height in writing. The sheet also says the adjustable forks suit "special load carriers and closed pallets."

Toyota lists an overall length of 106.5 to 154.5 in, a height of 46.82 to 51.62 in and a width of 39.8 in, with a footnote to "Add load length and clearance." Jungheinrich lists a total length without load of 102.6 in (2,605 mm), a length to fork face of 55.3 in (1,405 mm) and an overall width of 38.8 or 35.4 in (985 or 900 mm).

Toyota names "Tight Turn Radius" as a special feature but gives no figure. Request that measurement before you plan aisle widths around an 8HBC40A.

Toyota gives a maximum travel speed of 4.5 miles per hour (mph) at full load and publishes no unloaded speed. Jungheinrich gives 4.3 mph loaded and 5.6 mph with no load, with a footnote listing 3.1 and 3.7 mph in the load direction.

Toyota lists a 24-volt (V) electrical system and does not publish battery type, capacity or runtime. Jungheinrich lists a 48 V, 465 amp-hour (Ah) battery, with compartment size and battery weight both marked "consult factory."

Jungheinrich offers lithium-ion as an option, and the sheet says "No charging rooms and ventilation required as there is no build up of gas." Plan that option into the quote if your building has no charging room.

Jungheinrich connects the EKS 215a to a warehouse management system (WMS) or enterprise resource planning (ERP) system through its Logistics Interface. The sheet adds that "the AGV can also be used as a stand-alone system, i.e. as an autonomous system without a host connection."

The sheet says use of the existing wireless local area network (WLAN) is preferable for EKS 215a communication, so survey wireless coverage along every planned route. Ask Toyota how the 8HBC40A connects to your WMS through the 8HBC40A page.

Toyota lists alternating current (AC) drive motors it calls "maintenance-free," an error indicator with self-diagnostics and a "one-piece, lightweight service access cover." Jungheinrich lists a "Wear-free inversion brake," "Energy recovery during lowering and braking" and active energy and battery management.

Toyota's page publishes no product-specific warranty terms, so ask the dealer for the written warranty alongside the quote. Once you have it, build the service plan for either truck with our industrial robot maintenance guide.

If the forklift is one part of a wider plan, our warehouse automation guide runs the peak-hour test across systems. Our warehouse robot rankings sort machines by task and service path.

When an Autonomous Forklift Is the Wrong Fit

An autonomous forklift from either documented maker is the wrong fit if your loads, lift heights or building fall outside what Toyota and Jungheinrich publish. Loads above 8,000 lb exceed the 8HBC40A rating, and loads above 3,300 lb exceed the standard EKS 215a rating.

Lift heights above 236 in sit beyond the tallest mast on Jungheinrich's sheet, and Toyota publishes no fork height to compare. Without a fork height from Toyota in writing, you cannot plan racking around an 8HBC40A.

If your process needs a printed positioning figure before any site visit, Jungheinrich's sheet will not supply one. If your racking moves often and you cannot mount reflectors, ask Jungheinrich which hybrid navigation type it would specify, citing the EKS 215a sheet.

If your pallets only travel from a line end to a stack at one station, compare a stationary cell in our robotic palletizing guide before you scope a truck.

We recommend shortlisting the 8HBC40A if you need 8,000 lb capacity, a published half-inch positioning tolerance and natural-feature navigation with little setup. Shortlist the EKS 215a if you need fork heights up to 236 in, a published mixed-operations statement and documented WMS, ERP or stand-alone operation.

Two developments would change that split. If Toyota published how the 8HBC40A treats obstacles versus mapped structures, along with its sensor ranges, you could shortlist on detection before the first quote.

The same holds if Jungheinrich published a positioning figure on a sheet newer than 01/2019. Until either happens, both answers have to come from the quote.