Warehouses are becoming more automated by the day, with many combining an ever-wider selection of material handling equipment and technology designed to speed and streamline operations. Experts say collaborative robots, wearable technologies, autonomous forklifts, and automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) are coming together like never before in a single facility as companies take a “best-of-breed” approach to automating for current and future needs.
But how do warehouse workers connect to all of those technologies to create efficient and effective workflows throughout the facility?
Voice-directed technology may just be the answer. Long used primarily as a picking solution, voice technology is now used for many other workflows, such as receiving and putaway, and is increasingly functioning as an interface between human workers and the various machines they interact with during the course of that work. The trend highlights a shift occurring in warehouse automation strategy that emphasizes the value of humans and machines working side by side, according to Joshua Franker, head of marketing for voice technology and warehouse optimization software company Lucas Systems. That shift signals a move away from an earlier strategy that was focused on reducing labor by turning warehouses into robot-dominated facilities.
“Instead, the focus is how do we create the most efficient and accurate versions [of a facility]—knowing that humans are still a part of it?” Franker says. “Robots and humans all working well together—how do we do that and create the most efficient and accurate warehouse [operations] that we can?”
Franker and others say voice technology is taking a front seat on that journey.
A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH
The integration of voice technology and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) offers one example of how this strategy is playing out in the warehouse. Lucas Systems recently expanded its voice/robotics collaboration by working with AMR developer Vecna Robotics on a case-picking solution that unifies the two technologies. The goal was to speed throughput and boost accuracy by reducing distractions: The system replaces screen-based scanning devices with a hands-free, eyes-free solution that makes it easier for workers to pick cases to Vecna’s robotic pallet jacks, which automate pallet travel through the warehouse.
The solution, CaseFlow Voice, directs workers—through voice instructions delivered via a headset—to meet a Vecna robot at a specific location to perform the pick. The solution encourages zone picking by keeping the worker in one or two aisles, assigning and reassigning tasks throughout the shift based on live priorities—which helps reduce travel time and speeds throughput. What’s more, Franker says the voice instruction combined with the visual of a robot coming toward them offers workers two forms of communication that prepares them for the pick—with no paper forms or touchscreen inputs to slow down the process.
“You’re getting the information as the AMR is approaching,” Franker explains. “So you know exactly what to do [when it gets there].”
The solution also creates opportunities in challenging warehouse picking applications—such as cold and frozen storage, where gloves, condensation, and limited dexterity make screens and scanners difficult to use. And although there are touchscreens designed to work well in freezer environments, Franker says they are more expensive than traditional products, adding to equipment costs.
“With voice, [you] eliminate the need for the touchscreen at all,” while also freeing your fleet of robots to work anywhere they are needed in the warehouse,” Franker explains. “Instead of two or three dedicated freezer robots, they can go wherever they are needed, [so it becomes] more efficient.”
Such systems also support efforts to orchestrate workflows throughout the facility. CaseFlow Voice connects directly to a company’s warehouse management system (WMS) to coordinate every step of the workflow, from pallet pickup to delivery to an outbound dock.
And ultimately, the blended technology makes the most of humans and equipment working side by side.
“We’re looking at ways [to] make the robot travel less, the person travel less—what’s the optimal balance there?” Franker says. “We’re continually developing that.”
MORE THAN A PICK
Bob Bova, president and CEO of warehouse automation software firm AccuSpeech, likewise cites the evolution of voice technology as a game-changer in today’s automated warehouses.
“The whole point is, how do you make [workflows] seamless? You do it by putting a headset on someone,” Bova says, explaining that AccuSpeech has grown from a voice-directed picking solution into a device-based WMS automation platform that layers voice technology, scanning, and intelligent data capture directly into a company’s existing applications. “As we have evolved our product, it’s not just as voice-directed picking, but as a voice application for anyone talking to anything.”
Bova points to the company’s multimodal workflow automation as an example. The platform combines three input and output methods—voice, heads-up display, and barcode scanning—into a single workflow layer that sits on top of a company’s existing technology without touching the back end. Workers receive verbal instructions and see task-relevant information in their field of view on a head-mounted display—in this case, Zebra HD4000 augmented-reality (AR) glasses. Workers confirm actions by voice or scan—with a ring scanner or similar device appropriate for the application—so that hands stay on the task and eyes stay on the operation.
The key is that the technology can automate all the workflows in a facility, directing workers to tasks that may involve a simple scan and pick or that require interacting with multiple systems or equipment—including AMRs and other types of robots. As AccuSpeech noted in a recent blog post: “From the perspective of the integrated workflow, a robot is simply another data collection or product-picking device.”
“The net result is, if there is any type of interaction between robotic technology and a worker, the ability for them to communicate via a headset or an earpiece is actually a very sustainable model that can provide extremely productive results,” Bova adds. “Otherwise, how do they communicate? By looking at screens? We ‘read’ the software running on the robotic implementation and tell the person who’s loading the truck or breaking the pack: Here’s this and here’s where it goes.”
Like Franker, Bova emphasizes the ability of voice technology to speed the process by eliminating the need for workers to utilize touchscreens that can distract them from the task at hand—a benefit both executives say also helps improve accuracy.
“The problem we see with [paper-based systems] and RF [radio-frequency] scanners is that workers are reading on small screens, with touch inputs,” Franker says. “That slows down the robot. [With voice], once you approach the robot, you’ll be told where you’re picking [and] the quantity [you have to pick] …. That’s a large boost in accuracy.”
And it’s a benefit that bodes well for voice technology implementations as more automated equipment finds its way onto the warehouse floor and workers must navigate complex workflows involving all of it.
“Voice can solve that problem pretty easily,” Franker adds. “Workers can move from more traditional picking to an AS/RS … and then walk over to an AMR, and it’s all directed through voice.”
