VDA 5050 – VERSION 1.1, JUNE 2020 INTERFACE FOR THE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN AUTOMATED GUIDED VEHICLES
(AGV) AND A MASTER CONTROL 9
Copyright VDA 2020
transferred to the vehicle via an MQTT message broker. This then continuously reports its status to the
master control in parallel with the execution of the job. This is also done using the MQTT message broker.
Functions of the master control are:
• Assignment of orders to the AGV
• Route calculation and guidance of the AGV (taking into account the limitations of the individual
physical properties of each AGV, e.g. size, manoeuvrability, etc.)
• Detection and resolution of blockages "deadlocks")
• Energy management: Load orders can interrupt transfer orders
• Traffic control: Buffer routes and waiting positions
• (temporary) changes in the environment, such as freeing certain areas or changing the maximum
speed
• Communication with peripheral systems such as doors, gates, elevators, etc.
• Detection and resolution of communication errors
Functions of the AGV are:
• Localization
• Navigation along associated routes (guided or autonomous)
• Continuous transmission of vehicle status
In addition, the integrator must take into account the following when configuring the overall system
(incomplete list):
• Map configuration: The coordinate systems of the master control and the AGV must be
coordinated
• Pivot point: The use of different points of the AGV or points of charge as a pivot point leads to
different envelopes of the vehicle. The reference point may vary depending on the situation, e.g.
it may be different for AGV carrying a load and for AGV that do not carry a load.
6 Protocol specification
The following section describes the details of the communication protocol. The protocol specifies the
communication between the master control and the AGVs. Communication between the AGV and
peripheral equipment, e. g. between the AGV and a gate, is excluded.
The different messages are presented in tables describing the contents of the fields of the JSON that is
sent as an order, state, etc.
In addition, JSON schemas are available for validation in a public Git repository
(https://github.com/MaximilianRies/vd-m-a-5050). The branch to this document version is 5.00. The JSON
schemes are the "some point of truth" and are considered a universal data set with the claim to correctness
that can be relied upon as a developer of the interface
6.1 Symbols of tables and meaning of formatting
The table contains the name of the identifier, its unit, its data type, and a description, if any.