Glossar

General

Term	Acronym	Definition
Advanced Cooperative Robot Operating System	ACROS	Product name of the Magazino software stack for perception-guided robots.
TORU		Product name of the mobile pick-and-place robot for warehouses, mostly used for picking and stowing shoeboxes.
SOTO		Product name of the mobile pick-and-place robot for KLT handling, usually in production environments.
TORU NEO		Product name of a TORU robot used for picking and stowing small boxes with other goods inside as part of a goods-to-person setup, developed and sold by NEO Intralogistics
ARC	ARC	The web-based frontend of the RCC for order management, fleet management, map view, and some statistics. Some parts are for the customer operative to get an overview, others for remote operation. Also serves the tutorials to users via the tablets. Officially “ACROS Robot Center”, but only ARC is being used.
Magazino Fleet Manager SOTO	MFM	Fleet manager for SOTO that provides setup tooling for environment modeling, and can optionally handle order and traffic management.
User Interface	UI	All kinds of graphical tooling provided for end users, for example via the Magazino Fleet Manager or the SOTO Display.
Magazino Documentation Center		The documentation portal for external users that can be accessed at http://documentation.magazino.eu
Magazino Support Portal		The support portal for external users that can be accessed at support.magazino.eu

Robots, components, and robot functionality

Term	Acronym	Definition
Drive base		The mobile wheeled platform that drives the robots. One of the main assemblies of TORU and SOTO. TORU has a differential drive that allows forward and backward motion as well as rotation on spot. SOTO has an omni-directional drive based on powered caster wheels.
Gripper		The component for grasping boxes. The TORU gripper grasps using suction cups and can push back boxes on top of the one being grasped. The SOTO gripper grasps based on conveyor belts that drive underneath the box to be grasped and pull it inwards. On the of the main assemblies of TORU and SOTO.
Vertical axis		The component for moving the gripper vertically and rotating it horizontally. One of the main assemblies of SOTO.
Backpack		The on-board storage rack for items the robot has picked and is yet to put down. The TORU backpack can be rotated to allow storage of two boxes next to each other. The SOTO backpack can be tilted to let boxes roll to the front for easier pickup. One of the main assemblies of TORU and SOTO.
Charger		Charging stations for the robot’s batteries. TORU uses a conductive charger, i.e. metal pads and charging contacts. SOTO uses an inductive charging solution with a charging pad that needs to be placed next to the pad on the robot’s side.
Display or “SOTO Display”		A display on SOTO for direct user interaction. The main use cases are mapping and error resolution.
Transport wheels		A set of 4 wheel units, each with an integrated lifting mechanism, that can be attached to SOTO in order to passively move the robot.

Safety
Safety		A controller separate from the robot’s industrial computer that ensures that the robot slows down and stops according to safety regulations.
Laser scanner		Device for measuring distances to obstacles in a plane, e.g. in an angle from 0 to 270 degrees horizontally. The data is interpreted by the safety controller to detect humans or obstacles safely, but can also be used for mapping and localization.
Safety field		A virtual area in a laser scan that is monitored by the safety controller. As soon as an obstacle is detected inside this area, actions such as stopping or slowing down the robot can be triggered.
Emergency stop		Red buttons that immediately stop movements of the robot and trigger the emergency brake. Connected to the safety controller.
Virtual bumper		A safety field of 12 cm around SOTO. Obstacles inside this safety field will stop the robot, a behavior equivalent to the bumper of TORU.
Light curtain		A wide light barrier that triggers whenever anything obstructs the flow of light between the two sides. Used on SOTO for protecting the gripper and backpack against human interference, i.e. whenever anyone sticks a hand inside, all movements will stop.
3d camera		A camera that for each pixel determines the distance of the nearest object from the camera and thereby creates a three-dimensional image of a scene. Used for segmenting and locating boxes and for detecting obstacles in front of the robot.
2d camera		A traditional color or black-and-white camera that outputs a digital image to be processed by the robot’s computer. Used on TORU and SOTO for finding and reading barcodes.

Objects and loads

Term	Acronym	Definition
Item		Single object that is to be moved. The object is defined by its EAN, Barcode, ISBN... The object also has a description. Term internally used by the software
Item dimensions		The dimensions of a single item. Usually given in L = Length, W = Width, H = Height. Orientation of dimensions varies by customer.
Stock keeping unit	SKU	A number that retailers assign to products to keep track of stock levels internally. If a product has different colors and sizes, each variation has a unique SKU number.
Load carrier		Tool used to form loading or storage units. A load carrier is usually designed to facilitate handling in logistics. A load carrier can be a load support (e.g. a flat pallet) or a container (box pallet, tank pallet, grid box pallet). Most load carriers can be easily accessed with load handling devices (forks).
Pallet		Load carrier made of wood or plastics that is optimized for being picked by a forklift. There are many different kinds of pallets, a very common one is the EPAL1 (Euro pallet).
Big box	GLT	Larger container either on top of a pallet or standalone with a pallet-like base that is used for transporting larger material that does not fit into a KLT. Exists in different shapes and materials such as a pallet cage.
Pallet cage		Larger container either on top of a pallet or standalone with a pallet-like base that is used for transporting larger material that does not fit into a KLT.
Box		We use this term internally to summarize all “small” boxes that SOTO can handle, e.g. KLT, eurobox or similar.
KLT	KLT	Is a specific kind of box that is used at most of our customers (English literal translation is Small Load Carrier / SLC, but we use KLT) the shapes may differ slightly there are different sizes and dimensions KLTs are defined in the norm VDA4500
Euro container		Is a specific box that is used at some customers the shapes may differ slightly there are different sizes and dimensions
EPP box	EPP	Styrofoam boxes commonly used for storing electronic components

Shelves & handover solutions

Term	Acronym	Definition
Handover station		(generic term for different handover solutions) A handover station can be a source or sink where objects are picked up or put down. SOTO usually transport objects between handover stations as both sources and sinks, while TORU usually transports from some handover station to a shelf or vice versa. Examples are putwalls, flow racks, conveyors, or pick carts.
Flow rack		Standard handover station for SOTO, equipped with roller conveyors that let boxes that were put down at the upper end slide down to the lower end.
Conveyor		A conveyor is usually connected to an AS/RS (Automated Storage and Retrieval System for KLTs). That means all the KLTs are being transported via a conveyor to the end of the conveyor where SOTO can pick them up. There are active (belt or roller) conveyors as well as passive conveyors (usually tilted roller conveyor, with the box rolling down) For TORU only supported as sink.
Tugger train		Shelves on wheels connected to a kind of train, used for bulk transport of goods over longer distances. There are very different shapes of tugger trains.
Pick up adapter		Modification item for a shelf compartment to facilitate detection and interaction for SOTO. The adapter stops the rolling box and includes a front surface with the compartment QR-Code and a reflective marker.
Put down adapter		Modification of a shelf compartment to facilitate detection and interaction for SOTO. The adapter includes a front surface with the compartment QR-Code and a reflective marker.
Funnel		Modification of a KLT putdown shelf compartment on both sides of the putdown adapter to guide the KLT correctly into the compartment.
Docking Shape		A specific shape that is fixed at handover stations and chargers which can easily be detected in a laser scan and allows SOTO to dock precisely to it.

Environment model elements
Vertical box clearance		Free space above a box before the next layer starts
Horizontal box clearance		Distance between stacks, i.e. horizontal free space between boxes

Environment and navigation

Term	Acronym	Definition
Environment		The surrounding of the robot in the physical world, but often also used for describing the virtual representation of it (the → Warehouse model or → Environment model including the map, the topological graph, shelves, obstacles, and other components.
Environment Model		The environment model is a three-dimensional representation of the robot’s workspace including the following concepts: Representation of objects, their semantics and physical properties. Objects represented: Floor Shelf Segment Layer Compartment Robot Charger Area Obstacle Representation of geometrical relations Frames (see below) as a set of coordinate systems Poses (Positions and orientations of objects in space described in the respective frame (coordinate system)) Tightly connected but not “officially” part of it is the topological graph

Maps and coordinates
Map		[non-technical term] Informally refers to the localization maps as a two-dimensional representation of the environment created by the robot with its laser scanner
Localization Map (pbstream)		[tech] A binary file which is created and used by cartographer to localize the robot relative to the /map coordinate system. It indirectly has a pose relative to the /map coordinate system (part of a file called map_pose.yaml).
Localization Map (Image) / Laser Map		[tech] A grayscale image representation of the localization map. Interpretation of colors can be found here map_server - ROS Wiki Only used for us humans to interpret where the robot is in space, as a basis for the environment modeling and to judge the quality of a mapping procedure. It has a pose relative to the /map coordinate system.
Navigation Map		[tech] An image representation of the environment in which the robot is operating in. It is an artifact created by SOTO: the environment modeling tool in the MFM TORU: warehouse creator It represents the work area and all obstacles within the environment. It has a pose relative to the /map coordinate system.
Cost map		[tech] A cost map is a representation used in navigation to describe the navigable area. It is a result of interpreting the navigation map in combination with live laser data, the robots position and footprint. It is used to steer the navigation software stack to follow a path with the least costs. Loosely speaking a cost of a cell in the image are higher the closer the robot would be to an obstacle. More information can be found here costmap_2d - ROS Wiki.
Frame		A frame describes a coordinate system in space. The most important frame is /map. /map is one of the two root nodes in tf, our system to represent transformations in space in relation to time. TF uses a tree representation to represent relations between coordinate systems. More information can be found here tf - ROS Wiki. A map has a position relative to this coordinate system.

Elements of the environment model
Site		Term to distinguish multiple locations of the same customer. For example, at Zalando Lahr, “Lahr” would be the name of the site. Necessary for the distinction from Zalando Verona or Zalando Erfurt. It shouldn’t be called “location”, since a customer might also have multiple sites at a similar location, e.g. “MAN Nürnberg I”, “MAN Nürnberg II”, etc.
Work area		The working area is a polygon encapsulating one Floor and also the topological graph on which the robot is so far operating on. The robot is not allowed to leave the work area. The work are is interpreted by the work area watchdog. Also space described by obstacles is subtracted from the work area The work area is described by list of points relative to the /map coordinate system.
Graph, Topological Graph		[non-tech] The topological graph is a kind of street map that is used by the robots to roughly plan a path to the target, while respecting traffic rules. [tech] Is a mixture of a metric and topological graph connecting all the objects in space (represented via the World DB representation) the robot has to navigate to. We have the assumption that the topological graph is “one strongly connected component” (loosely speaking that you can reach every node from every other node).
Node/Vertex		In graph theory, nodes (sometimes called vertices) represent an object in a graph. The objects represented by a node can be of any type (a position, a shelf, etc.). Nodes carry the fences, which describe how much the robot can deviate from the graph. Example: we can represent the current position of a robot with a node and its target position with another node.
Edge		In graph theory, edges represent the relationship between nodes. Edges can be directed and weighted to influence the paths (and create one way streets). Edges also carry the fences, which describe how much the robot can deviate from the graph. Example: we can link two position with an edge if there is is a path between the two positions.
Path		One specific way to get from A to B. In our use case, the path is derived from the graph, but does not have to be exactly on the edges.
Fence		A fence describes the allowed tolerance of the robot with respect to edges and nodes. The area described by a fence is limited by the navigation map (i.e. the work area and all obstacles within the work area).
Area		Areas can be specified as polygons in the environment modeling tool and affect the behavior of the robot in this part of the environment. Examples are no-go areas that the robot may not enter, or speed limit areas where a maximum velocity needs to be kept.

Technical artifacts
Environment Project		Representation of the environment modeling of the MFM consisting of a representation of the world used to create a Floor and all objects below it a representation of the topological graph The representation is used to generate the navigation map when deploying an environment on the robot The Environment projects references the localization map and ensures (will ensure soon) that the referenced map exists on the robot when an environment gets deployed

Exception handling

Term	Acronym	Definition
Exception		Most generic term for all kinds of unplanned events such as Errors, Problems, etc Also includes aborted requests, timeouts, and all kinds of other deviations where the robot did something different than expected
Problem		If a job cannot be completed because of external circumstances (e.g. an object is physically not there, is not identifiable, or not reachable by navigation), it is moved to the state PROBLEM. This state is not terminal, and actions such as re-trying a job or aborting it can be triggered by configurable rules
Error		An error refers to a malfunction of the robot that can either be due to a Critical Event (e.g. a collision) or be reported by continous monitoring and self-diagnostics
Intervention		The act of a human taking action to support a robot, usually triggered by an exception.

Fleet management & multi-robot coordination

Term	Acronym	Definition
Multi-Robot Coordination	MRC	The coordination of a fleet of robots operating in a shared environment, typically including → Order management and → Traffic management.
Traffic management		Control of which robot is allowed to drive where. Includes the computation of routes for the robots in a fleet, resolution of conflicts, and often the handling of special areas or “virtual traffic lights”
VDA5050		A norm by the German Association of the Automotive Industry for the interface between mobile robots and a central controller.
Master controller		Central coordination entity in a → VDA5050 setup. Its main tasks are assigning orders, calculating routes, deadlock resolution and traffic control, energy management, and communication with external I/O devices.
Fleet manager		A generic term for a software system that coordinates a fleet of mobile robots.
sloXis		Multi-vendor fleet manager by our integrator cts that coordinates mobile robots by different manufacturers and provides functionality for interfacing with WMS, I/O devices, or other machinery.
Logistics Interface	LI	A communication platform that can interface to different information sources and sinks such as the WMS or MES, or I/O devices. Often used for triggering orders based on sensor signals. Jungheinrich Logistics Interface
Flexus		One implementation of a VDA5050 Master Controller.
Synaos Fleet Management System	Syna.OS	One implementation of a VDA5050 → Master Controller.
Multi-Agent Path Finding	MAPF	A sub-problem of → Traffic management that is concerned with the computation of optimal and deadlock-free paths for multiple robots in case of shared areas and resource conflicts.
I/O device		Generic term for all kinds of devices that either provide data that is consumed by the fleet manager as input (e.g. sensor readings, fire alarm systems) or can be used as output (e.g. light signals, automatic gates)

Logistics processes and order management

Term	Acronym	Definition
Order management		Handling of orders to be performed e.g. by a fleet of robots. Typically includes the generation of orders based on input data, the optimal allocation of orders to agents, the monitoring of the order progress, and error resolution.
Warehouse Management system	WMS	A WMS, or warehouse management system, is software that helps companies manage and control daily warehouse operations, from the moment goods and materials enter a distribution or fulfillment center until the moment they leave.
Enterprise Resource Planning system	ERP	The purpose of an ERP system is to connect operational and commercial data to accounting and financial decision-making. Many Enterprise Resource Planning systems include a warehouse management module or set of modules.
Manufacturing Execution System	MES	Manufacturing execution systems (MES) are computerized systems used in manufacturing to track and document the transformation of raw materials to finished goods. While the WMS focuses on the warehouse and maybe deliveries from the warehouse, the MES focuses on the production needs and possible requests generated from these.
Automatic Storage / Retrieval System	AS/RS	Automatic high-rack system for storing boxes that is often used for fast-access bulk storage of goods.

Process types
picking		Goods are moved from warehouse to outgoing goods
double cycle		Batch that involves both stowing and picking. Usually done for path optimization and to reduce picking times

Elements / data structures
Batch		A set of jobs that can be performed by a robot, i.e. that fits the robot’s backpack
batching		Creation of a batch. Selects open jobs to optimize utilization of the robot’s backpack while minimizing traveled distance and considering constraints such as priorities or cut-off times.
Order		List of requests that belong together, e.g. multiple items a customer has ordered together.
Request		[software] Request to move an object from point A to point B. Usually consists of at least two jobs (pick-up and put-down)
Transport Order		[logistics] Transport Order (one item from A to B)
Job		Data structure for commanding individual object movements or other robot tasks. There are different types of jobs such as transport job pick-up job put-down job navigation job charging job etc.
Job phase		The execution of a job can be split into individual job phases such as navigation to the source, searching for the item, performing the pickup movement etc.
Pick job		A job for picking up an object from an external source and putting it into the backpack.
Put-down job		A job for picking up an object from the backpack and putting it down into an external sink.
Pick-up & transfer / transport		Logistic process: e.g. moulding machine produces parts in a KLT and the KLT should be transported to a warehouse (Customer Example: WAGO)
Compartment (this is not a common logistic term for “Lagerplatz”) storage bin (in SAP and logistic dictonaries)		Lagerplatz: Storage bin/place is a place where exactly one item number is stored
Transport order list		Set of transport orders, usually sorted by moment of need
Picking list		List with transport orders sorted by different criteria

Robot usage: deployment, operations, support

Term	Acronym	Definition
Mapping		The process of recording a map of the environment by manually driving the robot around and collecting the data from its laser scanners.
Modeling		The process of creating an → Environment model consisting of shelves, charging station, topological graph, and other elements.
Testing		The creation of test orders for checking whether the robot and environment have been set up correctly.