As the backbone force of intelligent logistics, the continuous operation capacity of AGV is a key link that determines the efficiency of the entire system. However, the traditional contact charging mode has many constraints and is becoming a "stumbling block" on the road to the wide application of AGVs. Wireless charging technology, with its contactless energy transmission, has brought about a profound energy replenishment revolution for AGVs.

I. Pain Points Stimulate Demand: The predicament of traditional AGV Charging

High manual intervention and low efficiency: Robots need to be precisely positioned to fixed charging piles, consuming precious working time. Frequent plugging and unplugging operations require dedicated monitoring, significantly increasing labor costs.

Wear and maintenance persist: The physical contact of charging contacts causes continuous wear, corrosion, and contamination (such as oil stains), leading to a simultaneous increase in equipment reliability and maintenance costs.

Safety risks are emerging: Exposed metal contacts in damp or dusty environments are prone to causing short circuits and sparks, posing safety hazards.

The flexibility is severely limited: The dedicated charging area occupies space, which restricts the flexible planning of AGV operation paths; Simultaneous charging of multiple vehicles requires deployment at multiple points, increasing costs and reducing efficiency.

Insufficient environmental adaptability: In high-demand environments such as clean workshops, contact charging is difficult to meet the requirements of dust-proofing and water-proofing. Explosion-proof sites pose more challenges to the intrinsic safety of equipment.

Ii. The Way to Break the Deadlock: Core Principles and Application Advantages of Wireless Charging Technology

Wireless charging transmits electrical energy from the transmitting end (buried or wall-mounted charging panels) to the AGV on-board receiving end in a non-contact manner through electromagnetic induction or magnetic resonance technology (currently the mainstream is high-performance magnetic resonance solutions), achieving a seamless "stop and charge" replenishment.

Its core advantages directly address the pain points of AGV applications:

1. True unmanned fully automatic charging:

"Fragmented" high-frequency charging: AGVs can automatically provide short-term charging during brief idle periods (such as waiting for loading) or at path nodes (such as charging 10% after a 30-second stop), breaking down the entire process into smaller parts and eliminating the time consumption of traditional centralized charging.

No need to interrupt navigation: For instance, after a certain 3C electronics factory in Shenzhen embedded charging boards on the ground of the transfer point, the AGV automatically replenished about 7% of the battery during each cargo transfer interval, extending the daily operating time by over 3 hours and increasing the production line efficiency by 15%.

2. Ultimate reliability, reduced maintenance costs:

Say goodbye to physical wear and tear: No metal contacts, isolated from the troubles of oxidation, ablation and mechanical wear.

Environmental resistance upgrade: Fully enclosed design naturally dust-proof and water-proof (generally up to IP65/IP67), supporting stable operation in food workshops and semiconductor clean rooms.

Data supports this: After the application of wireless charging in CATL's power battery factory, AGV-related charging faults have decreased by 90%, and the operation and maintenance costs have been significantly reduced.

3. Intrinsically safe, applicable to high-risk environments:

The spark-free design eliminates the risk of explosion and combustion, meeting the ATEX/IECEx explosion-proof certification requirements. It is suitable for chemical storage scenarios.

The fully enclosed structure avoids the risk of accidental contact by personnel and complies with the safety requirements for industrial equipment in the latest national standard GB/T 39265-2020.

4. Free up space and deployment flexibility:

Free up space: The charging pad takes up very little space when installed underground or wall-mounted, freeing up valuable storage area.

Flexible deployment: Charging points can be widely distributed as needed (such as path intersections, queuing points, etc.). For instance, a certain Asia No. 1 warehouse of JD Logistics has achieved a globally flexible charging network through over 200 ground charging stations.

Efficient collaboration: Supports simultaneous charging of multiple vehicles, sharing charging resources to enhance utilization efficiency.

5. A major leap in environmental adaptability:

It can operate stably in high-humidity environments such as cold chain, without the risk of poor contact caused by ice formation.

It has strong corrosion resistance and is suitable for corrosive environments such as electroplating and chemical industries.

Iii. Practical Implementation: Mainstream Solutions and Key Technologies

Magnetic resonance technology dominates: Currently, magnetic resonance schemes with operating frequencies ranging from 85 to 205kHz are mostly adopted. Compared with traditional inductive types, they have significant advantages in transmission distance, energy efficiency, and offset tolerance (±15cm horizontally and 10-25cm in height). Power coverage ranges from several hundred watts (for small AGVs) to tens of kilowatts (for heavy-duty transfer robots).

Intelligent management collaboration

Energy management platform: The system monitors the battery status in real time, intelligently dispatches AGVs to the optimal charging point (idle point), and combines path algorithms to ensure the satisfaction of charging demands and the maximization of operational efficiency. If a certain system can predict the power consumption of AGVs, it can plan in advance the efficient charging nodes during the journey.

Standardized integration: Supports industrial bus communication such as CAN/RS485/Ethernet, seamlessly integrating into existing management systems.

Iv. Facing Challenges and Looking Forward to the Future

The initial cost is relatively high: At present, it is higher than the contact solution (about 30%+), but with the scale expansion and technological progress (such as the popularization of GaN devices), the cost is rapidly decreasing.

Energy efficiency needs to be continuously optimized: The system's optimal energy efficiency is approximately 85-93%, slightly lower than that of some high-efficiency wired solutions (94-96%), and is being improved through advanced power conversion and devices.

High-power application deepening: Wireless charging solutions for heavy-duty AGVs with a power of over 30kW are entering the industrialization stage.

Ecological integration is accelerating: Intelligent Internet of Things (IIoT), AI dispatching and wireless charging are deeply integrated to form a closed-loop smart logistics system. The ISO international standard released in 2023 has further promoted the development of system interoperability.

Interact Analysis, a global market research institution, predicts that the growth rate of the industrial AGV/LMV wireless charging market size will exceed 30% in 2028, gradually becoming a standard solution for high-automation level scenarios.

Wireless charging, through the essential innovation of "contactless energy transmission", has completely broken through the traditional bottlenecks of AGVs in terms of operational efficiency, equipment reliability, system flexibility, and environmental adaptability. With the increasing maturity of technology, the continuous optimization of costs, and the wide implementation of standards, wireless charging is driving AGVs to shift from "functioning" to "working intelligently, continuously, reliably and efficiently". Under the unstoppable trend of the development of smart logistics, wireless charging is not only an energy upgrade option for AGVs but also a cornerstone technology for building large-scale, high-intensity, and unmanned logistics operating systems. It is estimated that its comprehensive value can bring an overall benefit improvement of 18% to 25% to the AGV system. For enterprises pursuing outstanding efficiency and an intelligent future, introducing wireless charging technology to AGVs is not an option but a strategic necessity to enhance the competitiveness of modern logistics.