UWB: Real-Time Localization and Tracking of Goods Carriers – Inside and Outside of Electroplating

Today, I will talk about use cases in the field of real-time localization and how they can completely transform production and logistics processes. For this, I have invited some exciting guests.

Hello Timm, hello Marcel.

Marcel

Hi Madeleine, thank you very much for the invitation. I’m excited that we can discuss our IoT topic here together with SICK.

I’m doing well, and I’m looking forward to our podcast and the topics we’ll be discussing.

Very nice. Timm, where are you right now?

Timm

Hello Madeleine, hello Marcel.

I’m currently in Düsseldorf.

But I’m originally from near Stuttgart, which you might be able to tell from my dialect.

Yesterday, we had a team event, and now I’m recording from here.

Very nice. Marcel, could you briefly introduce yourself?

Marcel

Gladly. My name is Marcel, and I’ve been working at Jentner in Pforzheim, Baden-Württemberg, for eight years.

I studied chemical engineering at KIT in Karlsruhe, where I focused intensively on electroplating processes.

During my studies, I worked as a student trainee in a barrel plating facility, where I gained valuable insights into galvanic processes.

Since I’ve been with Jentner, my focus has shifted from chemistry to digitalization.

I hardly apply my studies anymore, as I now mainly focus on digitalization topics.

Before we dive into your core business, Timm, who are you and what exactly do you do at SICK AG?

Timm

My name is Timm, and as I mentioned earlier, we’re from the greater Stuttgart area.

We travel across Germany with our field service team, supporting our customers in implementing digitalization projects.

Digitalization is a very broad and extensive term, but to be specific, we are focusing here on localization projects.

The right software plays a crucial role in this, and that’s where I provide support.

Very nice. Best regards to the Stuttgart region and, of course, to everyone listening.

Timm

Marcel is one of our customers who implemented a localization project with us.

I’m glad that Marcel is interested in presenting the solution from the customer’s perspective.

Marcel

I can briefly touch on a few points that we will discuss later.

We focus on localization solutions.

We wanted to track our goods carriers and use that data to control processes.

A few years ago, we started using RFID technology.

Two years ago, we reached out to SICK because we were looking for a system that could track our goods carriers more effectively.

This led us to SICK’s Asset Analytics localization solution, which creates a kind of indoor GPS using an ultra-wideband system.

It was important for us to find a system that is easy to install and operates reliably under our process conditions.

In electroplating, the conditions are not ideal for Wi-Fi or Bluetooth due to the presence of many fumes, high humidity, and a lot of metal.

Therefore, we were looking for a robust system and that’s how we got in touch with SICK.

I see. Galvanizing is part of surface technology and surface finishing, right?

Marcel

Exactly. I can add a bit more about Jentner.

We are a medium-sized company in Pforzheim with about 50 employees.

The company was founded in the 1970s and is now led by the founder’s son.

We specialize in coating customer goods and are a pure contract service provider.

We have thousands of customers and just as many different items.
Our main customers are from the medical sector, where we coat surgical instruments with silver to achieve antibacterial properties.

We are also involved in electrical engineering and electromobility and gold-plate connector contacts, for example.

We are also active in aerospace by coating antenna modules.

Nice. You mentioned goods carriers.

Marcel

Goods carriers can generally be used anywhere, whether in logistics or in production.

In our case, they are used for both small series and high-volume orders in manual operations.

Our goods carriers are 50 x 50 centimeters in size, so they are relatively small.

In the manual process, we load the goods carriers by hand with the items, which are then processed through our electroplating processes.

When applying the system to logistics, you can naturally also track order boxes or container systems.

The system covers the entire value stream.

I see. I have a few more questions about this, but first, I’d like to clarify who plays what role in your project.

Who is responsible for what in the implementation?

Timm

Specifically, our sales team, which is in close contact with our customers, identifies their current issues and challenges.

Especially in the field of localization, there are a variety of different use cases.

For Marcel, for example, it involves electroplating. What’s interesting about localization is that nearly everything—assets, trackers, locators—can be identified.

We are very versatile in this area and open to our customers’ ideas.

The process usually begins with the initial contact, which is made through the customer representative at SICK.

When it comes to localization topics, I get involved and support the field sales team.

In addition, a team of programmers is available in the background to develop and implement customized solutions, allowing us to provide our customers with a comprehensive, one-stop service.

When you implement such a project, do you provide both the hardware and the associated software systems?

Timm

We have a broad product portfolio for identification, ranging from RFID and barcode readers to UWB technology and LIDAR sensors.

We have a very wide range of hardware that we can integrate into our localization software to capture localization data.

With the software, we can then take additional steps and create custom interfaces for the customer to further process the data.

In some cases, we can also integrate the data directly into ERP systems.

However, this is customer-specific and is tailored individually.

Very good. Marcel, you’ve already introduced the company.

Marcel

Our vision is to provide our customers with a digital production record that contains all relevant information about our coatings—ranging from process parameters and cycle times to the entire lifecycle of a workpiece, from manufacturing, such as milling, to the end of its usage.

This includes, among other things, the CO2 footprint or the durability of the coating in use, such as with connector contacts or surgical instruments.

By providing this data, we aim to offer our customers real added value.

So you want to work more with data and provide customers with deeper insights, such as the durability of the coating and other data-driven information.

Marcel

Exactly. Our customers can also provide feedback, which helps us improve our coatings further.

As a contract service provider, we often don’t know exactly how and where the coated parts are used.

This feedback is very valuable to us.

I’d like to see that on-site.

Marcel

Yes, gladly. You can come by anytime.

We have planned an event in collaboration with the IHK Nordschwarzwald and SICK on September 26th, where we will invite interested customers to visit and see our solutions on-site.

Great! If you’re listening and interested, come by on September 26th.

I’ll also check my calendar to see if I can attend.

Timm

If someone is unable to attend on September 26th, we also have the system at our headquarters in Waldkirch, near Freiburg. Interested parties are warmly invited to view the system there as well.

Feel free to contact me directly.

This is important because many might hear about it only after September.

[13:05] Challenges, potentials and status quo – This is what the use case looks like in practice

If I understand correctly, today’s discussion is about the technologies and the system for positioning specific goods carriers.

Are these the main use cases that you implement in manufacturing and logistics?

Marcel

Right.

How did the idea for this project come about, and what was the business case or the business challenge for you and your customers that led you to start it? What is the background?

Marcel

We are a contract electroplating company with a wide range of items that we coat.

Our electrolytes include nickel, copper, gold, rhodium, and palladium. Imagine you’re a galvanizer and receive a specific goods carrier, but the raw materials storage is filled with countless items and customers. Our urgent need was to digitally support production.

The goal was for employees to scan a goods carrier and immediately receive an overview of the process steps.

The goods carrier is placed in the electrolytes, and the coating parameters, such as current and coating time, are automatically set.

The galvanizer only needs to check whether the goods carrier is correctly placed. That was the galvanizers’ request.

So, it’s about a scanning process for the goods to determine where they are and how they are configured.

What other challenges do your galvanizers face?

Marcel

A central question was how to coat our workpieces so that they precisely meet customer requirements.

What parameters do we need to apply to the workpiece to ensure the desired coating is applied precisely?

In the area of suspension, the challenge was to load the goods carrier in such a way that the workpieces are evenly coated during the electrochemical process—a task that is often very complex.

Additionally, it was important for our production managers to know how many goods carriers are currently in production, which electrolytes they are in, and where there are available capacities. This information allows them to efficiently direct or reallocate staff.

I see, so it’s also about capacity planning.

Marcel

Exactly. All of this can be perfectly managed with the UWB system from SICK.

I’d now like to dive into the technologies and IT system you’ve implemented.

Marcel

At the beginning, we used an RFID system to determine the location of each goods carrier in each electrolyte.

We had partial access to the data, but it wasn’t accurate enough.

The problem was that the antenna of our RFID system had to be placed directly at the electrolyte.

Since the distances between the electrolytes in our facility are very small—only about 30 cm—the system often didn’t function correctly.

The antenna couldn’t reliably assign the sensor on the goods carrier to a specific position, leading to frequent misinterpretations.

To control our electroplating processes, such as the automatic setting of current and voltage, we use our own custom-developed software.

I see. So, you decided to collaborate with SICK.

Marcel

One of the biggest challenges was finding a system that was robust enough to be used in a galvanic environment.

We needed a wireless technology with high bandwidth that wouldn’t be disrupted by electromagnetic fields.

However, the most important criterion was that the system should be easy to install and configure. Compared to RFID, where we would likely have needed 30 antennas, with the UWB system, we only need six antennas to cover an entire production line.

[18:45] Solutions, offerings and services – A look at the technologies used

Timm, could you describe a bit about the components you provided for the solution and the steps necessary to implement it?

Can you walk us through the process?

Timm

With pleasure. Basically, we usually start by going directly to our customers.

There, we set up simple tripods with antennas and activate the tags to check the coverage.

Since we’ve gained a lot of experience by now, we know exactly where the system’s limits are.

So, every localization project begins with installing the first antenna, checking the coverage, and activating the first tags.

In the software, we can immediately see how precisely the UWB system covers the area.

Okay, that means you brought this Tag-LOC system with you. I believe that’s a bundle that includes various components for the localization system.

Timm

Exactly, the software is typically installed locally at the customer’s site.

For the initial test environments, we bring our IPC, a computer that runs the software.

The hardware mainly consists of different types of antennas—depending on whether we need 360-degree coverage or directional coverage—and the tags that we want to localize.

That’s how it was specifically with Marcel as well.

Sometimes we also combine hardware to perform indirect localization.

For example, if a customer wants to localize packages or pallets that have been delivered, we also bring barcode readers.

These scan the pallet, and we can then localize the forklift.

This is a form of indirect localization that can also be implemented.

That’s a very important topic, especially when it comes to tracking mobile equipment like industrial trucks or other machinery.

Marcel

In practice, the system is primarily used in our production area.

We have several electroplating lines, each up to 20 meters long.

In total, we have seven production lines across an area of about 3,500 square meters.

In this area, we have installed a total of 16 antennas from SICK, which cover the entire space.

The great thing is that you can use SICK’s software to upload the building layout.

This allows for a 1:1 mapping between the indoor GPS system (via UWB) and the building layout.

You can easily add zones to this layout using drag-and-drop.

In our blog post at SICK, you can also see an example of an overhead view with zones marked, corresponding to the electrolytes.

It’s as simple as that.

Interesting. Now the question arises as to why you chose UWB technology and what it actually is, for those who may not be familiar with it.

Marcel

Exactly, that’s correct.

RFID can only tell us that a goods carrier is in the electrolyte, but it doesn’t provide information about where the goods carrier is when it moves outside the electrolyte, such as between two stations or points in the building.

With the UWB system, on the other hand, you have real-time tracking, meaning real-time localization.

The browser-based software is very user-friendly and easy to set up.

You can pick up the goods carrier and see in real-time exactly where it is.

You can also generate various reports, such as a spaghetti diagram, which I find very helpful.
This allows you to track where the goods carrier has been and for how long—important for capacity planning or optimizing routes, which is a crucial topic.

It’s amazing how much you can optimize routes through tracking, whether it’s for goods carriers or industrial trucks.

That’s right, you mentioned earlier that your production manager, for example, also wants to know the status of capacity planning.

Timm

It’s definitely about the robustness and reliability of UWB.

Compared to Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, which are not as reliable in industrial environments, UWB offers significant advantages.

Another advantage is the high accuracy, which can reach plus or minus 15 centimeters with good coverage, which is truly remarkable.

This offers tremendous potential for our customers.

We come from the automation industry, where many processes and machines are already highly automated.

But in areas like goods receipt, material flow, transport, and manual processes, there is often still a lot of lack of transparency.

Here, customers often don’t know exactly what’s happening.

Manual tasks are performed by a person, and if that person is absent, the entire process can come to a halt.

With UWB, we can localize these manual processes indoors, creating greater transparency.

Marcel, you mentioned earlier that you have various systems in place, possibly including IT systems.

Marcel

The software offers extensive reporting functions, but we also use the localization data—specifically, the information on where the goods carriers are at specific times—for our own software that controls the electroplating process.

These data can be easily exported because SICK’s software offers webhooks that can be freely configured to transmit the desired data in JSON format. This enables us to build interfaces, for example, to our electroplating control system, allowing us to write the data into an SQL database, for example as position data.

As Timm already mentioned, SICK also offers other systems for indirect localization.

For example, we use a 3D camera to monitor our incoming goods.

The camera is mounted on the ceiling and monitors the area.

When a pallet is delivered by a customer, it is placed in a designated area.

The system can then automatically trigger a notification, which is sent either to a Teams channel or to a specific person, to indicate that the goods have arrived.

That’s really interesting.

Marcel

Exactly, as mentioned, the 3D camera for goods receipt is one example.

We now track not only our carriers but also the goods themselves, whether they are in their raw state or finished after galvanization.

We have specific areas in our warehouse or at the goods receipt and dispatch points, such as a finished goods warehouse and a semi-finished goods warehouse, which we can also monitor.

If you think further about it, you can create a perfect process flow from these position data.

You then have a complete overview of the flow of goods.

You know exactly when and where each item was located and how long it stayed there, for whatever reason that might be. It could be the case, for example, that the goods remain in place for a longer time due to customer agreements.

You can also set up a trigger to remind employees to attend to the goods after a day.

All of this is done for the benefit of our customers.

This provides a level of transparency that is otherwise nearly impossible with manual processes, allowing you to know exactly where each item is located.

Thank you for the detailed explanation.

[28:42] Results, Business Models and Best Practices – How Success is Measured

One last question for today: It’s also about sharing best practices.

Timm

From my perspective, it consistently becomes clear that in localization projects, the creativity and potential of our clients come to the forefront.

Typically, these projects move to the next stage and get expanded.

Once you have established the foundation for covering an area, you can not only track the items but also other aspects such as transportation routes. The foundation is already in place, and the system can be expanded as needed.

That’s an important lesson: It often makes sense to start with a specific use case and then gradually expand the system.

Marcel, do you have any practical insights you’d like to share?

Marcel

Yes, I wanted to address the topic that Timm mentioned.

It’s incredible how easy it is to start the coverage of the area.

The SICK team simply brings a few tripods with antennas, sets them up in the room, and within two hours, everything is done.

When we started covering our production, we suddenly discovered so many new possibilities that we hadn’t even thought of before.

For example, we have also started monitoring our chemical storage.

SICK offers a handheld barcode scanner with an integrated UWB tag.

This allows us to scan something in a certain zone and transmit the information directly to our ERP system – for example, that 50 kilos of a chemical have arrived.

It’s great to see the potential that can still be unlocked with this.

Now I’ll leave the final word to you.

Timm

Thank you, Madeleine. I still find your platform and network extremely interesting.

It’s fantastic how you present the whole thing and make it available to interested parties. A big thank you to you as well, Marcel, for sharing the insights from this specific project.

I believe many companies are currently facing the challenge of digitizing manual processes.

This project is a great example of how easy the first steps towards digitalization can be.

Marcel

I would also like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to present our project and to explore new networks and IT use cases. I think it’s great that we can make a significant contribution to possibly easing some people’s apprehension about the topic of digitalization.

My advice is: Dive in if you have manual processes that you can digitalize.

Reach out to SICK, especially when it comes to digitalization.

Just give it a try—it costs nothing, and you’ll be amazed at the possibilities it offers.

And regarding the return on investment, we can discuss it in a later episode, but I’m sure it will be worthwhile.

Thank you, and have a great rest of the week!

Take care, bye!

Marcel

Yes, gladly. Bye.

Timm

Thank you, goodbye!