Deutsche Telekom is helping the publicly funded AutoLog project in the German port of Emden automate and make workflows at automotive terminals more efficient.

To this end, Deutsche Telekom is contributing two technologies: a 5G network with a special network API; and an edge data centre for fast data processing on site.

Together with its partners Volkswagen, Bremer Institut für Produktion & Logistik (BIBA, www.biba.uni-bremen.de) and software expert Unikie, efficient storage and logistics with automated driving are being developed and tested at the Volkswagen plant in Emden.

Every year, Volkswagen (www.volkswagen-group.com) ships around 2.4 million cars from around 40 ports. The largest port in this network is in Emden.

However, there are more vehicles to ship, but not enough experts to handle the logistics processes. In addition, space in the terminals is limited and expectations regarding flexibility and efficiency are increasing. Therefore, tests are being carried out to validate how automated driving can help make vehicle logistics processes better, safer and more environmentally friendly, as well as to counteract the increasing shortage of skilled workers.

The processes at automotive terminals are primarily dealing with the handling of vehicles for onward transportation by various transport modes, such as rail, truck and ship. The Emden site is a central hub in VW’s transportation network with a logistics area the size of more than 100 football pitches.

The handling of vehicles at the terminal requires a large number of specialists to carry out the vehicle movements and shuttle transportation of drivers to the next vehicle. More than a million vehicles are handled in Emden every year, including imports from overseas locations and exports for supply to global markets.

For the AutoLog project, Deutsche Telekom is providing the logistics area in the port of Emden with 5G coverage. The VW plant is directly connected to the port. This means various traffic situations, such as the mixed operation of manually and automatically driven vehicles, can be tested. The test field includes parking areas for cars, several roads and a heavily used roundabout.

A digital twin of this test field will be created using lidar sensors installed in the port. These sensors can detect very small details very accurately and in real time. They perceive everything that moves or stands still, including people, vehicles and objects. The sensors are reliable in different light and weather conditions.

Unikie (www.unikie.com) is supplying the system for the automatic control of the vehicles, a so-called marshalling system. The digital replica of the parking spaces is an essential part of the system. The Unikie marshalling system (UMS) ensures the vehicles can be controlled precisely and safely, even in densely populated or confined areas.

Communication with the vehicles takes place via the public 5G network. In the future, lidar sensors will also use mobile communications to connect to the UMS. This saves on expensive cabling. A special interface (quality on demand network API) to the Deutsche Telekom 5G network ensures stable data transmission and a connection that is always of the same quality and reliability.

Deutsche Telekom (www.telekom.com) operates the UMS on an edge data centre. This ensures communication between the marshalling system and the vehicle is fast and secure. Edge cloud computing brings computing power and data storage closer to the user.

Unlike traditional cloud computing, which is based on centralised data centres, edge cloud computing places these resources at decentralised locations at the edge of the network. They are located exactly where the data are created and used. This makes real-time data processing better and enables faster responses to user requests.

On the test field in Emden, the partners want to explore the requirements for processes and infrastructure at automotive terminals. They also want to clarify how the technical infrastructure for safe vehicle control needs to be designed. In addition, they want to find ways to improve storage and logistics processes. A major challenge is to coordinate automatically and manually controlled vehicles safely at the same time as pedestrians.

The AutoLog project is intended to demonstrate that automation of port logistics at automotive terminals has many advantages. For example, it can help compensate for a lack of personnel, increase safety at work and make processes more efficient. The partners also see potential in sustainability: for example, the automotive terminal area can be used around 20% more efficiently. In addition, reducing shuttle transportation can cut the kilometres driven and thus the CO₂ emissions of the shuttles by up to 25%.

The joint AutoLog project will run for three years and has a total value of €5.8m. It is partly funded by the Federal Ministry of Digital & Transport (bmdv.bund.de) with a total of €3.2m and is supervised by TÜV Rheinland (www.tuv.com).