Port Automation and Vehicle Scheduling, 3rd Edition

Chapter 1Introduction

DOI: 10.1201/​9781003308386-1

There are more than two thousand ports over the world. These ports play an important role in global manufacturing and international business, as ships come to load and/or unload their cargos. The cargo ships can be classified into two types. The first type transports huge quantities of commodities like crude oil, coal, grain, etc. The second type usually carries goods that are packed into steel containers of standard sizes. Part One of this book concentrates on the second type, which attracted more attention in both investment and automation during the last decade.

In the past few decades, much research has been devoted to the technology of Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) systems, both in ...