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29. May 2026
DUALIS shows: Mobile robots must be planned as part of the overall system
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Why conventional planning is no longer enough for AGV and AMR projects
Dresden, May 29, 2026 – The use of mobile robots such as AGVs and AMRs is increasing. However, as these systems become more deeply integrated into existing processes, planning also becomes more complex. What matters is not just the number of vehicles, but how they interact with layout, material flow, charging infrastructure and control logic. DUALIS GmbH IT Solution explains why conventional planning approaches reach their limits in AGV and AMR projects and how realistic 3D simulation helps companies make sound decisions.
“In many projects, planning for mobile robotics starts with an obvious question: how many vehicles are needed to achieve a certain transport capacity? This is an important question, but it does not go far enough. In real operations, performance depends on the interaction of multiple influencing factors,” says Ralf Dohndorf, Vice President Factory Simulation at DUALIS.
What matters is the behavior of the overall system
Traditional planning based on tools such as spreadsheets is no longer sufficient for today’s requirements. In practice, multiple vehicles, different transport priorities, limited buffer areas, charging infrastructure and additional automation components all interact with each other. Even small changes in layout or order structure can have a noticeable impact on throughput, waiting times and utilization.
This raises a key question for companies: how can the behavior of a mobile robot system be assessed realistically before investments are made or layouts are finalized?
DUALIS provides a holistic solution with the Visual Components 3D simulation platform and the DUALIS Mobile Robots library. In this approach, mobile robots are not viewed in isolation, but as part of a broader production or intralogistics system.
Simulation becomes a decision-making tool
With the DUALIS Mobile Robots library, DUALIS extends Visual Components with functions for the realistic planning and analysis of AGV and AMR systems. Companies can model vehicle movements, traffic rules, charging processes and material flows in one shared 3D environment and compare different scenarios.
“Our simulation solution is not just about visualization. It is a tool for making informed decisions. Before implementation, companies can evaluate how many vehicles are actually needed, where bottlenecks may occur and how robust a system performs under peak loads or future scaling requirements. They gain a realistic understanding of how the system will behave under real operating conditions,” explains Ralf Dohndorf.
A holistic approach instead of isolated fleet planning
“There are specialized tools on the market for planning mobile robots. In most cases, these tools are well suited to clearly defined transport processes or the isolated analysis of a vehicle fleet. However, they only provide a limited basis for evaluating the performance of the overall system,” says Dohndorf.
In contrast, Visual Components in combination with the DUALIS Mobile Robots library enables integrated 3D factory simulation, allowing mobile robots to be modeled together with other automation components.
The simulation supports companies throughout the entire project lifecycle, from concept development and planning to commissioning and optimization during live operation. Simulation results provide measurable KPIs such as throughput, utilization, waiting times and energy consumption, creating a reliable basis for investment and optimization decisions.
How mobile robot systems can be planned, analyzed and evaluated in a realistic overall context is shown on the DUALIS product page for the Mobile Robots library for Visual Components.
The accompanying blog post takes a closer look at how vehicles, layout, material flow and control logic interact, and at the role simulation plays throughout the different phases of a mobile robotics project.
