AGV Fleet Sizing Calculator

A throughput-based model for sizing an AGV / AMR fleet that delivers reels to your SMT lines. Enter your line demand and travel distances to estimate how many automated guided vehicles you need — and whether the fleet has enough headroom.

How the AGV fleet sizing model works

Fleet size is driven by one question: can the AGVs deliver reels to the SMT line at least as fast as the line consumes them? The model computes one AGV’s effective delivery rate, then divides the line’s demand by that rate.

Step 1 — Cycle time

One round trip: load, travel, unload, return.

Tcycle = tload + (d / v) + tunload + (d / v)

Step 2 — Effective throughput per AGV

How many reels one AGV delivers per hour while operating.

throughputAGV = (3600 / Tcycle) × batch × η

Step 3 — Required fleet

Divide demand by per-AGV throughput and by availability (to cover charging / maintenance downtime), then round up.

N = ⌈ (λ × lines) / (throughputAGV × A) ⌉

Where λ = demand per SMT line (reels/hr), lines = number of SMT lines, d = one-way distance, v = AGV speed, batch = reels per trip, η = motion / handover efficiency (traffic, alignment, small delays), A = fleet availability (fraction of time an AGV is in service rather than charging or under maintenance).

Simplifying assumption: each AGV is treated as an independent server dividing the total demand. Real deployments add queueing at a shared storage pickup or handover point, so at high utilization the true requirement can be slightly higher than this first-order estimate. Size with headroom (see the guidelines below).

Quick presets

Inputs

Per-line demand (reels/hr)

SMT lines (qty)

Distance storage → line (m)

AGV speed (m/s)

Batch size (reels/trip)

Load time (s)

Unload time (s)

Motion efficiency η: 0.80

Availability A (%, charging/maint.)

Spare AGVs (N + spare)

Results

Cycle time

—s

Per-AGV throughput

—reels/hr

Total demand (1 lines)

—reels/hr

Required fleet

—AGVs

Total with spares

—AGVs

Utilization

—%

Parameter	Value	Notes
One-way travel	—	d / v
Loaded travel	—	distance at AGV speed
Empty return	—	same distance, same speed
Load + unload	—	stationary dock time
Full cycle	—	sum of all four
Trips/hr per AGV	—	3600 / cycle
Reels/hr per AGV	—	trips × batch × η
Availability applied	—	fleet ÷ A for downtime

Sizing guidelines

Utilization	Status	Recommendation
< 60%	Comfortable	Fleet has ample headroom for growth and downtime.
60–75%	Healthy	Good balance. Can absorb charging cycles and one AGV offline.
75–85%	Tight	Workable but thin buffer. Add +1 spare AGV for safety.
> 85%	Overloaded	Starvation risk. Increase batch, speed, or add AGVs.

Frequently asked questions

How many AGVs do I need for one SMT line?

It depends on how fast the line consumes reels and how far the AGV travels. A typical single line drawing 250 reels/hr, fed from storage 30 m away by an AGV carrying 4 reels per trip, usually needs one or two vehicles plus a spare. Enter your own numbers above for a specific estimate.

What AGV utilization should I aim for?

Target 60 to 75 percent. Below 60 percent the fleet has plenty of headroom for growth and downtime; above 85 percent a single vehicle going offline to charge can starve the line. The calculator flags which band your configuration lands in.

What is motion efficiency in AGV fleet sizing?

Motion efficiency accounts for real-world losses an ideal cycle-time formula ignores: traffic and waiting at intersections, docking and alignment time, and small handover delays. A value of 0.75 to 0.85 is realistic for a shared factory floor.

Why does availability matter for the fleet size?

AGVs spend part of every shift charging or in maintenance, so they are not all delivering at once. Dividing the raw requirement by availability (typically 85 to 95 percent) ensures enough vehicles remain in service to meet demand while others are down.

How can I reduce the number of AGVs needed?

Shorten the travel distance by placing storage closer to the line, increase the batch size (reels per trip), raise AGV speed, or reduce load and unload times. Automating reel pickup with an intelligent storage tower such as SMD BOX cuts handover time the most.

Related tool: Want the cost case, not just the fleet count? Use the Smart Materials Handling ROI Calculator to model the payback of automating your SMT material flow.

Automating SMT material delivery?

Neotel builds the storage and counting systems AGVs deliver to and from — SMD BOX intelligent towers, NEO SCAN registration, and NEO COUNTER X-ray counting. Tell us your line layout and reel demand, and our engineers will help size the material-flow automation around it.

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