In an automated warehouse, retrieving a pallet from the rack is only part of the job.

Once a Pallet Stacker Crane places that pallet at the outbound station, something still has to move it to the next process.

That might be a production line, packaging area, buffer station or another part of the warehouse.

When those points are fixed and the same pallet route is repeated throughout the day, an RGV (Rail Guided Vehicle) is often a practical way to connect them.

DELIECN offers two main layouts:

RGV (Straight Rail)
and
RGV (Circular Rail).

Both move pallets along fixed rails.

The difference is the route they are designed to serve.

What Role Does an RGV Play?

An RGV transfers pallets between predetermined stations.

For example:

Pallet Stacker Crane → RGV → Conveyor → Production Line

In this example, the Pallet Stacker Crane completes storage and retrieval, the RGV carries the pallet between stations, and the conveyor handles the local transfer at the interface.

The three pieces of equipment are not alternatives to one another.

They handle different sections of the same pallet journey.

DELIECN RGVs use WiFi communication and can be coordinated with other warehouse and production equipment through the control system.

Straight Rail RGV: When the Route Runs Along One Line

A Straight Rail RGV travels back and forth along a fixed straight track.

Think of a route such as:

AS/RS → Buffer → Production Line

or:

Warehouse → Packaging Area → Outbound Station

When the transfer points already sit along a clear line, a Straight Rail RGV is often the simpler layout.

DELIECN provides both single-station and double-station versions.

For the single-station model, the current product configuration supports:

• pallet width: 1,000–1,600 mm;
• pallet depth: 800–1,200 mm;
• rated load: up to 1,500 kg;
• travel speed: up to 180 m/min;
• positioning accuracy: ±2 mm.

The double-station version supports a rated load of up to 3,000 kg, with travel speed up to 120 m/min.

The reason for choosing between one and two pallet positions is not simply capacity on the vehicle.

It depends on how pallets arrive and leave the transfer stations.

If upstream and downstream equipment release one pallet at a time, a single-station vehicle may already fit the process.

If two pallet positions are needed to match the transfer sequence or buffer requirement, a double-station configuration becomes more relevant.

One Rail Can Also Carry More Than One Vehicle

Another consideration is transport frequency.

A fixed route does not necessarily mean one RGV.

Depending on layout and demand, the Straight Rail platform can support two vehicles operating on one rail.

This provides another way to increase transport capacity without changing the basic route architecture. Obstacle-detection functions can also be configured for operational safety.

But vehicle quantity should still be calculated around the whole flow.

If the RGV reaches the next station quickly but that station cannot accept another pallet, adding speed or another vehicle may only create a queue somewhere else.

Circular Rail RGV: When Several Stations Share One Loop

Circular Rail starts to make more sense when the material flow is not mainly back-and-forth.

Imagine several transfer stations arranged around one route:

Station A → Station B → Station C → Station D → Station A

Here, pallets can continue moving around a loop rather than repeatedly returning along the same straight track.

DELIECN Circular Rail RGV supports:

• rated load up to 1,500 kg;
• empty travel speed up to 150 m/min;
• full-load speed up to 120 m/min;
• positioning accuracy of ±2 mm;
• WiFi communication;
• conductor rail power supply;
• operating temperatures from -25°C to +45°C.

Those parameters describe the vehicle.

The reason to choose Circular Rail, however, is the station arrangement.

Circular Rail Becomes More Useful as the Number of Stations Grows

A circular route can be configured with multiple RGVs according to the required transportation frequency.

This is particularly useful when several stations create transfer tasks during the same period.

Instead of looking only at the maximum speed of one RGV, the project team needs to calculate:

How many pallet movements will the route receive during the busiest period?

Where will those requests come from?

Can the destination stations receive the pallets at the same rhythm?

DELIECN’s Circular Rail configuration uses one-way circulation, allowing multiple vehicles to follow the same loop in an orderly operating pattern.

Straight Rail or Circular Rail? Start with the Pallet Route

A simple way to separate the two is to draw the material flow first.

If most transfers look like:

A → B

or:

A → B → C along one line

a Straight Rail RGV is the natural place to start.

If several stations form a repeated loop:

A → B → C → D → A

then Circular Rail RGV deserves a closer look.

Neither layout is inherently better.

A circular rail can add unnecessary complexity to a simple two-point route, while a straight route may become awkward when many stations need continuous circulation.

The rail layout should follow the way pallets actually move.

Why the RGV Cannot Be Planned Alone

An RGV can be fast enough on paper and still spend part of the shift waiting.

A Pallet Stacker Crane may not have released the next pallet yet.

A downstream conveyor may still be occupied.

Several stations may request transport at the same time.

This is why DELIECN RGV projects are planned together with the equipment around the route, including Pallet Stacker Cranes, conveyors, production interfaces and WMS/WCS.

For the customer, the useful measure is not only RGV speed.

It is whether the pallet can complete the entire transfer without unnecessary waiting between machines.

That is also the clearest way to choose between Straight Rail and Circular Rail: look at the route first, then calculate the required transport rhythm.