Non-Levitative Electromagnet Robot Propulsion Method for 2-D Material Handling

Smart factories are increasingly adopting two-dimensional (2D) motion systems due to their flexible layouts and support for independently routed transport. However, current technologies face major scaling challenges. Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) require onboard power, sensing, and computation, raising cost and design complexity. Large fleets also rely on wireless communication and, in many cases, decentralized coordination, introducing overhead that can limit throughput in large-scale deployments. Maglev planar motors, while precise, rely on dense electromagnet arrays, resulting in high material and installation costs that scale poorly with area. This paper presents a non-levitative electromagnetic propulsion method for planar robots that uses a sparse grid of floor-mounted stator coils to actuate fully passive mobile units equipped only with permanent magnets. The system performs centralized control using a force-to-current model derived from planar dynamics, and continuously adjusts motion based on real-time feedback from a grid of Hall-effect sensors. This combination of sparse actuation, passive mobility, and closed-loop control enables scalable, cost-effective 2D transport without onboard computation or power. A prototype system achieves stable 3-DOF planar motion with a mean absolute tracking error of 3.2 ± 0.77 mm. These results demonstrate the feasibility of the approach for high-throughput material handling. Target applications include parcel sorting, modular conveyors, and reconfigurable manufacturing lines where scalable deployment and adaptable layouts are key.