Fleet Management: What Really Happens When You Update a Map

In a dynamic production environment, operational requirements and priorities on the shop floor change constantly. As a result, intralogistics systems must adapt quickly. For maximum flexibility and cost efficiency, production and logistics managers want the ability to modify layouts and configurations independently, without relying on external service providers.

At first glance, updating layouts in a fleet management software might seem straightforward: a simple drag-and-drop task to reposition nodes and edges, adjust elements visually, hit save, and expect the system to adapt right away.

Unfortunately, in most cases, it’s not that simple. While software vendors may promise quick adjustments through visual interfaces, it’s essential to understand the multilayered nature of layout and map management, especially the interaction between software and hardware systems.

What seems like a harmless change often hides a web of technical interdependencies.

Updating a layout that controls mobile robots requires carefully orchestrated coordination across multiple system layers.

When does the need to make changes to the layout of your shopfloor arise?

Layout modifications usually occur during critical periods:

• Initial Commissioning: Project teams refine routes, optimize station placement, and fine-tune workflows to achieve peak performance.

• Scaling or Expanding Automation: Introducing new robots or automation technologies often requires a partial or complete redesign of the existing layout.

• Production Reconfiguration or Consolidation: In large assembly lines, production steps are frequently reorganized. Intralogistics must adjust accordingly to maintain flow.

“As part of commissioning, layout updates are normal and often necessary to optimize operations,” explains Dr. Lennart Bochmann, Chief Product Officer and Co Founder of SYNAOS. “Once the system has stabilized, layout changes become less frequent, but remain essential when expanding automation.”

The Three Layers of Map Management

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To fully understand the complexity of map and layout management, it's important to look at the different system layers involved and the role each plays in daily operations.

1. Localization Layer: Where Am I? (SLAM-based Mapping)

Most autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) rely on SLAM, Simultaneous Localization and Mapping, to independently generate a real-time map of their environment. These maps, based on point clouds and spatial recognition, are created and managed directly on the robots themselves.

“If a robot detects changes in the environment, it can instantly share the updated localization map with the rest of the fleet,” explains Bochmann. “This process is entirely handled by the robots, the central fleet manager typically doesn’t intervene here.”

2. Navigation Layer: Where Should I Go? (Nodes & Edges)

This layer defines a structured navigation graph with specific waypoints (nodes) and the connections between them (edges). Unlike SLAM-generated localization maps, these navigation maps are centrally managed by the fleet management system.

This distinction becomes especially relevant in mixed fleets. While standards like VDA 5050 support the distribution of localization data between robots, they do not yet offer a standardized approach for managing or exchanging structured navigation graphs.

3. Integration Layer: What’s Around Me? (Meta-Model)

The third layer enhances the map with all infrastructure and process-relevant elements: gates, conveyors, elevators, traffic lights, restricted zones, and more. This so-called “meta-model” is managed exclusively by the central fleet management system.

Only by integrating this layer can the system reliably execute critical functions like traffic control, order routing, and process orchestration across the shop floor.

“Even seemingly minor adjustments—like renaming a station—can cause major disruptions if not properly updated across all integrated systems,” Bochmann warns. “That’s why we use comprehensive Shopfloor Models and simulate every change before it goes live. It prevents costly mistakes and keeps operations stable.”

Why Each Layer Matters

Each of the three layers plays a critical role in ensuring smooth, reliable fleet operations:

• Localization Layer: Enables robots to self-navigate within their environment based on onboard sensor data. This forms the foundation for autonomy.

• Navigation Layer: Provides a shared structure of nodes and edges that define valid paths through the facility. These are not rigid trajectories, but flexible frameworks that allow robots to choose their route based on capabilities, priorities, or traffic conditions.

“We need to clarify a common misconception here,” says Bochmann. “Some assume that VDA 5050 forces robots to follow hard-coded paths, but that’s not true. Nodes and edges are just abstract guidance structures. Robots interpret them based on their individual capabilities.”

• Integration Layer: Completes the shopfloor model by adding infrastructure-relevant objects. Only when this layer is in place can the fleet management system make reliable decisions about order allocation, traffic control, or safety zones.

If any of these layers become misaligned or fall out of sync, operational disruptions are likely to follow:

• Misrouted or lost orders

• Robot conflicts and potential collisions

• System slowdowns or deadlocks

While modern fleet management systems often include user-friendly visual editors for editing layouts, these tools alone are not enough to ensure a safe, coordinated update. Map changes must be validated across all layers.

What Actually Happens During a Map Update?

A layout update is far more than a visual adjustment in a UI. It involves a tightly coordinated technical process spanning multiple layers of the intralogistics stack:

• Central Fleet Management System: Any change to nodes, edges, or zones must be implemented and validated within the fleet management software. This includes ensuring that routing logic, process rules, and traffic management parameters are all correctly aligned.

• Robot Hardware and Embedded Systems: Updates must also be compatible with the robot's onboard software. Depending on the robot model, new coordinates or navigation graphs may need to be pushed directly to the vehicle or uploaded by integrators. If the robot interprets coordinates differently from the system, conflicts and misrouting will occur.

• Safety and Regulatory Compliance: Every layout update must be reviewed for workplace safety and compliance. That includes avoiding routing through pedestrian zones, maintaining buffer zones around emergency exits, and verifying that speed limits or safety features remain intact.

• Vendor Coordination in Mixed Fleets: In real-world environments, fleets often contain a mix of robot brands, models, and generations. Each may have different requirements or restrictions for importing map data. Some accept real-time updates via standard protocols like VDA 5050, while others require manual intervention. Coordinating updates across these platforms adds significant complexity.

Each of these steps is necessary to ensure a safe, synchronized, and disruption-free deployment of layout updates—especially in mission-critical environments like manufacturing and assembly.

Strategic Partnership with ScaliRo

To make map updates more accessible and less dependent on custom engineering, SYNAOS has integrated a visual layout editor directly into its platform, developed in collaboration with ScaliRo, a partner specializing in graphical editing tools for intralogistics maps.

Because the editor is tightly integrated with SYNAOS’ Shopfloor Model, it ensures that visual changes are not just cosmetic. They’re aligned with system logic, safety rules, and the technical capabilities of all connected robots.

“Our goal is to give expert users more autonomy, without compromising the integrity of the orchestration logic,” Bochmann notes.

This approach allows teams to react faster to changes on the shop floor whether it’s a new handling station, an added AGV, or a shift in production layout—without the delays typically associated with external updates or redeployments.

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Why Standards Matter for Brownfield Integration

Many operations today are not built on a clean slate. They run in brownfield environments, where modern automation needs to coexist with legacy systems, proprietary robot platforms, and older infrastructure.

This makes interoperability more than a technical feature—it’s a necessity.

SYNAOS relies on open, industry-recognized standards to manage this complexity:

• VDA 5050: Developed by the German automotive industry, this standard defines a common communication interface between mobile robots and fleet management systems—regardless of brand or manufacturer.

• Layout Interchange Format (LIF): Standardizes how layout data is structured and exchanged between systems. LIF makes it easier to align data formats across robot vendors and software platforms.

“Standards form the foundation for interoperability,” Bochmann explains. “But they are not silver bullets. Without disciplined integration and validation, even a standard-compliant setup can fail in practice.”

By building on these standards, SYNAOS enables its customers to combine different robot generations and system layers without having to rip and replace existing assets.

To ensure layout and map updates run smoothly—especially in dynamic or mixed-fleet environments—here are five key principles to keep in mind:

• Clarify the Navigation Methods Used: Are your robots navigating based on SLAM, fixed maps, or both? Understanding this is essential to knowing where and how updates need to be applied.

• Coordinate Across All Layers: A visual change in the fleet manager is only one part of the picture. Synchronization must happen across the localization, navigation, and integration layers to prevent conflicts.

• Assess Operational Impact in Advance: Before deploying changes, evaluate how they affect current orders, safety zones, or existing traffic rules.

• Simulate Thoroughly: Test layout changes in a simulation environment that mirrors live operations. Simulation allows you to catch errors before they become disruptions.

• Rely on Established Standards: Use proven frameworks like VDA 5050 and LIF to streamline data exchange, especially when dealing with multi-vendor setups.

The bottom line: What may seem like a simple layout tweak can quickly spiral into a costly disruption, unless every layer of your system is properly aligned.

Curious What This Means for Your Operations?

Whether you're operating in a brownfield site, managing a mixed fleet, or scaling up automation, we’re happy to help make orchestrated automation on your shopfloor work.

We offer on-site assessments, system simulations, and tailored roadmaps to help you evolve your intralogistics processes with confidence.

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