What is a robot and people traffic safety plan?
When autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) or automated guided vehicles (AGVs) share a warehouse with pickers, forklifts and visitors, you need a written plan: where people walk and where robots run, who may enter each zone, how crossings work, what is checked each shift, and what everyone does in an emergency.
This Word plan puts that in 12 sections. It builds on the integrator's risk assessment and the manufacturer's information for use, and does not replace them.
Which standards cover warehouse robot safety?
- ISO 3691-4:2023 (edition 2, June 2023): safety requirements and verification for driverless industrial trucks and their systems, including AGVs and AMRs, with Annex A on preparing the operating zone.
- ANSI/A3 R15.08: Part 1 defines industrial mobile robots; Part 2 (2023) is for system integrators, with a risk assessment to ANSI/ISO 12100 or ANSI B11.0.
- Zone types: in TÜV Rheinland's summary of the 2020 edition, the standard added the confined zone to the restricted and hazard zones, limits speed to 0.3 m/s where personnel detection is muted, and does not cover hazards from extreme climates.
- Employer duty: Article 122 of the Saudi Labor Law requires every employer to take the precautions needed to protect workers from work hazards and illnesses.
How to prepare the plan
- Collect the vendor documents: information for use, risk assessment, speed settings and safety functions.
- Draw the zones: shared, restricted and confined on the layout, with walkways and crossings.
- Assess the risks with your team: twelve common hazards are ready to review; add your own.
- Brief everyone on the rules: staff, visitors and contractors, and record the training.
- Run the checks and review after every change: new routes, speeds, software or racking.
How does the plan rate risk?
The bands are an example: use your company's risk procedure if it has one. The plan leaves the ratings blank on purpose; your team sets them for your site.
Sources
- ISO, ISO 3691-4:2023 standard page (edition 2, June 2023). Source: ISO.
- The Robot Report, 26 October 2023: release of ANSI/A3 R15.08-2. Source: The Robot Report.
- TÜV Rheinland, white paper on ISO 3691-4 for automated guided vehicles. Source: TÜV Rheinland.
- Fabrico, ISO 3691-4, 9 July 2026 (pre-use checks each shift, re-verification after changes). Source: Fabrico.
- Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development: Labor Law, Article 122. Source: HRSD. Last reviewed 21 October 2026.
Example: a warehouse with rack robots and forklifts
- The rack storage grid is confined, with a fence and an interlocked gate; a technician enters only after the robots in that zone are stopped and with a permit.
- Picking stations are shared: the picker stands in the marked place, and a robot stops when it detects a person in its path.
- Where robot routes cross forklift routes: a stop line, a signal and a written right-of-way rule in section 4.
- The charging area is restricted: trained staff only, clear space, and extinguishers as the battery maker specifies.
- Before summer, the team measures the temperature inside the building and compares it with the robot and battery ratings.
Common mistakes
- Relying on the robot's sensors alone. Marking, walkways and training are part of safety.
- Forgetting visitors and contractors. They know least about how robots behave.
- Pushing a stopped robot by hand. Only a trained person moves it, as the manual allows.
- Changing routes without a re-check. Every change needs the risk assessment updated.
- Blocked fire exits. Set no-go areas in the fleet map and link them to the fire alarm.
What the template does not cover
The plan does not replace the integrator's risk assessment, the manufacturer's information for use, or your country's safety rules. Standards change, so check their current editions. To record stops and incidents, use the Robot Fleet Uptime and Incident Log.