Retrieval Bots for Automated Fulfilment | Ocado Group

Dense storage creates capacity. Retrieval Bots make that capacity productive. They lift, move and present totes to manual or robotic picking stations, connecting inventory with the work needed to fulfil each order.

The Bots operate as part of an integrated Ocado solution. For online grocery, they sit at the heart of automated fulfilment within the Ocado Smart Platform. For other industries, they power Ocado Storage and Retrieval Solutions designed around the inventory, throughput and service requirements of each operation.

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Ocado retrieval bot on the storage grid above product totes

Turn stored inventory into picking throughput

Picking can only move as quickly as the inventory serving it. Retrieval Bots travel above the storage structure, retrieve the required totes and deliver them to the station best placed to carry out the next task. They can also reposition inventory to prepare the system for future demand.

This coordinated movement keeps stock accessible across a broad range and supports a continuous flow of work to manual pick stations and On-Grid Robotic Pick.

A fleet can deliver
up to 1,200 tote
presentations per hour to each station, depending on the system configuration and application.

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Coordinate the fleet around changing priorities

The value comes from more than fast Bots. Ocado software coordinates hundreds or thousands of them as one fleet, continually deciding which tote to retrieve, where it should go and the most efficient route to take.

The control software communicates with each Bot an average of ten times per second. As orders, inventory and station demand change, it can update missions while Bots are moving. This helps keep picking supplied, reduce unnecessary travel and direct retrieval capacity towards the work that matters most.

Digital twins and simulation add another layer of intelligence. They allow Ocado to test fleet sizes, station configurations and operating scenarios virtually, supporting better decisions before changes are introduced into a live operation.

Close-up of retrieval bot wheels running on storage grid tracks

Keep stock accessible as the operation changes

Each Bot occupies a single storage cell as it moves, helping multiple Bots pass one another and limiting congestion across the system. If a Bot needs attention, work can be reassigned and other Bots can take alternative routes, helping inventory and orders continue to flow.

Every Bot also generates operational and sensor data that provides a live view of its health. AI supported predictive maintenance can identify patterns associated with wear or potential faults, allowing engineers to act before an issue disrupts performance. A Bot that requires servicing can be removed and replaced without making fulfilment dependent on one machine or one route.

Reduce the weight, cost and time behind automation

Ocado’s latest 600 Series Bot is three times lighter than its predecessor. Its additive manufacturing design uses advanced engineering and 3D printing to remove unnecessary material while maintaining the strength required for demanding fulfilment operations.

The benefit reaches beyond the Bot itself. A lighter fleet enables a lighter storage structure, reducing material requirements and creating more flexibility in how automated sites are designed and installed.

For OSP Customer Fulfilment Centres, the lighter system can reduce installation time by
up to 40%
compared with the previous generation.

It supports a faster, more cost effective route to automated capacity while giving Ocado greater freedom to refine the design as operational needs develop.

Proven in the demands of online grocery

Online grocery combines large ranges, variable demand, short lead times and products that require different handling. Across Ocado powered automated warehouses, more than 17,000 Bots work together to retrieve inventory for manual and robotic picking.

Collectively, they travel the equivalent of
153 million
kilometres a year.

That operational experience informs how the hardware, software and wider system are designed. Within the Ocado Smart Platform, Retrieval Bots support Customer Fulfilment Centres and Store Based Automation, connecting automated storage and picking with the wider online grocery operation.

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Ocado retrieval bot moving across the grid in an automated grocery warehouse

Overhead view of a retrieval bot above totes containing stored products

Apply proven retrieval technology beyond grocery

The same principles can transform storage and fulfilment in other industries: hold more inventory within a dense automated system, keep it accessible and move it to the next task with speed and control.

Ocado Storage and Retrieval Solutions bring Retrieval Bots together with storage, workstations and execution software in a system configured around the operation. Inventory profile, order patterns, building constraints and required throughput determine the right balance of storage positions, Bots and picking capacity.

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Design retrieval around the whole operation

Adding Bots alone does not guarantee more throughput. Storage capacity, inventory placement, fleet size, station demand and downstream processes need to work as one flow. Ocado models these interdependencies to identify the configuration that can best support the required service and capacity.

As demand develops, the next investment can address the constraint that matters most, whether that is additional storage, retrieval capacity, picking capacity or changes to the wider workflow.

Retrieval Bots lift and transport Totes within the automated storage system. The Totes hold inventory that is delivered to manual or robotic stations for the next picking or handling task.