As industrial mobile robot fleets expand, the need for shared communication rules is becoming more visible. Against that backdrop, the Association for Advancing Automation, or A3, has published ISO 21423:2026, a new international standard for communications among industrial mobile robots regardless of vendor or model.
A3 said the standard was developed by ISO Technical Committee 299 under the title Robotics – Industrial mobile robots – Communications and interoperability. It provides a common set of requirements for automated guided vehicles, autonomous mobile robots, and similar systems from different suppliers working in the same facility.
The standard specifies how industrial mobile robots, fleet managers, and other equipment exchange information and request actions. According to A3, robots can share data including location, speed, direction, condition, tasking, and availability. In practical terms, the organization said this should reduce situations in which robots interfere with one another’s routes or path planning, with expected benefits for robot availability and overall system efficiency.
The scope also extends beyond robot-to-robot coordination. ISO 21423 covers communications with robot-tended machines, enterprise resource planning tools, and industrial building systems such as lifts, automated doors, and alarms. A3 also said that people using or wearing mobile devices can share similar information so their work can be coordinated alongside the robots.
In presenting the release, A3 described ISO 21423 as a common basis for communication across fleets in facilities around the world and as a tool that could support broader automation deployments using equipment from multiple vendors. The association also said a common protocol could encourage competition and innovation. The standard is available through the A3 online store for $373, or $320 for A3 members.
