A load-routeing problem in a tandem-configuration automated guided-vehicle system

Automated guided vehicles are commonly employed in modern automated material-handling systems or flexible manufacturing systems. A new configuration for an automated guided-vehicle system (AGVS), called a tandem AGVS, has been proposed recently. Efficient use of this configuration is required to solve the load-routeing problem (LRP), a specific operational issue which affects the production system performance. In this paper, LRPs are studied and a two-phase approach is proposed to solve it. Phase 1 consists of an analytical approach based on the steady state. The output of phase 1 provides an adequate estimate and recommendation of routeing decisions of an operational system. Phase 2 is a simulation model which accepts the results from phase 1 to realize the impact of another operational performance such as the queue length of each station. It has been established that the LRP affects the operational performance of the AGVS.