Dynamic control of flexible manufacturing systems

Flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs) are a relatively new technological and organisational approach to helping companies respond to real-time marketing conditions for their production. Under a proposal of the National Bureau of Standards the FMSs are subdivided into virtual manufacturing cells in a dynamic manner, on the basis of group technology. A method of dynamic optimization for the design of manufacturing processes, capacity balancing and checking, and also production scheduling or rescheduling in Vitural manufacturing cells is described. It can be used during real time production control in FMSs. Bellman’s method of dynamic programming is used for the optimisation of manufacturing process design and execution. The model of manufacturing processes optimisation has been built in accordance with assumptions of Bellman’s method. This model consists of a synthesized network of alternative manufacturing processes, a description of its components and an appropriate formula of criterion function. It can be considered as a ‘production rule base’ of an expert system.