Article ID: | iaor20084383 |
Country: | Netherlands |
Volume: | 177 |
Issue: | 1 |
Start Page Number: | 147 |
End Page Number: | 162 |
Publication Date: | Feb 2007 |
Journal: | European Journal of Operational Research |
Authors: | Chu Chengbin, Sierksma Gerard, Levner Eugene, Kats Vladimir, Alcaide David |
Keywords: | combinatorial optimization, computational analysis |
An automated production system is considered in which several robots are used for transporting parts between workstations following a given route in a carousel mode. The problem is to maximize the throughput rate. Extending previous works treating scheduling problems for a single robot, we consider a more realistic case in which workstations are served by multiple robots. A graph model of the production process is developed, making it possible to apply PERT–CPM solution techniques. The problem is proved to be solvable in polynomial time.