Sequencing and Scheduling in Robotic Cells: Recent Developments

A great deal of work has been done to analyze the problem of robot move sequencing and part scheduling in robotic flowshop cells. We examine the recent developments in this literature. A robotic flowshop cell consists of a number of processing stages served by one or more robots. Each stage has one or more machines that perform that stage’s processing. Types of robotic cells are differentiated from one another by certain characteristics, including robot type, robot travel-time, number of robots, types of parts processed, and use of parallel machines within stages. We focus on cyclic production of parts. A cycle is specified by a repeatable sequence of robot moves designed to transfer a set of parts between the machines for their processing.We start by providing a classification scheme for robotic cell scheduling problems that is based on three characteristics: machine environment, processing restrictions, and objective function, and discuss the influence of these characteristics on the methods of analysis employed. In addition to reporting recent results on classical robotic cell scheduling problems, we include results on robotic cells with advanced features such as dual gripper robots, parallel machines, and multiple robots. Next, we examine implementation issues that have been addressed in the practice-oriented literature and detail the optimal policies to use under various combinations of conditions. We conclude by describing some important open problems in the field.     

Cyclic scheduling of a robotic flexible cell with load lock and swap

In this paper, we study the problem of robotic cell scheduling with m machines with flexibility, load lock and swap assumptions. The robotic cell repetitively produces parts of identical types. We determine the cycle time of all 1-unit cycles in this type of robotic cell and present two new lower bounds for robot move cycles with load lock and swap, either there is flexibility or inflexibility. We also provide a new robot move cycle and prove that it dominates all classical robot move cycles considered in the existing literature of m-machine robotic cells.     

Increasing throughput for robotic cells with parallel Machines and multiple robots

We address the problem of scheduling robots' moves in a robotic cell that is used by a Dallas-area semiconductor equipment manufacturer. The cell has parallel machines, multiple robots, and Euclidean travel times. We describe a plan of operation that allows the robots to operate concurrently, efficiently, and with no risk of colliding. We propose a set of sequences of robot moves, analytically determine this scheme's throughput, and determine problem instances for which it is optimal. Through simulation, we demonstrate that our scheme is superior to the heuristic dispatching rule currently in use by the manufacturer.

Note to Practitioners-Efficient scheduling of a robotic cell can greatly increase productivity and revenue for manufacturers in many different industries. This increase becomes more pronounced for larger cells that employ multiple robots and parallel machines at various production stages. This paper describes a schedule of robotic actions that is optimal under a common set of conditions for such large cells, in addition to many other types of cells. When this set of conditions does not hold, even though optimality could not be proven, this schedule is shown to be superior to one currently in use by some semiconductor manufacturers. We also present a scheme that allows the robots to operate concurrently, efficiently, and with no risk of colliding. Additionally, an approximation to the improvement in revenues realized by using this schedule is provided.     

差分进化算法求解带批处理机的机器人制造单元调度问题

机器人制造单元是智能制造系统的主要载体,研究机器人制造单元的生产调度问题对于提高智能制造系统的生产效率有着重要作用.对此,研究带批处理机的混合流水线机器人制造单元调度问题.首先,针对机器人制造单元与批处理机的生产特性,建立数学优化模型;其次,设计差分进化算法对其进行求解,提出染色体组编码的概念,求解该问题的染色体组由两个染色体构成,第1条染色体确定工件在每个工序选择的机器,第2条染色体确定加工顺序以及机器人的搬运顺序;然后,设计差分变异、交叉以及选择操作;最后,进行数值实验,结果证明,针对带批处理机的机器人制造单元调度问题,差分进化算法能缩短完工时间,得到更好的解.     

Optimal Flow Control for Continuous-time Scheduling in Flexible Manufacturing Systems

This paper introduces a new approach to continuous-time optimal scheduling problems for a large class of manufacturing systems. This class belongs to a make-to-order production environment, based on multi-level bills of materials, flexible flow shops with setup effects and finite capacities on the shop floor. So far the setup and production planning had to be decomposed into two levels; the present model allows treating these two issues on one level, thus potentially achieving better production results. The proposed approach states the problem in terms of optimal control and investigates control strategies by means of the maximum principle for the problems with constraints on state variables. A numerical method concludes this investigation, sustaining the effectiveness of the approach on a robotic cell example.*     

并行任务图的优化调度算法

科学与工程计算中的很多复杂应用问题需要使用科学工作流技术,超算领域中的科学工作流常以并行任务图建模,并行任务图的有效调度对应用的高效执行有重要意义。给出了资源限制条件下并行任务图的调度模型;针对Fork-Join类并行任务图给出了若干最优化调度结论;针对一般并行任务图提出了一种新的调度算法,该算法考虑了数据通信开销对资源分配和调度性能的影响,并对已有的CPA算法在特定情况下进行了改进。通过实验与常用的CPR和CPA算法做比较,验证了提出的新算法能够获得很好的调度效果。本文提出的调度算法和得到的最优调度结论对工作流应用系统的高性能调度功能开发具有借鉴意义。     

Scheduling a batch processing machine with incompatible job families

The problem of scheduling batch processors is important in some industries and, at a more fundamental level, captures an element of complexity common to many practical scheduling problems. We describe a branch and bound procedure applicable to a batch processor model with incompatible job families. Jobs in a given family have identical job processing times, arbitrary job weights, and arbitrary job sizes. Batches are limited to jobs from the same family. The scheduling objective is to minimize total weighted completion time. We find that the procedure returns optimal solutions to problems of up to about 25 jobs in reasonable CPU time, and can be adapted for use as a heuristic for larger problems.     

A note on scheduling multiprocessor tasks with identical processing times

We study the scheduling situation where n tasks with identical processing times have to be scheduled on m parallel processors. Each task is subjected to a release date and requires simultaneously a fixed number of processors. We show that, for each fixed value of m, the problem of minimizing total completion time can be solved in polynomial time. The complexity status of the corresponding problem Pm|r_i,p_i=p,size_i|∑C_i was unknown before.Scope and purposeThere has been increasing interest in multiprocessor scheduling, i.e., in scheduling models where tasks require several processors (machines) simultaneously. Many scheduling problems fit in this model and a large amount of research has been carried on theoretical multiprocessor scheduling. In this paper we study the situation where tasks, subjected to release dates, have identical processing time and we introduce a dynamic programming algorithm that can compute the minimum total completion time. Although this scheduling problem has been open in the literature for several years, our algorithm is simple and easy to understand.     

Complexity of cyclic scheduling problems: A state-of-the-art survey

In this survey we review the current complexity status of basic cyclic scheduling models. We start with the formulations of three fundamental cyclic scheduling problems, namely the cyclic jobshop, cyclic flowshop, and cyclic project scheduling problems. We present state-of-the-art results on the computational complexity of the problems, paying special attention to recent results on the unsolvability (NP-hardness) of various cyclic problems arising from the scheduling of robotic cells.     

Machine scheduling with earliness,tardiness and non-execution penalties

The study of scheduling problems with earliness–tardiness (E/T) penalties is motivated by the just-in-time (JIT) philosophy, which supports the notion that earliness, as well as tardiness, should be discouraged. In this work, we consider several scheduling problems. We begin by generalizing a known polynomial time algorithm that calculates an optimal schedule for a given sequence of tasks, on a single machine, assuming that the tasks have distinct E/T penalty weights, distinct processing times and distinct due dates. We then present new results to problems, where tasks have common processing times. We also introduce a new concept in E/T scheduling problems, where we allow the non-execution of tasks and consequently, are penalized for each non-executed task. The notion of task's non-execution, coincides with the JIT philosophy in that every violation or a breach of an agreement, should be penalized. We develop polynomial time algorithms for special cases in E/T scheduling problems with non-execution penalties.     

Reconfigurable Control Structure for Robots in Assembly

The increased use of changeable characteristics in modern manufacturing and robotic systems and applications call for improved system control design that offers some degree of reconfigurability. The need for control reconfiguration of robotic systems arises due to some inherent characteristics of the robotic system, variations of robot parameters due to environmental changes, major task changes typical in production changeover or manufacturing system reconfiguration, or geometry changes due to the reconfiguration of modular manipulators. In this paper, a reconfigurable controller, the Supervisory Control Switching System (SCSS), is proposed to meet the new on-line demands for changeability in robotic systems. The SCSS is capable of selecting the most suitable controller for a particular task or situation, from separate controllers designed a priori. The applicability and effectiveness of the developed switching control scheme have been illustrated through computer simulations of an AdeptOne SCARA manipulators carrying out assembly tasks.     

Improving scheduling of tasks in a heterogeneous environment

Optimal scheduling of parallel tasks with some precedence relationship, onto a parallel machine is known to be NP-complete. The complexity of the problem increases when task scheduling is to be done in a heterogeneous environment, where the processors in the network may not be identical and take different amounts of time to execute the same task. We introduce a task duplication-based scheduling algorithm for network of heterogeneous systems (TANH), with complexity O(V/sup 2/), which provides optimal results for applications represented by directed acyclic graphs (DAGs), provided a simple set of conditions on task computation and network communication time could be satisfied. The performance of the algorithm is illustrated by comparing the scheduling time with an existing "best imaginary level scheduling (BIL)" scheme for heterogeneous systems. The scalability for a higher or lower number of processors, as per their availability is also discussed. We have shown to provide substantial improvement over existing work on the task duplication-based scheduling algorithm (TDS).     

不同支配关系的NSGA-III算法在机器人制造单元调度问题中的应用

随着经济的发展,机器人制造单元对制造行业的生产效率和生产质量有很大提高.相对于传统的柔性制造单元,带机器人搬运的车间的调度问题还考虑了加工物料的搬运环节.因此,生产调度所面临的问题越来越复杂.针对Pareto支配关系在高维多目标优化中的支配能力不足,本文将Lorenz支配和CDAS支配分别与NSGA-III算法相结合,并首次应用到带机器人制造单元的高维多目标车间调度问题上来.考虑到现代生产过程的复杂化,本文提出对最大完工时间、加工总能耗、交货期提前量、延迟量、生产总成本等多个目标同时进行优化,用于确定机器人工作时操作状态和搬运顺序,提高生产效率.通过实验发现基于Lorenz支配和CDAS支配的NSGA-III算法在该生产调度问题上比传统的NSGA-III在解的收敛性和均匀性上表现更优.     

基于预测与分解策略的大规模炼油过程生产调度算法

炼油生产调度为混合整数规划问题,随着规模的增大,其求解时间随问题规模呈指数增加,使得大规模长周期炼油生产调度问题难以在合理的时间内求解.针对该问题,本文提出了一种基于生产任务预测与分解策略的炼油生产调度算法,该算法能在短时间内获得大规模调度问题的满意解.所提算法将原问题沿时间轴分解为若干个调度时长相同的单时间段子问题,并设计了基于深度学习的单时间段生产任务(组分油产量)预测模型,用于协调子问题的求解.其中,生产任务预测模型通过易于获得的小规模问题的全局最优调度方案训练得到.最后,通过与商业求解器Cplex以及现有算法的对比,实验结果表明了所提算法的有效性.     

Implementation of a case-based production scheduling system in C language

This paper presents the application of Case-Based Reasoning to the production scheduling problem in a corrugated card-board factory, its main task is to find a promising sequence for jobs processing, a prototype of the scheduling system is implemented in C language. In this system, a schedule case is represented in the form of ordered tree and each job is represented in the format of attribute-value pairs. When jobs to be sequenced are given, a previous case which is the best matching with the problem is recalled from the case-base, the sequence of given jobs can be decided assigning the jobs to the nodes of the ordered tree of the recalled case. Several real world scheduling problems in the factory have been solved and the system behaved as correctly as the human experts did. It was showed that the Case-Based Reasoning approach is well suited to solve production scheduling problems.     

A new model of scheduling in manufacturing: tasks, roles, and monitoring

For over 3 decades there was a belief that computer-based solutions would "solve" complex industrial scheduling problems, yet most manufacturing organizations still require human contributions for effective scheduling performance. We present a new model of scheduling for the development and implementation of effective scheduling systems within manufacturing companies. The model derives from investigating the work of 7 schedulers in 4 manufacturing environments using a qualitative field study approach, for which novel field-based data collection and analysis methods were developed. The results show that scheduling in practice comprises task, role, and monitoring activities and that the business environment influences a scheduler at work. A new definition of scheduling is presented that includes the significant facilitation and implementation aspects of human scheduling ignored by many computer-based scheduling approaches. The implications for this model extend across the domains of human factors and operations management, especially for the analysis and improvement of existing and new production planning and control processes and enterprise information systems. Actual or potential applications of this research include the analysis, design, and management of planning, scheduling, and control processes in industry; the selection, training, and support of production schedulers; and the allocation of tasks to humans and computer systems in industrial planning, scheduling, and control processes.     

A heuristic procedure for makespan minimization in job shops with multiple identical processors

Scheduling has been and continues to be a major issue in production planning. Job shop scheduling is one area where a considerable amount of research has been and continues to be pursued. Usual emphasis is on one machine per work center job shop scheduling. There appears to be very limited literature available on scheduling a job shop problem which requires scheduling of n jobs in m machine centers where each machine center may have k number of identical processors (though the number of identical processors may vary from one machine center to next). We discuss here, the problem of minimize of the makespan for such a job shop arrangement The problem can be represented by the symbol m x n x k.     

Branch‐and‐bound approach for optima localization in scheduling multiprocessor jobs

We consider multiprocessor task scheduling problems with dedicated processors. We determine the tight optima localization intervals for different subproblems of the basic problem. Based on the ideas of a computer‐aided technique developed by Sevastianov and Tchernykh for shop scheduling problems, we elaborate a similar method for the multiprocessor task scheduling problem. Our method allows us to find an upper bound for the length of the optimal schedule in terms of natural lower bound. As a byproduct of our results, a family of linear‐time approximation algorithms with a constant ratio performance guarantee is designed for the NP‐hard subproblems of the basic problem, and new polynomially solvable classes of problems are found.     

启发式算法在计划排产中的应用

面向单件生产的车间生产作业计划排产问题一直是研究的热点和难点。文中结合汽车模具行业生产管理特点和实际生产状况,针对有限能力排产问题,提出了具体的排产方法和步骤,并建立了基于启发式算法的车间作业优化排序函数。上述研究成果将提高排产的有效性,解决我国单件生产企业在计划排产中普遍存在的问题,对于加强车间生产控制和管理起到促进作用。