Optimal flow path design of unidirectional AGV systems

This paper describes an alternative formulation of the AGV flow path layout (FPL) problem which was first formulated by Gaskins and Tanchoco (1987) as a zero-one integer programming problem. A computationally efficient procedure is proposed which is based on the branch-and-bound technique. An algorithm for satisfying the reachability condition for nodes in the AGV flow path network is also presented. A simple illustrative example is discussed to demonstrate the procedure, and a more complex problem is also given.