Two-phase method for designing flexible manufacturing systems

Abstract

A two-phase method for designing flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) is proposed in this paper. The method is based on the division of the system into two subsystems: a manufacturing subsystem composed of a set of CNC machine tools/centres and an auxiliary subsystem composed of load/unload (L/U) stations, transportation vehicles (TV), robots, pallets, waiting stations, etc. The first subsystem, responsible for optimal manufacturing performance (i.e. maximum utilization of machines and minimum throughput time of parts) is designed within the first phase of the method under the assumed production programme. The accepted configuration of the designed subsystem is intended to provide sufficient capacities and optimal performance characteristics. The auxiliary subsystem formed logically within the second phase is integrated with the manufacturing subsystem. This process enables automation of the operation and control of production over the whole system. Minimum loss of performance of the manufacturing subsystem obtained within the first phase, deadlock prevention and deadlock avoidance in the integrated system, are three additional requirements of the integration process.