Study on the self-evolution problem of an aircraft-engine assembly workshop with uncertain number of assembly times

Abstract

Self-evolution problem of an aircraft-engine assembly workshop with uncertain number of assembly times in knowledgeable manufacturing environment is studied in this article. The whole dynamic self-evolution process is decomposed into a series of static ones by using the rolling horizon procedure. A rolling rule, which is employed to select operations into rolling windows, is designed on the basis of the level priority of each operation. An algorithm for the self-evolution algorithm is then proposed. Due to the deterministic production information, a static decision sub-problem is needed to be solved at each decision point. A general mathematical model of sub-problems is built to minimize the production cost. For solving it, a bi-level genetic algorithm is proposed. In the lower level genetic algorithm, an improved decoding method is also designed by considering production features. Finally, simulation results demonstrate the feasibility and validity of the model and algorithms. Then, computational data indicate that the system with self-evolution capability pays lower costs for production.

A rolling horizon approach for production planning and condition-based maintenance under uncertain demand

“…In this model, the objective function (equation 24) aims at minimizing the production cost in period t r and the expected cost of remaining periods in the rolling horizon under all scenarios. Constraints (16)- (18) and (20)-(23) are described in detail above. Constraints (25) and (26) represent non-negative and binary variables.…”

“…This decision procedure is repeated with the updated information at the next decision point. Rolling horizon approach is not new [17][18][19] and has obtained some achievements in industrial practice. Tiacci and Saetta 20 used the rolling horizon approach to solve a lot sizing and scheduling problem considering the sequence dependent setups and uncertain demand, and a simplified mixed integer programming is developed to obtain complete solutions of the first period while neglecting the scheduling sequence decisions in later periods.…”

A slack optimization unified model of regrouping and sequencing batches for β1 → β2 manufacturing system

“…Adams et al 28 develop a successful shifting bottleneck approach, which is repeated to schedule all machines. Jiang and Wang 29 proposed a rolling horizon algorithm for an aircraft-engine assembly workshop problem. In order to partition a sequence of aircraft into chunks and solve the aircraft sequencing problem individually, Furini et al 30 presented a rolling horizon approach for each of these chunks.…”

Self-reconfiguration and rescheduling of aero-engine assembly shop with rework disruption in knowledgeable manufacturing environment

“…Little has been explored on the integrated scheduling and reconfiguring of work groups, especially for aero-engine assembly problems. Jiang and Wang 45 focused on the self-evolution problem of an aero-engine assembly workshop. The processing times of operations were considered as a kind of system parameters, related to the number of workers.…”