Analysis and Optimization of the Robotic Mobile Fulfillment Systems Considering Congestion

Abstract

With the development of the social economy and the improvement of the consumption concept, a new business model combining offline and online has been promoted. The warehousing system is one of the important links of commodity production and circulation, which involves storage, sorting, and distribution. It has a significant impact on the operation cost and the efficiency of the whole logistics system. The progress of robot technology, the Internet of things, and artificial intelligence technology promotes the automation and intelligence of storage systems. The Robotic Mobile Fulfillment Systems (RMFS), which takes the automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) as the way of handling and picking, greatly improves the space utilization, operation efficiency, and flexibility of the system. This paper studies the RMFS with fixed shelves and establishes the performance evaluation model of the picking system considering the AGVs congestion by establishing the queuing network. The effectiveness of the model is verified by simulation, and the optimization of system parameter configuration is further discussed according to the experimental data.

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Other Industry 4.0 Technologies in Spare Parts Warehousing in the Oil and Gas Industry: A Systematic Literature Review

“…Improper use of sensors in IoT/IIoT Lo et al [82] Collision of RFID tags for IoT Zhong [83] Lack of programmability; lack of software definition; lack of scalability Zhang et al [84] Security issues; integration of new technology with existing ones; return of investment on new technology Hamdy et al [85] Integration; successful transition from manual to digital; managing suppliers and distributors in the new digital system; reducing overall process time Tahir et al [86] Laws, regulations, and policies regarding information sharing that can negatively affect IoT usage Geng et al [87] Limited profitability in using Industry 4.0 technology in manufacturing when producing few items Terelak et al [88] Privacy concerns over digital access; delays in work during downtime; network bandwidth; high energy consumption; interrupted service; resource constraints Alwakeel [89] Lack of purpose and desired business outcome in a company regarding IIoT usage Liu et al [90] Increased electricity usage; increased maintenance costs; job losses; large initial investment; cyber security concerns with shared data Nantee et al [91] Communication delays; sensor interference; hardware faults, especially when relating to automated guided vehicles (AGVs) Chi et al [92] Increased workload when there are few items to work with Dobos et al [93] Outdated supply chain strategies not suitable for new business environments with IoT Chen et al [94] Granting access to appropriate users without compromising information and cyber security Ho et al [52] Various technical, organizational, and ergonomic challenges (especially in relation to augmented reality (AR)) Rejeb et al [95] Complexity of IoT can result in improper usage and technical difficulties Vukicevic et al [96] Lack of readiness for automation and digitization Zoubek et al [97] Lack of professionals with thorough competence in information technology-enabled logistics Wang [98] Lack of an appropriate analytical framework upon which to base IoT usage Tannady et al [32] Table 4 highlights the fear of industrial managers: the potential benefits of technology implementation also constitute the challenges. In Table 2, reduced costs were cited as a benefit.…”

Optimization of AGV Sorting Systems in Pharmaceutical Distribution: A Two-Stage Package Assignment and Simulation Approach

“…2 Typical CFP Layout [23] One of the key questions to be addressed in the operation of AGV sorting systems is the optimization of the sorting tasks assignment, including package assignment to AGVs, AGVs assignment to ISs, and AGVs routing problem. Many studies have looked into AGV routing optimization [4,18,35,37], often emphasizing the improvement from the mechanical perspectives (e.g., advanced sensing systems) or network optimization to improve the routing and avoid potential collisions. However, from the operational perspective, there is a lack of discussion on how to optimize the tasks assignment for AGVs not only considering the sorting area (i.e., the packages in the queue at the ISs) but also considering the impact of traffic flow coming from the upstream stations in a manufacturing system.…”