The task assignment problem of robots in a smart warehouse environment (TARSWE) based on cargo-to-person is investigated. Firstly, the sites of warehouse robots and the order picking tasks are given and the task ass...The task assignment problem of robots in a smart warehouse environment (TARSWE) based on cargo-to-person is investigated. Firstly, the sites of warehouse robots and the order picking tasks are given and the task assignment problem for picking one order is formulated into a mathematical model to minimize the total operation cost. Then a heuristic algorithm is designed to solve the task assignment problem for picking multiple orders. Finally, simulations are done by using the orders data of online bookstore A. The results show that using the heuristic algorithm of this paper to assign robots, the cost was reduced by 2% and it can effectively avoid far route and unbalanced workload of robots. The feasibility and validity of the model and algorithm are verified. The model and algorithm in this paper provide a theoretical basis to solve the TARSWE.展开更多
E-commerce,new retail,and other changes have highlighted the requirement of high efficiency and accuracy in the logistics service.As an important section in logistics and supply chain management,warehouses need to res...E-commerce,new retail,and other changes have highlighted the requirement of high efficiency and accuracy in the logistics service.As an important section in logistics and supply chain management,warehouses need to respond positively to the increasing requirement.The“smart warehouse”system,which is equipped with emerging warehousing technologies,is increasingly attracting the attention of industry and technology giants as an efficient solution for the future of warehouse development.This study provides a holistic view of operations management problems within the context of smart warehouses.We provide a framework to review smart warehouse operations management based on the characteristics of smart warehouses,including the perspectives of information interconnection,equipment automation,process integration,and environmental sustainability.A comprehensive review of relevant literature is then carried out based on the framework with four perspectives.This study could provide future research directions on smart warehouses for academia and industry practitioners.展开更多
Automated Guided Vehicles(AGVs)have been introduced into various applications,such as automated warehouse systems,flexible manufacturing systems,and container terminal systems.However,few publications have outlined pr...Automated Guided Vehicles(AGVs)have been introduced into various applications,such as automated warehouse systems,flexible manufacturing systems,and container terminal systems.However,few publications have outlined problems in need of attention in AGV applications comprehensively.In this paper,several key issues and essential models are presented.First,the advantages and disadvantages of centralized and decentralized AGVs systems were compared;second,warehouse layout and operation optimization were introduced,including some omitted areas,such as AGVs fleet size and electrical energy management;third,AGVs scheduling algorithms in chessboardlike environments were analyzed;fourth,the classical route-planning algorithms for single AGV and multiple AGVs were presented,and some Artificial Intelligence(AI)-based decision-making algorithms were reviewed.Furthermore,a novel idea for accelerating route planning by combining Reinforcement Learning(RL)andDijkstra’s algorithm was presented,and a novel idea of the multi-AGV route-planning method of combining dynamic programming and Monte-Carlo tree search was proposed to reduce the energy cost of systems.展开更多
基金Project Supported: National Natural Science Foundation of China (11131009, 71540028, F012408), Funding Project for Academic Human Resources Development in Institutions of Higher Learning Under the Jurisdiction of Beijing Municipality (CIT&TCD20130327), and major research project of Beijing Wuzi University.
文摘The task assignment problem of robots in a smart warehouse environment (TARSWE) based on cargo-to-person is investigated. Firstly, the sites of warehouse robots and the order picking tasks are given and the task assignment problem for picking one order is formulated into a mathematical model to minimize the total operation cost. Then a heuristic algorithm is designed to solve the task assignment problem for picking multiple orders. Finally, simulations are done by using the orders data of online bookstore A. The results show that using the heuristic algorithm of this paper to assign robots, the cost was reduced by 2% and it can effectively avoid far route and unbalanced workload of robots. The feasibility and validity of the model and algorithm are verified. The model and algorithm in this paper provide a theoretical basis to solve the TARSWE.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.72025103 and 71831008).
文摘E-commerce,new retail,and other changes have highlighted the requirement of high efficiency and accuracy in the logistics service.As an important section in logistics and supply chain management,warehouses need to respond positively to the increasing requirement.The“smart warehouse”system,which is equipped with emerging warehousing technologies,is increasingly attracting the attention of industry and technology giants as an efficient solution for the future of warehouse development.This study provides a holistic view of operations management problems within the context of smart warehouses.We provide a framework to review smart warehouse operations management based on the characteristics of smart warehouses,including the perspectives of information interconnection,equipment automation,process integration,and environmental sustainability.A comprehensive review of relevant literature is then carried out based on the framework with four perspectives.This study could provide future research directions on smart warehouses for academia and industry practitioners.
文摘Automated Guided Vehicles(AGVs)have been introduced into various applications,such as automated warehouse systems,flexible manufacturing systems,and container terminal systems.However,few publications have outlined problems in need of attention in AGV applications comprehensively.In this paper,several key issues and essential models are presented.First,the advantages and disadvantages of centralized and decentralized AGVs systems were compared;second,warehouse layout and operation optimization were introduced,including some omitted areas,such as AGVs fleet size and electrical energy management;third,AGVs scheduling algorithms in chessboardlike environments were analyzed;fourth,the classical route-planning algorithms for single AGV and multiple AGVs were presented,and some Artificial Intelligence(AI)-based decision-making algorithms were reviewed.Furthermore,a novel idea for accelerating route planning by combining Reinforcement Learning(RL)andDijkstra’s algorithm was presented,and a novel idea of the multi-AGV route-planning method of combining dynamic programming and Monte-Carlo tree search was proposed to reduce the energy cost of systems.