Research article
Multi-AGV dispatching and routing problem based on a three-stage decomposition method
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Automatic guided vehicle (AGV) is a device for horizontal transportation between quay cranes and yard cranes in an automated container terminal. In which dispatching and routing problem (DRP) of the AGV system is a vital as well as basic issue. In the application of the actual AGV system, several practical factors including avoiding conflicts, path smoothness, difficulty in adjusting routes and anti-interference must be considered. The present study establishes the model with the goal of minimizing AGV travel distance, reducing operation time and response time. Furthermore, a three-stage decomposition solution to the problem was proposed by combining the advantages of pre-planning algorithm and real-time planning algorithm, which combines A* algorithm with the principle of time window to plan the path of each AGV in time order. Finally, the effectiveness of this method in path search and time optimization is illustrated and the system efficiency is improved by comparing and analyzing the calculation examples of different scales.
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Keywords:
- Multi-AGV systems,
- dispatching and routing problem,
- three-stage decomposition,
- no conflict
Citation: Yejun Hu, Liangcai Dong, Lei Xu. Multi-AGV dispatching and routing problem based on a three-stage decomposition method[J]. Mathematical Biosciences and Engineering, 2020, 17(5): 5150-5172. doi: 10.3934/mbe.2020279
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Abstract
Automatic guided vehicle (AGV) is a device for horizontal transportation between quay cranes and yard cranes in an automated container terminal. In which dispatching and routing problem (DRP) of the AGV system is a vital as well as basic issue. In the application of the actual AGV system, several practical factors including avoiding conflicts, path smoothness, difficulty in adjusting routes and anti-interference must be considered. The present study establishes the model with the goal of minimizing AGV travel distance, reducing operation time and response time. Furthermore, a three-stage decomposition solution to the problem was proposed by combining the advantages of pre-planning algorithm and real-time planning algorithm, which combines A* algorithm with the principle of time window to plan the path of each AGV in time order. Finally, the effectiveness of this method in path search and time optimization is illustrated and the system efficiency is improved by comparing and analyzing the calculation examples of different scales.
References
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- Figure 1. The layout of automated container terminals
- Figure 2. The layout of the horizontal transportation area of the automated terminal
- Figure 3. Horizontal distance constraint area for scheduling
- Figure 4. Time division in AGV tasks
- Figure 5. Three-stage scheduling system solution
- Figure 6. Topology diagram of AGV horizontal transportation path planning based on improved A* algorithm
- Figure 7. Tree_node collection example
- Figure 8. Improved A* algorithm
- Figure 9. Classification of conflicts
- Figure 10. Flow chart of task allocation
- Figure 11. Schematic diagram of the path
- Figure 12. The same number of containers
- Figure 13. The same number of AGVs
- Figure 14. The same number of containers
- Figure 15. The same number of AGVs