Abstract
This paper deals with a scheduling problem of minimizing the maximum completion time (i. e., the makespan) for an automated manufacturing system such as FMS and FMC that consists of three machining centers with sufficient buffers, an AGV (automated guided vehicle) and loading and unloading stations. First, the problem is formulated exactly, and is shown to be approximately reduced to the classical 4-machine flowshop scheduling problem (4 FSP). Second, an approximation algorithm that utilizes a fuzzy inference based on a dominance relation for the 4 FSP is proposed. Third, a branch-and-bound (BAB) algorithm that utilizes the fuzzy approximation is proposed. Finally, extensive numerical experiments demonstrate that the BAB algorithm can solve problem instances With up to 500 jobs in reasonable time with a quite high possibility.
