An adaptive genetic algorithm approach for the mixed-model assembly line sequencing problem

A mixed-model assembly line (MMAL) is a type of production line that is capable of producing a variety of different product models simultaneously and continuously. The design and planning of such lines involve several long- and short-term problems. Among these problems, determining the sequence of products to be produced has received considerable attention from researchers. This problem is known as the Mixed-Model Assembly Line Sequencing Problem (MMALSP). This paper proposes an adaptive genetic algorithm approach to solve MMALSP where multiple objectives such as variation in part consumption rates, total utility work and setup costs are considered simultaneously. The proposed approach integrates an adaptive parameter control (APC) mechanism into a multi-objective genetic algorithm in order to improve the exploration and exploitation capabilities of the algorithm. The APC mechanism decides the probability of mutation and the elites that will be preserved for succeeding generations, all based on the feedback obtained during the run of the algorithm. Experimental results show that the proposed adaptive GA-based approach outperforms the non-adaptive algorithm in both solution quantity and quality.     

Non-dominated ranked genetic algorithm for a multi-objective mixed-model assembly line sequencing problem

The increasing market demand for product variety forces manufacturers to design mixed-model assembly lines (MMAL) on which a variety of product models similar to product characteristics are assembled. This paper presents a method combining the new ranked based roulette wheel selection algorithm with Pareto-based population ranking algorithm, named non-dominated ranking genetic algorithm (NRGA) to a just-in-time (JIT) sequencing problem when two objectives are considered simultaneously. The two objectives are minimisation the number of setups and variation of production rates. This type of problem is NP-hard. Various operators and parameters of the proposed algorithm are reviewed to calibrate the algorithm by means of the Taguchi method. The solutions obtained via NRGA are compared against solutions obtained via total enumeration (TE) scheme in small problems and also against four other search heuristics in small, medium and large problems. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is competitive with these other algorithms in terms of quality and diversity of solutions.     

基于传统遗传算法的改进排爆机器人路径规划研究

针对传统遗传算法进化速度慢、容易陷入局部最优点等缺陷,提出了改进后新的路径规划算法。在判断路径中,基于闵科夫斯基原理对障碍物进行扩展;在构造路径中基于可视图原理进行改进,构造机器人的真正可行区域;在最短路径中对遗传算法中种群的初始化,个体的编码方法等问题做了详细的研究,并在选择算子中引入相似度的概念,大大扩大了初始种群的范围,避免进入局部最优点。最后通过仿真实验验证了此算法的可行性。     

A modified multi-objective genetic algorithm for two-sided assembly line re-balancing problem of a shovel loader

This article deals with a real-life multi-objective two-sided assembly line rebalancing problem (MTALRBP) with modifications of production demand, line’s structure and production process in a Chinese construction machinery manufacturing firm. The objectives are minimising the cycle time and rebalancing cost, considering some specific constraints associated with the inevitable wait time, such as novel cycle time, idle time and balanced constraints. A modified non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (MNSGA-II) is proposed to solve this problem. MNSGA-II employs some problem-specific designs for encoding and decoding, initial population, crossover operator, mutation operator and selection operator. The great performance of MNSGA-II is demonstrated from two aspects: one is through the comparison between the representative results and current situation in the production system in terms of some ALs’ performance evaluation index, the other is utilising the comparison between the proposed MNSGA-II and two versions of initial NSGA-II in terms of ratio, convergence and spread.     

A genetic algorithm for the stochastic mixed-model U-line balancing and sequencing problem

Mixed-model assembly lines are widely used to improve the flexibility to adapt to the changes in market demand, and U-lines have become popular in recent years as an important component of just-in-time production systems. As a consequence of adaptation of just-in-time production principles into the manufacturing environment, mixed-model production is performed on U-lines. This type of a production line is called a mixed-model U-line. In mixed-model U-lines, there are two interrelated problems called line balancing and model sequencing. In real life applications, especially in manual assembly lines, the tasks may have varying execution times defined as a probability distribution. In this paper, the mixed-model U-line balancing and sequencing problem with stochastic task times is considered. For this purpose, a genetic algorithm is developed to solve the problem. To assess the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, a computational study is conducted for both deterministic and stochastic versions of the problem.     

Integrated procedure of balancing and sequencing for mixed-model assembly lines: a multi-objective evolutionary approach

A mixed-model assembly line is a type of production line which is used to assemble a variety of product models with a certain level of similarity in operational characteristics. This variety causes workload variance among other problems resulting in low efficiency and line stops. To cope with these problems, a hierarchical design procedure for line balancing and model sequencing is proposed. It is structured in terms of an amelioration procedure. On the basis of our evolutionary algorithm, a genetic encoding procedure entitled priority-based multi-chromosome (PMC) is proposed. It features a multi-functional chromosome and provides efficient representation of task assignment to workstations and model sequencing. The lean production perspective recognises the U-shape assembly line system as more advanced and beneficial compared to the traditional straight line system. To assure the effectiveness of the proposed procedure, both straight and U-shape assembly lines are examined under two major performance criteria, i.e., number of workstations (or line efficiency) as static criterion and variance of workload (line and models) as dynamic criterion. The results of simulation experiments suggest that the proposed procedure is an effective management tool of a mixed-model assembly line system.     

An improved imperialist competitive algorithm for multi-objective optimization

This article proposes an improved imperialistic competitive algorithm to solve multi-objective optimization problems. The proposed multi-objective imperialistic competitive algorithm (MOICA) uses the elitist strategy, based on the mutation and crossover as in genetic algorithms, and the Pareto concept to store simultaneously optimal solutions of multiple conflicting functions. Three performance metrics are used to evaluate the performance of the new algorithm: convergence to the true Pareto-optimal set, solution diversity and robustness, characterized by the variance over 10 runs. To validate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm, several multi-objective standard test functions with true solutions are used. The obtained results show that the MOICA outperforms most of the methods available in the literature. The proposed algorithm can also handle multi-objective engineering design problems with high dimensions.     

一种改进的广义遗传算法及其在鲁棒优化问题中的应用

提出一种改进的广义遗传算法,算法中引入了异种机制以提高种群的多样性,在保证收敛速度的同时防止了早熟收敛。将该方法应用于复杂载荷作用下结构的鲁棒优化问题,并采用Taguchi望目特性的SN比构造了遗传算法的目标函数。数值算例表明,异种机制能够有效地提高广义遗传算法收敛于全局最优解的概率,加快收敛速度;结合了Taguchi鲁棒设计方法的广义遗传算法能够有效地求解复杂载荷作用下带有不确定参数的结构鲁棒优化问题。     

An improved NSGA-II algorithm for multi-objective lot-streaming flow shop scheduling problem

Crossover and mutation operators in NSGA-II are random and aimless, and encounter difficulties in generating offspring with high quality. Aiming to overcoming these drawbacks, we proposed an improved NSGA-II algorithm (INSGA-II) and applied it to solve the lot-streaming flow shop scheduling problem with four criteria. We first presented four variants of NEH heuristic to generate the initial population, and then incorporated the estimation of distribution algorithm and a mutation operator based on insertion and swap into NSGA-II to replace traditional crossover and mutation operators. Last but not least, we performed a simple and efficient restarting strategy on the population when the diversity of the population is smaller than a given threshold. We conducted a serial of experiments, and the experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm outperforms the comparative algorithms.     

遗传禁忌搜索算法在混流装配线排序中的应用

针对混流装配线排序问题，提出了一种混合遗传禁忌搜索算法，在每一代遗传演化之后，按一定比例随机选择部分解进行禁总搜索，以提高算法的全局搜索能力和收敛性。通过一个混流装配线排序实验，分别利用遗传算法和遗传禁忌搜索算法进行求解，结果表明遗传禁忌搜索算法具有更好的全局搜索能力和收敛性能。     

Sustainable operator assignment in an assembly line using genetic algorithm

This paper addresses the operator assignment in predefined workstations of an assembly line to get a sustainable result of fitness function of cycle time, total idle time and output where genetic algorithm is used as a solving tool. A proper operator assignment is important to get a sustainable balanced line. To improve the efficiency and meet the desired target output within the time limit, a balanced assembly line is a must. Real world lines consist of a large number of tasks and it is very time consuming and crucial to choose the most suitable operator for a particular workstation. In addition, it is very important to assign the suitable operator at the right place as his skill of operating machines finally reflects in productivity or in the cost of production. To verify better assignments of workers, a genetic algorithm is adopted here. A heuristic is proposed to find out the sustainable assignment of operators in the predefined workstations.     

基于迷宫算法和遗传算法的船舶管路路径规划

船舶管路的多样性和布局环境中约束的复杂性导致管路设计效率低下.为辅助设计人员提高管路设计效率并减少人为错误,提出了一种新的管路设计方法.首先,基于轴平行包围盒简化管路布局空间,利用栅格法对其进行离散化,并赋予空间网格特定的能量值,构建管路布局优化问题的数学模型.其次,基于遗传算法的框架,引入改进迷宫算法,提出管路路径规划方法,其中:迷宫搜索中引入辅助点的概念,增加了遗传算法中初始种群的多样性,有利于提高遗传算法的全局搜索能力;提出了定长度的编码方法,简化了管路染色体处理难度,提高了算法性能;基于引入方向优先搜索策略的迷宫算法,设计定长度编码遗传算子,保证了子代个体的质量,提高算法的收敛速度.最后,基于仿真试验,验证算法的性能.试验结果表明了该方法的可行性和高效率,以及其对实际管路布局工作具有指导意义.     

U-shaped assembly line balancing problem with genetic algorithm

This paper presents a multi-objective genetic algorithm (moGA) to solve the U-shaped assembly line balancing problem (UALBP). As a consequence of introducing the just-in-time (JIT) production principle, it has been recognized that U-shaped assembly line systems offer several benefits over the traditional straight line systems. We consider both the traditional straight line system and the U-shaped assembly line system, thus as an unbiased examination of line efficiency. The performance criteria considered are the number of workstations (the line efficiency) and the variation of workload. The results of experiments show that the proposed model produced as good or even better line efficiency of workstation integration and improved the variation of workload.     

基于遗传算法的家用保安机器人路径规划方法

将领域知识与遗传算法相结合,提出了一种针对家用保安机器人的路径规划方法.该算法采用改进的栅格化方法来描述家庭环境,重新定义了路径适应度函数的评价方法,并设计有效的路径遗传算子.仿真结果表明了该算法的正确性和有效性.利用该算法实现了在实际家庭环境下保安机器人的路径规划与动态避障.     

Optimization of autoregressive,exogenous inputs-based typhoon inundation forecasting models using a multi-objective genetic algorithm

Three types of model for forecasting inundation levels during typhoons were optimized: the linear autoregressive model with exogenous inputs (LARX), the nonlinear autoregressive model with exogenous inputs with wavelet function (NLARX-W) and the nonlinear autoregressive model with exogenous inputs with sigmoid function (NLARX-S). The forecast performance was evaluated by three indices: coefficient of efficiency, error in peak water level and relative time shift. Historical typhoon data were used to establish water-level forecasting models that satisfy all three objectives. A multi-objective genetic algorithm was employed to search for the Pareto-optimal model set that satisfies all three objectives and select the ideal models for the three indices. Findings showed that the optimized nonlinear models (NLARX-W and NLARX-S) outperformed the linear model (LARX). Among the nonlinear models, the optimized NLARX-W model achieved a more balanced performance on the three indices than the NLARX-S models and is recommended for inundation forecasting during typhoons.     

运用改进的遗传算法进行框架结构损伤检测

运用一种改进的遗传算法来进行结构的损伤检测研究。该方法在传统遗传算法的变异算子里引入了一种被称为零变异率因子的参数，使得种群中时刻保持一定数量的零值元素，即相当于用结构的损伤只是发生在局部这个信息约束了传统的遗传算法，从而使得检测的结果更加准确。通过对某一框架模型试验数据的损伤检测研究，证明了该方法应用于实际工程结构的可行性，同时阐明了实际应用中的若干重要问题。     

多目标遗传算法在电梯主动导轮系统集成优化设计中的应用

介绍了一种基于多目标遗传算法的电梯主动导轮系统集成结构和控制器优化设计方法。在本方法中．电梯主动导轮结构参数和主动控制器参数同时作为优化设计变量，电梯系统性能和控制代价作为优化设计目标。这是一个复杂的多目标优化问题。由于控制器具有特定的结构，多目标遗传算法直接被用来求解该多目标集成优化问题。这样不仅可以避免权函数的选择，而且一次运行就可以求出所有的Pareto最优解。最后用一个实验室比例电梯模型作为例子来说明该设计过程。     

免疫粒子群算法在混流装配线排序中的应用

混流装配线上的产品投产排序是影响装配线生产效率的重要因素.建立以最小化装配线总闲置—超载成本为优化目标的装配线排序模型,采用粒子群算法来解决混流装配线的投产排序问题.考虑到基本粒子群算法易陷入局部最优解的问题,引入免疫算法思想对其进行改进,根据抗体亲和性与浓度值的计算,及时进行粒子的替换以维持种群的多样性,防止粒子过早...     

Stochastic two-sided U-type assembly line balancing: a genetic algorithm approach

In this paper, a novel stochastic two-sided U-type assembly line balancing (STUALB) procedure, an algorithm based on the genetic algorithm and a heuristic priority rule-based procedure to solve STUALB problem are proposed. With this new proposed assembly line design, all advantages of both two-sided assembly lines and U-type assembly lines are combined. Due to the variability of the real-life conditions, stochastic task times are also considered in the study. The proposed approach aims to minimise the number of positions (i.e. the U-type assembly line length) as the primary objective and to minimise the number of stations (i.e. the number of operators) as a secondary objective for a given cycle time. An example problem is solved to illustrate the proposed approach. In order to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm, test problems taken from the literature are used. The experimental results show that the proposed approach performs well.     

A hybrid multi-objective particle swarm algorithm for a mixed-model assembly line sequencing problem

Mixed-model assembly line sequencing is one of the most important strategic problems in the field of production management where diversified customers' demands exist. In this article, three major goals are considered: (i) total utility work, (ii) total production rate variation and (iii) total setup cost. Due to the complexity of the problem, a hybrid multi-objective algorithm based on particle swarm optimization (PSO) and tabu search (TS) is devised to obtain the locally Pareto-optimal frontier where simultaneous minimization of the above-mentioned objectives is desired. In order to validate the performance of the proposed algorithm in terms of solution quality and diversity level, the algorithm is applied to various test problems and its reliability, based on different comparison metrics, is compared with three prominent multi-objective genetic algorithms, PS-NC GA, NSGA-II and SPEA-II. The computational results show that the proposed hybrid algorithm significantly outperforms existing genetic algorithms in large-sized problems.