Integer linear programming formulation of the vehicle positioning problem in automated manufacturing systems

This paper addresses the problem of vehicle location (positioning) for automated transport in fully automated manufacturing systems. This study is motivated by the complexity of vehicle control found in modern integrated circuit semiconductor fabrication facilities where the material handling network path is composed of multiple loops interconnected. In order to contribute to decrease the manufacturing lead-time of semiconductor products, we propose an integer linear program that minimizes the maximum time needed to serve a transport request. Computation experiments are based on real-life data. We discuss the practical usefulness of the mathematical model by means of a simulation experiment used to analyze the factory operational behavior.