Mathematical model and augmented simulated annealing algorithm for mixed-model assembly job shop scheduling problem with batch transfer

Abstract

In the mixed-model assembly job-shops, all the components are transferred in batches from the processing stage to the assembly stage to reduce transportation costs and timely satisfy the assembly material requirements. However, batch transfer in such a workshop has not received due attention in the current literature. Thus, this work addresses the mixed-model assembly job-shop scheduling problem with batch transfer via a mathematical model and an augmented simulated annealing algorithm to minimize manufacturing and transportation costs. The mathematical model takes batch transfer constraints into account and constructs the temporal and spatial links among the processing, transfer, and assembly stages. Production sequencing knowledge and batch transfer knowledge are first extracted via gene expression programming algorithm and clustering method and then implanted into the algorithmic operators in the form of rules and strategies to directly identify the promising solution space. Besides, eleven neighborhood structures including the critical component-based and batch-based ones, are designed to enhance the exploitation ability. A restart mechanism considering crossover and tempering helps to get out of local optima. Experimental results indicate that by adopting the extracted knowledge, problem-specific neighborhood structures, and restart mechanism, the proposed algorithm significantly outperforms other comparison algorithms in fixing the studied problem.