ROUTING FLEXIBILITY ANALYSIS OF DIDACTIC FLEXIBLE MANUFACTURING CELLS USING EVIDENCE NETWORKS

Abstract

Flexible manufacturing systems are becoming increasingly popular in modern industry, providing flexibility in producing different products and quick adaptability to changes in the production program. Didactic FMC (DFMC) are small manufacturing systems used for educational purposes, providing students with practical experience in production. DFMC systems are the basic element in learning new concepts of Industry 4.0. This paper explores the flexibility of routing components in DFMC systems using the Dempster-Shafer theory of belief functions and evidence networks developed based on this theory. By using the Dempster-Shafer theory, we evaluate the flexibility of routing in the system for producing different products, i.e., the system's ability to adapt to changes in the production program according to the concepts of Industry 4.0. The analysis of routing flexibility allows for identifying critical points of the system and suggestions for improving system efficiency. The results show that routing flexibility is a key factor for the efficiency of the DFMC system. The Dempster-Shafer theory provides a precise analysis of beliefs based on various input parameters, which contributes to the precision and reliability of the analysis of routing flexibility of DFMC system components. This paper contributes to the understanding of routing flexibility and provides guidelines for further research in this area.