Standby Transport Vehicle Distribution for Route Congestion Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
In article transport facilities, idle transport vehicles can cause congestion and hinder the smooth travel of vehicles carrying articles, leading to decreased operating efficiency due to uneven distribution of standby vehicles along the travelable route.
Innovation Solution
A controller divides the travelable route into multiple areas and implements imbalance reduction control to evenly distribute standby transport vehicles, ensuring their density is within a predetermined range, thereby preventing interference with operational vehicles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If standby transport vehicles are concentrated in certain areas, then the number of vehicles available for transport increases in those areas, but congestion occurs and operational vehicles cannot travel smoothly
Solution Approach 1:
The travelable route is divided into multiple areas, and the controller manages the distribution of standby transport vehicles across these segmented areas. This segmentation allows for localized control of vehicle density, preventing congestion in any single area while maintaining adequate standby vehicle availability throughout the system.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller implements area-specific management of standby vehicle density, where each area has controlled vehicle concentration appropriate to its local conditions. This local quality approach ensures that standby vehicles are distributed according to the specific needs and capacity of each area, rather than uniform distribution, optimizing both availability and flow.
2Productivity
If standby transport vehicles are evenly distributed across all areas, then congestion is reduced and operational vehicles can travel smoothly, but the responsiveness to transport demands in specific areas may decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The distribution of standby transport vehicles is dynamically adjusted based on real-time conditions. The controller continuously monitors the locations of operational vehicles and transport demands, and redistributes standby vehicles accordingly. This dynamic approach allows the system to maintain even distribution for congestion prevention while simultaneously adapting to changing transport demands in specific areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller uses feedback from the positions of operational vehicles and transport request locations to adjust standby vehicle distribution. This feedback mechanism ensures that the system responds to actual conditions, maintaining smooth traffic flow while being adaptable to varying transport demands across different areas of the facility.
Data Source
AI summary
Article transport vehicles have, as operation states, a first state of traveling toward a transport destination that is a destination set for receiving an article or delivering an article, and a second state in which a transport destination has not been set. A controller divides the entirety of a travelable route into a plurality of set areas and executes imbalance reduction control to arrange standby transport vehicles such that imbalance of the densities of standby transport vehicles present in the areas is within a predetermined range, the standby transport vehicles being article transport vehicles in the second state.