Solution approach

In the context of the research project AIMFREE, all necessary aspects of an agile assembly system are considered together. Besides the agile system itself, which is formed by driverless transport systems, autonomous vehicles and reconfigurable station technology, the initial system design as well as the planning and control of this complex system are also taken into account. The integration of research institutes, enabling companies and users from the automotive industry combines the necessary competences and experience. Especially the participation of automotive OEMs ensures application-oriented research.

One solution approach for the efficient integration planning of an agile assembly system is to turn away from classical plan-driven approaches and, instead, use agile methods, e.g. from IT software development, within the assembly planning procedure. In order to reduce the effort of planning and control as well as the associated increase in responsiveness, an automated, simulation-based scenario analysis is developed, which is based on an overall data model of the assembly system. Optimization algorithms are used, which cover the entire solution space to be considered and, thus, ensure an optimized system configuration. By selecting suitable sections within and after the assembly process, the economic use of autonomous driving of electric vehicles using their own drive is ensured. The use of on-board sensor technology will eliminate the need for additional, cost-intensive sensor technology.