AMACOIA (for Approche Multi-Agents pour la COnception d’Installations d’Assemblage) is a tool for designing flexible assembly lines. Its objective is to determine the functional specifications of the constituting equipments (manipulators, fixtures, grippers, conveyors, ...) and the organisational structure (cells, workstations) for the least expensive assembly line able to assemble a product (o...

This paper proposes a biologically inspired ‘molecular assembly line’ — an externally programmable polymeric chain along which molecules are shuttled between chain sites along an arbitrary pathway. Our hope is to construct a scaffold that mimics biological enzymes known as polyketide synthases in their ability to physically hand-off molecules between assembly sites or domains, thereby making al...

The productivity of assembly lines is considerably affected by the health condition of assembly workers, and work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are common occupational diseases among assembly workers due to repetitive motions or heavy working loads. The conventional approaches to decreasing WMSD risks in the assembly lines include slowing the work-pace or applying job rotations. The...

Deep sea exploration and exploitation are of an increasingly interest to human beings in the 21 century. Manned and unmanned deep submergence vehicles are necessary means for deep sea explorations. In order to fulfill the requirements of deep sea explorations of COMRA (China Ocean Mineral Resources R&D Association), a deep manned submersible is developed in China and it is now named “Harmony”. ...

This work presents a vision-based quality assurance system that does assembly line monitoring. The is developed using machine learning hand tracking and object detection methods to monitor the worker’s movement while evaluating correctness of assembly. Feedback about order steps worker has taken continuously shown user. potential reduce amount manual required for in line.

The objective of this research is the development of an effective design of an assembly line for heaters production by taking into consideration work measurement, line balancing and ergonomic problems. As the assembly line is still not in existence and no data are available, it is quite difficult to evaluate, for each assembly line workstation, the work assignment, the assembly times as well as...

Mixed-model assembly lines allow for the simultaneous assembly of a set of similar models of a product, which may be launched in the assembly line in any order and mix. As current markets are characterized by a growing trend for higher product variability, mixed-model assembly lines are preferred over the traditional single-model assembly lines. This paper presents a mathematical programming mo...

In this paper we are to present a practical application of Axiomatic Design (AD) methodology, as a roadmap to lean production, in redesigning a car body assembly line. Axiomatic Design theory provides a framework to simplify the whole problem. According to the AD principles, a hierarchical structure has been developed. The developed structure originated in lean manufacturing principles and exis...