Conveyor-Less Urban-Car Assembly Factory with VaaC and Matrix System

Abstract

The advent of autonomous electric vehicles (AEVs) will give drivers time and space instead of focusing on driving. Because of this, some drivers may want to personalize their car for their work, while others may want to customize their vehicle space to be more suitable for relaxation, which will accelerate the megatrend of mass individualization. However, the production of individualized cars faces several challenges. For example, since high-level automation during individualized car production is difficult, a stable skilled labor supply is essential, low-volume/high-variety production is required, and customer proximity or involvement is also important. These conditions can be satisfied by building a car assembly plant in an urban area. The problem is that urban areas are often spatially and environmentally constrained. However, it is be possible to overcome these urban limitations by implementing a conveyor-less micro factory. The objective of this study is to propose a new iterative matrix-system layout design method that can realize a conveyor-less urban car assembly factory with two technologies—VaaC (vehicle as a conveyor) and matrix assembly system. VaaC consists of three novel ideas: sensor skid, safety-sensor guidance system, and vehicle-powered devices, and this paper views each of them in detail. The proposed iterative matrix-system layout design method consists of four steps: (1) layout refinement, (2) simulation, (3) cost analysis, and (4) optimization check, and will examine how each step is performed through simple examples. The authors hope that this paper will arouse interest and provide elements to spur future research on the conveyor-less urban car assembly system.