An expert system for FMS design

Abstract

Implementation of flexible manufacturing technology has created major problems for designers and engineers who are responsi ble for specification and design of flexible manufacturing systems (FMS). The FMS design task appears to be an excellent applica tion for expert system techniques. The objective of this research was to develop an expert system which could analyze the out put from an FMS simulation model, determine whether opera tional and financial objectives were met, identify design defi ciencies, and propose designs which would overcome identified deficiencies. An overview of the system is given and a case study is presented to illustrate how the FMS design expert system operates.