Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1992. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 137-140). Also available via the Internet.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--University of Toledo, 2008. / Typescript. "Submitted as partial fulfillment of the requirements for The Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Manufacturing Management and Engineering." Bibliography: leaves 199-235.

Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1993. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 101-113). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 113-119). Also available in electronic version.

Thesis (M.S.)--Ohio University, March, 2006. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 87-89)

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2005. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (December 19, 2006) Includes bibliographical references.

Master of Science

The Flexible Manufacturing Cell (FMC) represents an important and widely utilized constituent of hierarchically structured automated manufacturing systems. The control of FMCs is therefore of great importance in automated manufacturing. However, there are few tools and methodologies available for specifying and developing the control logic. The few tools that do exist have proven to be impractical due to their equirements for compatibility by the constituent equipment. Therefore, this research focuses on the development of a solution to the control of FMCs through the development of a programming language that provides a methodology and capabilities for developing the supervisory control applications. Accordingly, a programming language was developed in which the control logic is specified in modules, each of which control an equipment or resource in the cell. These modules interact with each other according to well defined models of interaction to achieve the control. The language provides features to enable this modularity and the interaction between the modules. The process plan of the parts that are produced in the cell drive the control logic and are also the means of communication between the modules. Additionally, several features required for control such as the detection of deadlocks, part information and so on are also developed. In the proposed language, the communication problem is separated from the logic specification. Guidelines and requirements are developed for a language implementation system that will enable the communication with the cell devices and that works with the language structure. / Master of Engineering

A hierarchical methodology is developed for the overall design of manufacturing systems. The methodology consists of solutions to four levels of problems, namely, (1) manufacturing system selection, (2) shop loading, (3) machine loading and tool allocation, and (4) testing the feasibility of a schedule and determining strategies for the operational control of the system. Although these problem levels are developed in a hierarchical sense, they can be applied independently by assuming appropriate inputs to the problem level under consideration. The third and the fourth level problems are addressed in this research for the flexible manufacturing system. The first level of the hierarchical methodology addresses the problem of manufacturing system selection. The mathematical 4 model formulated for this problem captures the basic and integrated relationships among the systems and system components. This model provides a practical approach and a precise tool to determine an optimal mix of systems, to assign appropriate machines to each system, and to select the best material handling system for each system to best suit long-term production requirements at minimum costs. The second level of the hierarchical methodology addresses the shop loading problem. A mathematical model is developed for partitioning parts among the manufacturing systems selected at the first level to minimize total operating costs. For the third level problem, a mathematical model is formulated to obtain routings of parts through an FMS and to assign appropriate cutting tools to each machine in the system to minimize total machining cost. For the fourth level problem, a simulation model is developed for testing the feasibility of the solution obtained at the third level. It also helps to determine strategies for the operational control of the system. The computational experience with the mathematical models is presented using the MPSX-MIP/370 package. Sensitivity analysis is also performed to further understand system behavior under various operating conditions. Several new findings of the research are reported. Because of the special structure of the mathematical models, a computational refinement for their solution is also proposed based on Lagrangian relaxation. / Ph. D.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy