A self-organisation model for mobile robots in large structure assembly using multi-agent systems

Mobile, self-organising robots are seen to be a possible solution to overcome the current limitations of fixed, dedicated automation systems particularly in the area of large structure assembly. Two of the key challenges for traditional dedicated automation systems in large structure assembly are considered to be the transportation of products and the adaptation of manufacturing processes to changes in requirements. In order to make dynamic, self-organising systems a reality, several challenges in the process dynamics and logistical control need to be solved. In this paper, we propose a Multi-Agent System (MAS) approach to self-organise mobile robots in large structure assembly. The model is based on fixed-priority pre-emptive scheduling and uses a blackboard agent as a central information source and to facilitate more common goal directed distributed negotiation and decision making between agents representing the different needs of products and available mobile resources (robots).