Integrated Planning of RFID-based material flow and manufacturing systems

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Erwin Biebl; Professor Dr.-Ing. Johannes Fottner; Professor Dr.-Ing. Gunther Reinhart
• Subject Area: Production Systems, Operations Management, Quality Management and Factory Planning ; Production Automation and Assembly Technology
• Term: from 2019 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 426221637

The research project investigates the integrated planning of RFID-based material handling systems and manufacturing systems. The aim is to develop integrated model-based planning methods for the integration of RFID system planning in the early planning phases both of material handling systems and manufacturing systems. This is accompanied by the interoperability of the respective models between application-specific simulation tools at all stages of the associated planning processes. Another focus is the synchronization of the planning processes of RFID systems with the conventional factory planning. This aim is assumed to be reached by the development of relevant planning approaches both for RFID-based material handling systems and RFID-based manufacturing systems based on continuous simulation models. The result of the research project will be two application-specific planning methods that allow, based on object databases and a user interface, an integrated, model-based planning approach and corresponding model descriptions for material handling systems and manufacturing systems. For the implementation of this integrated planning approach, mechanical and electrical engineering disciplines are working interdisciplinary and the respective expertise is indispensable for the execution of this project. The scientific research questions are on the one hand to explore how a model description for material handling and manufacturing systems has to be designed in order to extend their applicability from e.g. geometric and process simulation also to electromagnetic wave simulation. On the other is to gain knowledge about how a holistic planning process has to be designed that it can interact with the several single processes and that they can be synchronized to each other. The research findings are expected to increase the operational characteristics of RFID-based material handling systems and manufacturing systems and to avoid additional costs due to replanning processes, which are today still necessary for process safety due to a lack of downstream planning and adjustment of the RFID system.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants