EA ZC412 / MM ZC412 / DM ZC412
FLEXIBLE MANUFACTURING
SYSTEMS
BITS Pilani Girish Kant Garg
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Pilani Campus
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BITS Pilani
Pilani Campus
Material Transport Systems (Ch-10)
Learning Objectives
Overview of Material Handling
Material Transport Equipment
Analysis of Material Transport Systems
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Material Handling Defined
“The movement, protection, storage and control of materials
and products throughout the process of manufacture and
distribution, consumption and disposal” (The Material
Handling Industry of America)
Estimated to represent 20-25% of total manufacturing labor
cost in US
The proportion varies depending on type of production and degree of
automation
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Material Handling
Handling of materials must be performed
Safely
Efficiently
At low cost
In a timely manner
Accurately (the right materials in the right quantities to the right
locations)
And without damage to the materials
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Logistics
Concerned with the acquisition, movement, storage, and
distribution of materials and products to satisfy customer
demand
Two categories of logistics:
External logistics - transportation and related activities that occur
outside of a facility (between different geographical locations)
• Five traditional modes of transportation: rail, truck, air, ship, and
pipeline
Internal logistics - material handling and storage within a facility
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Design Considerations
in Material Handling
Design of the material handling system depends on:
Characteristics of materials to be moved
Quantities and distances to be moved
Type of production facility
Available budget
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Material Characteristics
Material characteristics affect type of transport and storage
equipment required
Solid, liquid or gas
Size
Weight
Shape - long, flat, bulky
Condition - hot, cold, wet, dirty
Risk of damage - fragile, brittle, sturdy
Safety risk - explosive, flammable, toxic, corrosive
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Flow Rate, Routing, and
Scheduling
Flow rate - amount of material moved per unit time
Examples: pieces/hr, pallet loads/hr, tons/hr
Whether the material must be moved in individual units, as batches,
or continuously
Routing - pick-up and drop-off locations, move distances,
routing variations, conditions along the route
Scheduling - timing of each delivery
Prompt delivery when required
Use of buffer stocks to mitigate against late deliveries
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Plant Layout
Material handling equipment considerations must be
included in the plant layout design problem
Correlation between layout type and material handling
equipment:
Plant layout type Material handling equipment
Fixed-position Cranes, hoists, industrial trucks
Process Hand trucks, forklift trucks, AGVS
Product Conveyors for product flow
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Unit Load Principle
In general, the unit load should be as large as practical for
the material handling system that will move and store it
A unit load is the mass that is to be moved or otherwise handled at
one time
Reasons for using unit loads in material handling:
Multiple items handled simultaneously
Required number of trips is reduced
Loading/unloading times are reduced
Product damage is decreased
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Unit Load Containers
(a) Wooden pallet, (b) pallet box, (c) tote box
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Material Transport Equipment
Five categories:
1. Industrial trucks
2. Automated guided vehicles
3. Rail-guided vehicles (e.g., monorails)
4. Conveyors
5. Cranes and hoists
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Material Transport Equipment
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Industrial Trucks
Two basic categories:
1. Non-powered
Human workers push or pull loads
2. Powered
Self-propelled
Guided or driven by human operator
Common example: forklift truck
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Nonpowered Industrial Trucks
(Hand Trucks)
(a) Two-wheel hand truck, (b) four-wheel dolly, (c) hand-operated low-lift pallet truck
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Powered Trucks
(a) Walkie truck,
(b) forklift truck, and
(c) towing tractor
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Automated Guided Vehicles
An Automated Guided Vehicle System (AGVS) is a material
handling system that uses independently operated, self-
propelled vehicles guided along defined pathways
Types of AGV:
Towing vehicles for driverless trains – used to move heavy loads
over long distances
Pallet trucks – used to move palletized loads along predetermined
routes
Unit load carriers – used to move unit loads between stations in a
facility
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Automated Guided Vehicles
(a) Driverless train,
(b) AGV pallet truck, and
(c) unit load carrier
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Vehicle Guidance Technology
Method by which AGVS pathways are defined and vehicles
are controlled to follow the pathways
Technologies include:
Imbedded guide wires
Paint strips
Magnetic tape
Laser-guided vehicles
Inertial navigation
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Vehicle Guidance Using Guide
Wire
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Vehicle Management
Two aspects of vehicle management:
Traffic control - to minimize interference between vehicles
and prevent collisions
1. Forward sensing
2. Zone control
Vehicle dispatching
1. On-board control panel
2. Remote call stations
3. Central computer control
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Zone Control
Zone control to implement blocking system. Zones A, B, and D are blocked.
Zone C is free. Vehicle 2 is blocked from entering Zone A by vehicle 1. Vehicle
3 is free to enter Zone C.
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Vehicle Safety
• Travel velocity of AGV is slower than typical walking speed
of human worker
• Automatic stopping of vehicle if it strays from guide path
• Obstacle detection system in forward direction
• Emergency bumper - brakes vehicle when contact is made
with forward object
• Warning lights (blinking or rotating red lights)
• Warning sounds of approaching vehicles
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Rail-Guided Vehicles
Self-propelled vehicles that ride on a fixed-rail system
Vehicles operate independently and are driven by electric
motors that pick up power from an electrified rail
Fixed rail system
Overhead monorail - suspended overhead from the
ceiling
On-floor - parallel fixed rails, tracks generally protrude up
from the floor
Routing variations are possible: switches, turntables, and
other special track sections
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Conveyor Systems
Large family of material transport equipment designed to
move materials over fixed paths, usually in large quantities
or volumes
1. Non‑powered
Materials moved by human workers or by gravity
2. Powered
Power mechanism for transporting materials is contained in the
fixed path, using chains, belts, rollers or other mechanical devices
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Conveyor Types
• Roller
• Skate‑wheel
• Belt
• In‑floor towline
• Overhead trolley conveyor
• Cart-on-track conveyor
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Conveyors
(a) Roller
(b) skate
wheel
(c) Belt
(d) in-floor
towline
(e) overhead
trolley
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Powered Conveyor
Operations and Features
Types of motions
1. Continuous - conveyor moves at constant velocity
2. Asynchronous - conveyor moves with stop-and-go motion
• They stop at stations, move between stations
Another classification of conveyors:
3. Single direction
4. Continuous loop
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(a) Single-Direction Conveyor and
(b) Continuous Loop Conveyor
(a) Single direction
conveyor
(b) Continuous loop
conveyor
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Cranes and Hoists
Handling devices for lifting, lowering and transporting
materials, often as heavy loads
Cranes
For horizontal movement of materials
Hoists
For vertical lifting of materials
Cranes usually include hoists so that the crane-and-hoist
combination provides
Horizontal transport
Vertical lifting and lowering
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Analysis of
Material Transport Systems
Analysis of vehicle-based systems
From-to charts and network diagrams
Types of systems: industrial trucks, AGVS, rail-guided vehicles, and
asynchronous conveyor operations
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From to chart showing deliveries
between Load/Unload Stations
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Network Diagram Showing Deliveries
between Load/Unload Stations
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Analysis of vehicle based
systems
A typical delivery cycle in the operation of a vehicle based
transport system consists of
Loading at the pick up station
Travel time to the drop-off station
Unloading at the drop-off station
Empty travel time of the vehicle between deliveries
= Delivery cycle time, min/del
,m
= Carrier velocity, m/min
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Analysis of vehicle based
systems
Delivery cycle time can be used to calculate
Rate of deliveries per vehicle
Number of vehicles required to satisfy a specified total delivery
requirement
= Available time in 1 hour, min/hr
= hourly delivery rate, deliveries/hr
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Analysis of vehicle based
systems
= number of carriers required
= Total delivery requirements in the system, deliveries/hr
= workload, min/hr
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-10, 19/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Example
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Problem 1
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Problem 2
A fleet of forklift trucks is being planned for a new
warehouse. The average travel distance per delivery will be
500 ft loaded and the average empty travel distance will be
400 ft. The fleet must make a total of 50 deliveries/hr. Load
and unload times are each 0.75 min and the speed of the
vehicles = 350 ft/min. Assume the traffic factor for the
system = 0.85, availability = 0.95, and worker efficiency =
90%. Determine (a) ideal cycle time per delivery, (b) (c) how
many trucks are required to accomplish the 50 deliveries/hr.
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Problem 3
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Problem 3
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Problem 4
Consider the layout shown in Figure,
and the From-To Chart is presented in
Table. The AGVS includes load
station 1 where raw parts enter the
system for delivery to any of three
production stations 2, 3, and 4.
Unload station 5 receives finished
parts from the production stations.
Load and unload times at stations 1
and 5 are each 0.5 min. Production
rates for each workstation are
indicated by the delivery requirements
in Table. A complicating factor is that
some parts must be transshipped
between stations 3 and 4. Vehicles
move in the direction indicated by the
arrows in the figure. Determine the
average delivery distance, Ld.
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Problem 4
From-To chart showing flow rates, loads/hr
and travel distances, m between stations
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Problem 5
In Previous example, suppose that the vehicles operate according to the
following scheduling rules: (1) vehicles delivering raw work parts from
station 1 to stations 2, 3, and 4 must return empty to station 5; and (2)
vehicles picking up finished parts at stations 2, 3, and 4 for delivery to
station 5 must travel empty from station 1.
(a) Determine the empty travel distances associated with each delivery
and develop a from-to chart in the format of Table.
(b) The AGVs travel at a speed of 50 m/min, and the traffic factor = 0.90.
Assume reliability = 100%. Determine the value of Le.
(c) How many automated guided vehicles will be required to operate the
system?
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-11, 26/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem 6
In previous example, suppose that the vehicles operate according to the
following scheduling rule in order to minimize the distances the vehicles
travel empty: vehicles delivering raw work parts from station 1 to
stations 2, 3, and 4 must pick up finished parts at these respective
stations for delivery to station 5.
(a) Determine the empty travel distances associated with each delivery
and develop a from-to chart in the format of Table
(b) The AGVs travel at a speed of 50 m/min, and the traffic factor = 0.90.
Assume reliability = 100%. Determine the value of Le.
(c) How many automated guided vehicles will be required to operate the
system?
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Conveyor Analysis
= Delivery time, min
,m
= Conveyor velocity, m/min
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-11, 26/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Conveyor Analysis
Flow rate of materials an the conveyor is determined by the rate
of loading at the load station.
1 𝑣𝑐
𝑅 𝑓 = 𝑅𝑙 = =
𝑇 𝑙 𝑠𝑐
= material flow rate, parts/min
1
𝑇𝑈≤
𝑅𝑓
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-11, 26/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Conveyor Analysis
𝑛𝑝 𝑣 𝑐 1
𝑅 𝑓 = ≤
𝑠𝑐 ❑ 𝑇𝑙
= material flow rate, parts/min
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-11, 26/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem 7
A 400-ft long roller conveyor operates at a velocity = 50 ft/min
and is used to move parts in containers between load and
unload stations. Each container holds 15 parts. One worker at
the load station is able to load parts into containers and place
the containers onto the conveyor in 45 sec. It takes 30 sec to
unload at the unload station. Determine (a) center-to-center
distance between containers, (b) number of containers on the
conveyor at one time, and (c) hourly flow rate of parts.
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Problem 8
A roller conveyor moves tote pans in one direction at 200 ft/min between a load station
and an unload station, a distance of 350 ft. With one worker, the time to load parts into a
tote pan at the load station is 3 sec per part. Each tote pan holds 10 parts. In addition, it
takes 15 sec to load a tote pan of parts onto the conveyor. Determine (a) spacing between
tote pan centers flowing in the conveyor system and (b) flow rate of parts on the conveyor
system. (c) Consider the effect of the unit load principle. Suppose the tote pans were
smaller and could hold only one part instead of 10. Determine the flow rate of parts in this
case if it takes 7 sec to load a tote pan onto the conveyor (instead of 15 sec for the larger
tote pan), and it takes the same 3 sec to load the part into the tote pan.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-11, 26/10/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem 9
A roller conveyor follows a pathway 35 m long between a parts production department and
an assembly department. Velocity of the conveyor is 40 m/min. Parts are loaded into large
tote pans, which are placed onto the conveyor at the load station in the production
department. Two operators work at the loading station. The first worker loads parts into
tote pans, which takes 25 sec. Each tote pan holds 20 parts. Parts enter the loading
station from production at a rate that is in balance with this 25 sec cycle. The second
worker loads tote pans onto the conveyor, which takes only 10 sec. Determine
• Spacing between tote pans along the conveyor.
• Maximum possible flow rate in parts/min.
• The maximum time allowed to unload the tote pan in the assembly department.
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Thanks
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BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
