Efficient implementations of Banker's algorithm for deadlock avoidance in flexible manufacturing systems

Manufacturing systems researchers have dismissed Banker's algorithm as being too conservative for deadlock avoidance in contemporary flexibly automated, discrete-part manufacturing systems. In this paper, we provide a modified Banker's logic for the FMS context, and show that the resulting implementations compare favorably in terms of operational flexibility with modern deadlock avoidance policies developed specifically for manufacturing. Furthermore, we establish interesting theoretical relationships between Banker's and these more recent policies, and discuss extensions of Banker's logic that can also accommodate the effects of the routing flexibility which is inherent in modern production systems.