Dynamic generation of disassembly sequences

Disassembly for material recovery and environment protection is an increasingly important aspect in the manufacturing industry. Most of the present research works for disassembly focus on the generation of predictive optimal sequences. In fact, the disassembly process is particularly uncertain. Frequent incidents make a predetermined plan unrealistic. In this paper we present a new disassembly method in which the actual sequence of disassembly operations is progressively elaborated during the execution, in function of the real circumstances of the process. New concepts of disassembly operation and sequence equivalence are proposed together with a new representation of disassembly sequence. A decentralised and distributed control system based on a multi-agent technology is presented. The results of experimentation verify system flexibility and reactivity to unpredictable events, particularly disassembly operation failures.