Performance-oriented integrated control of production scheduling

Rule-based production scheduling is analyzed from the perspective of closed-loop control. An integrated feedback control methodology is proposed to enhance the performance of rule-based scheduling. The integrated control system consists of a state feedback control module, a performance-based feedback module, and a supervisory control module. Performance criteria are analyzed and classified into job-related and resource-related criteria. The key factors of performance are identified and used as state variables in the feedback control. The performance-based feedback control compensates for the errors that are caused by the scheduling rules. The supervisory control is designed to enhance the overall performance by adjusting the feedforward gains according to scheduling objectives. Simulation results show that the integrated control scheme can significantly improve the overall performance of the scheduling system.