BEST-MATCHING PROTOCOL FOR COOPERATION REQUIREMENT PLANNING IN DISTRIBUTED ASSEMBLY NETWORKS

Current assembly and disassembly networks create many challenges to the comprising enterprises due to their distributed nature. Furthermore, globalization has an added level of complexity for the cooperation between members of the supply networks. This article explores the implications of incorporating a Best-Matching protocol into the design of the extended framework Cooperation Requirement Planning (ECRP) in robotic assembly/disassembly. A Best-Matching enabled Cooperation Requirement Planning framework for enhanced conflict resolution and error recovery is developed. Recent research by PRISM Center members to facilitate ECRP is reviewed and expanded to include the benefits of incorporating best-matching into the decision making process. Implementation challenges to global networks are also discussed.