A decentralized allocation algorithm for distributed supply chains with critical tasks

This paper considers the problem of allocating tasks to a network of interconnected nodes in a supply chain, considering functional heterogeneity, resource constraints, and critical tasks whose assignment has to be considered mandatory. The proposed approach is an auction-based algorithm which uses a consensus algorithm to obtain a conflict-free solution fulfilling all the constraints. Numerical simulations and a comparison with a centralized optimization algorithm are performed to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.