Optimization of Circular-Rail RGV Scheduling in a Tobacco Warehouse
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4108/eetsis.13463Keywords:
rail guided vehicle scheduling, circular-rail, genetic algorithm, task optimizationAbstract
Continuous operation in tobacco warehouses places high requirements on circular-rail rail guided vehicle (RGV) dispatching, because task concentration, track interference, and equipment abnormalities may quickly cause vehicle waiting and material-flow delay. To improve the response capability of this system, this study develops a hybrid scheduling method based on an improved genetic algorithm and simulated annealing. According to the operating characteristics of the circular rail, a scheduling model is formulated to minimize the overall task completion time while considering rail operation rules and composite task requirements. In the solution process, the simulated annealing temperature is used to adjust parent selection and mutation behavior, so that the algorithm can maintain search diversity in the early stage and improve convergence in the later stage. Case results show that the proposed method reduces the average maximum completion time from 150.2 s to 143.4 s and improves the best result from 145.7 s to 139.6 s compared with the conventional genetic algorithm. These results indicate that the proposed method can improve RGV response efficiency and provide decision support for stable warehouse logistics under disturbances such as task fluctuation and path conflict.
References
[1] Alexopoulos K, Anagiannis I, Nikolakis N, Chryssolouris G. A quantitative approach to resilience in manufacturing systems. International Journal of Production Research, 2022, 60(24): 7178-7193. DOI: 10.1080/00207543.2021.2018519.
[2] Lee J K, Siahpour S, Jia X, Brown P. Introduction to resilient manufacturing systems. Manufacturing Letters, 2022, 32: 24-27. DOI: 10.1016/j.mfglet.2022.02.002.
[3] Leng J, Xie J, Li R, Zhou X, Gu X, Liu Q, et al. Resilient manufacturing: A review of disruptions, assessment, and pathways. Journal of Manufacturing Systems, 2025, 79: 563-583. DOI: 10.1016/j.jmsy.2025.02.006.
[4] Agote-Garrido A, Martín-Gómez A M, Lama-Ruiz J R. Resilience as a driver of industrial manufacturing systems. Mechatronics and Automation Technology: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference, 2024: 372-378. DOI: 10.3233/ATDE241264.
[5] Fang W J, Lai W P, Geng K L, et al. Research on RGV dynamic scheduling strategy. Digital Communication World, 2020, (11): 223-224.
[6] Cai J C, Cao M. RGV dynamic scheduling model. Software, 2020, 41(05): 113-116.
[7] Lou P, Zhong Y, Hu J, Fan C, Chen X. Digital-Twin-Driven AGV Scheduling and Routing in Automated Container Terminals. Mathematics, 2023, 11(12): 2678. DOI: 10.3390/math11122678.
[8] Yuan Z, Yang Z, Lv L, Shi Y. A Bi-Level Path Planning Algorithm for Multi-AGV Routing Problem. Electronics, 2020, 9(9): 1351. DOI: 10.3390/electronics9091351.
[9] Singh N, Dang Q V, Akcay A, Adan I, Martagan T. A matheuristic for AGV scheduling with battery constraints. European Journal of Operational Research, 2022, 298(3): 855-873. DOI: 10.1016/j.ejor.2021.08.008.
[10] Boccia M, Masone A, Sterle C, Murino T. The parallel AGV scheduling problem with battery constraints: A new formulation and a matheuristic approach. European Journal of Operational Research, 2023, 307(2): 590-603. DOI: 10.1016/j.ejor.2022.10.023.
[11] Zou W, Zou J, Sang H, Meng L, Pan Q. An effective population-based iterated greedy algorithm for solving the multi-AGV scheduling problem with unloading safety detection. Information Sciences, 2024, 657: 119949. DOI: 10.1016/j.ins.2023.119949.
[12] Ren F, Liu H. Dynamic scheduling for flexible job shop based on MachineRank algorithm and reinforcement learning. Scientific Reports, 2024, 14(1): 29741. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-79593-8.
[13] Li W, Li H, Wang Y, Han Y. Optimizing flexible job shop scheduling with automated guided vehicles using a multi-strategy-driven genetic algorithm. Egyptian Informatics Journal, 2024, 25: 100437. DOI: 10.1016/j.eij.2023.100437.
[14] Amirteimoori A, Babaee Tirkolaee E, Simic V, Weber G W. A parallel heuristic for hybrid job shop scheduling problem considering conflict-free AGV routing. Swarm and Evolutionary Computation, 2023, 79: 101312. DOI: 10.1016/j.swevo.2023.101312.
[15] Han X, Cheng W, Meng L, Zhang B, Gao K, Zhang C, Duan P. A dual population collaborative genetic algorithm for solving flexible job shop scheduling problem with AGV. Swarm and Evolutionary Computation, 2024, 86: 101538. DOI: 10.1016/j.swevo.2024.101538.
[16] Xu Y, Liu W, Yuan H. Multi-AGV scheduling and path planning based on an improved ant colony algorithm. Vehicles, 2025, 7(3): 102. DOI: 10.3390/vehicles7030102.
[17] Li B F, Guo L, Yang T F, et al. Dynamic scheduling strategy of intelligent RGV based on simulation optimization model. Manufacturing Automation, 2022, 44(10): 120-123.
[18] Wang J, Wu J, Fang Y F, et al. Design and application of RGV flexible dynamic scheduling system in casting workshop. Mechanical & Electrical Engineering Technology, 2023, 52(09): 62-65+104.
[19] Ding F Y, Zhang Y B, Qiu H B, et al. RGV dynamic programming scheduling model combined with greedy strategy. Electronic Technology & Software Engineering, 2021, (21): 121-124.
[20] Wang J L, Zhu X C, Tian H L, et al. Virtual simulation technology of intelligent RGV dynamic scheduling based on genetic algorithm. Research and Exploration in Laboratory, 2021, 40(10): 109-111+143.
[21] Wei W, Yang Z H, Xie H R, et al. Multi-objective programming model for intelligent RGV dynamic scheduling. Computer Applications and Software, 2020, 37(04): 178-185.
[22] Li W, Tian F, Li K. Fitness Distance Correlation Strategy for Solving the RGV Dynamic Scheduling Problem. International Journal of Cognitive Informatics and Natural Intelligence, 2020, 14(3): 20-40. DOI: 10.4018/IJCINI.2020070102.
[23] Türkyılmaz A, Şenvar Ö, Ünal İ, Bulkan S. A hybrid genetic algorithm based on a two-level hypervolume contribution measure selection strategy for bi-objective flexible job shop problem. Computers & Operations Research, 2022, 141: 105694. DOI: 10.1016/j.cor.2021.105694.
[24] Lim K C W, Wong L P, Chin J F. Simulated-annealing-based hyper-heuristic for flexible job-shop scheduling. Engineering Optimization, 2023, 55(10): 1635-1651. DOI: 10.1080/0305215X.2022.2106477.
[25] Escamilla-Serna N J, Seck-Tuoh-Mora J C, Medina-Marin J, Barragan-Vite I, Corona-Armenta J R. A hybrid search using genetic algorithms and random-restart hill-climbing for flexible job shop scheduling instances with high flexibility. Applied Sciences, 2022, 12(16): 8050. DOI: 10.3390/app12168050.
[26] Popper J, Yfantis V, Ruskowski M. Simultaneous production and AGV scheduling using multi-agent deep reinforcement learning. Procedia CIRP, 2021, 104: 1523-1528. DOI: 10.1016/j.procir.2021.11.257.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Dingke Shi; Zhihui Ye, Nanzhe Ding, Jie Gao, Chao Cheng, Wenwen Lin

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, which permits copying, redistributing, remixing, transformation, and building upon the material in any medium so long as the original work is properly cited.