Keynote Speakers
A.Prof. Mingyao Qi
Logistics and Transportation Division, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School,China
Title: Joint optimization of the multi-robot task assignment and conflict-free routing problem
Abstract: This study addresses a task assignment and conflict-free routing problem in multi-robot systems. Task assignment is to associate tasks with robots to minimize the necessary time/cost of finishing such tasks. At the same time, conflict-free routing is to plan routes for each robot, ensuring no conflict between robots during their maneuver. Such problems have emerged in several areas, such as automated container terminals, flexible manufacturing systems, and warehouse systems. While most previous studies treat task assignment and route planning separately, we propose considering them simultaneously to achieve globally optimal solutions. We first formulate a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model for the joint problem. We offer a decomposition method to solve the joint optimization problem optimally. The multi-robot task assignment (MRTA) subproblem is recast as a Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP), and the conflict-free routing subproblem is solved by a revised conflict-based search (CBS) algorithm. Meanwhile, logic cuts are introduced to strengthen the optimality gaps during the decomposition process. Experiments are conducted on a robotic warehouse system to verify the effectiveness of the proposed exact algorithm. Managerial insights are also derived from sensitivity analysis.
Experience: Professor Mingyao Qi has presided several projects from National Natural Science Foundation of China (three times), National Key Technologies Research and Development Program, National Science and Technology Support Program (three times), Guangdong Provincial Industry-university-research Cooperation Project, among others. In addition, he has also presided over several industrial projects, covering areas like logistics operational optimization, logistics informatization, and logistics park planning for many large enterprises or government departments, and so on. The logistics robot products developed by Qi’s research team have been applied to the industry.
He has published quite a few papers in reputable journals, including Transportation Science, European Journal of Operational Research, Transportation Research Part B, Computers & Operations Research, Transportation Research Part E, International Journal of Production Economics, Computers & Industrial Engineering, and so on. He edited one textbook and co-published four monographs. He is a member of the National Technical Committee on Logistics of Standardization Administration, co-president and International Scientific Committee member of International Conference on Transportation and Logistics, peer review expert of National Natural Science Foundation of China. He also services as a reviewer for top international journals.
Dr. Nur Khairiel Anuar
Department of Logistics and Transport, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Malaysia
Title: Coming Soon......
Abstract: Coming Soon......
Experience: Coming Soon......