Path Planning of AS/RS Based on Cost Matrix and Improved Greedy Algorithm

• Main Authors: Dongdong Li, Lei Wang, Sai Geng, Benchi Jiang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-08-01
• Series: Symmetry
• Subjects: path planning; automatic storage and retrieval system; cost matrix; improved greedy algorithm
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/13/8/1483

Logistics plays an important role in the field of global economy, and the storage and retrieval of tasks in a warehouse which has symmetry is the most important part of logistics. Generally, the shelves of a warehouse have a certain degree of symmetry and similarity in their structure. The storage and retrieval efficiency directly affects the efficiency of logistics. The efficiency of the traditional storage and retrieval mode has become increasingly inconsistent with the needs of the industry. In order to solve this problem, this paper proposes a greedy algorithm based on cost matrix to solve the path planning problem of the automatic storage and retrieval system (AS/RS). Firstly, aiming at the path planning mathematical model of AS/RS, this paper proposes the concept of cost matrix, which transforms the traditional storage and retrieval problem into the element combination problem of cost matrix. Then, a more efficient backtracking algorithm is proposed based on the exhaustive method. After analyzing the performance of the backtracking algorithm, combined with some rules, a greedy algorithm which can further improve efficiency is proposed; the convergence of the improved greedy algorithm is also proven. Finally, through simulation, the time consumption of the greedy algorithm is only 0.59% of the exhaustive method, and compared with the traditional genetic algorithm, the time consumption of the greedy algorithm is about 50% of the genetic algorithm, and it can still maintain its advantage in time consumption, which proves that the greedy algorithm based on cost matrix has a certain feasibility and practicability in solving the path planning of the automatic storage and retrieval system.