Rule-based optimization and multicriteria decision support for packaging a truck chassis

ABSTRACT

Trucks are highly individualized products where exchangeable parts are flexibly combined to suit different customer requirements, this leading to a great complexity in product development. Therefore, an optimization approach based on constraint programming is proposed for automatically packaging parts of a truck chassis by following packaging rules expressed as constraints. A multicriteria decision support system is developed where a database of truck layouts is computed, among which interactive navigation then can be performed. The work has been performed in cooperation with Volvo Group Trucks Technology (GTT), from which specific rules have been used. Several scenarios are described where the methods developed can be successfully applied and lead to less time-consuming manual work, fewer mistakes, and greater flexibility in configuring trucks. A numerical evaluation is also presented showing the efficiency and practical relevance of the methods, which are implemented in a software tool.

KEYWORDS:

• truck chassis packaging
• rule-based optimization
• constraint programming
• multicriteria decision support

Acknowledgments

This paper is an outcome of a collaboration project between Volvo GTT and Fraunhofer ITWM. The authors are grateful to both parties for sharing their respective expertise and making this paper possible.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCiD

Peter Lindroth http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5344-3858