I want to do a simulation of Kiva Systems (now owned by Amazon).
A Kiva system is laid out in a grid configuration.
If I use network nodes to set the routes and coupled with the collision problem, the result is the model will crash.
At the moment FlexSim doesn't have a simple way of achieving this type of navigation system without lots of coding.
Something that you might consider doing is posting this as an "Idea" in the Development space on this Answers site. That will likely increase the possibility of this feature being added in future versions of FlexSim.
For reference, another user has asked a similar question here.
As @Adrian Haws pointed out there isn't an existing module for everything you like to simulate. But Flexsim has the ability to let you build such a simulation model. Perhaps you need only some hints how to start. My approach would be to divide the problem into two independent systems. System 1 copes with the traveling of the Automated-Guided-Vehicles. They travel always only in one coordinate direction, in x or y at a time. The crane behaves similar by parameter setup for example. The Vehicles themself use the collision detection to by pass each other. The Vehicle which is loaded stays on track and has got a higher priority to achieve this.
System 2 consists of the management how to distinguish which shelves-objects has to be resorted in the area to get the one shelf to a picking station. A start could be a rack in floor storage mode. Maybe you can start with a rack size of 4 by 4 cells. Then you choose one item (shelf object) from the inside to be transported to a picking station. Then it is neccessary to move one of the surrounding items in the rack to another rack before you can transport the item you need to get to a picking station.
In my opinion it isn't necessary to use a path system at all whether it consists of the AGV-module or the network nodes. It is just a management of discrete travel distances ordered in a grid and the collision detection to let by pass the vehicles on their own.
11 People are following this question.
