Evaluating the relative performance of alternative control architectures for manufacturing

In this paper, work on an objective comparison of the relative performance of three alternative control architectures is presented. The objective of this work is to gain insight into the behavior of alternative control architectures that will ultimately be used to determine the best control architecture for a given manufacturing control problem. The paper starts by looking at the characteristics of automated manufacturing systems that clearly place them in the category of complex systems. Alternative approaches to dealing with this complexity are evaluated, and the concept of partial dynamic hierarchies is introduced as a promising solution to the manufacturing control problem. Finally, preliminary results are reported on the relative performance of alternative control architectures, and control system metrics are proposed that could be used to determine the best architecture for a given problem.