Analytical approach for congestion forecasts in conveying systems during the planning stage

Abstract

Determining the performance of continuous conveyor systems is one of the fundamental tasks during the planning stage. The method presented in this paper considers the influence of congestion due to stochastic processes in this context, instead of performing complex simulation studies. The method should also support the performance- and approval-related design of the systems in particular on the basis of VDI guideline 4486 "Performance availability". This paper focusses on the investigation and the mathematical description of the technical processes in continuous branching elements, especially with clocked material flows. The developed calculation method is demonstrated with a simple example. The paper ends with a short summary and conclusion.