Man-hour calculation methods of the block assembly for shipbuilding

In order to calculate the ship block assembly man-hour total quickly,the neural network and the work study methods were proposed in this paper.First,the total weight and assembly length of the ship blocks,the block type,the number of small assembly,and the subassembly were taken as the inputs of a neural network.Next,the total block assembly man-hour total was taken as an output,which was then used to train the neural network.Last,the assembly man-hour total was calculated using this trained network.When using the work study method to calculate the man-hour total,the whole process of the block assembly was divided into different sub-divisional sections first,and then the man-hour calculation models were built for each section.Lastly,the detailed rules were defined;using these rules the system was able to find the proper model and calculate the block assembly man-hour total intelligently.By actual measurements,it was proven that the neural network method has the characteristics of early estimation and quick calculation;on the other hand,the assembly man-hour total calculated by the intelligent system based on the models is more accurate,but those models are difficult to establish.