Task scheduling method for HRC workplaces based on capabilities and execution time assumptions for robots

Abstract With human-robot collaborations, companies are struggling to decide how to schedule tasks in an effective way. We propose an approach to find an eligible division of tasks that forgoes expert knowledge and simulations. Based on a recreation of the application using predefined basic processes and knowledge of the process constraints, the human and robot capabilities are examined. In addition, a time assumption inspired by the Methods-Time Measurement is carried out, to determine the subprocess times. Subsequently, a genetic algorithm assigns the tasks to the human and robot. Expert evaluation and real implementation prove the effectiveness of the proposed approach.