An assembly sequence is considered to be optimal when the sequence
satisfies assembly constraints and yields the minimum assembly cost. While, a
line balancing solution is considered to be optimal when the solution has the
minimum idle time of the line, i.e. the minimum number of workstations for a
given cycle time. Although optimal assembly sequences are generated without
considering line balancing, they may not guarantee the minimum number of
workstations. In such case, additional cost should be required to accommodate
the increased number of workstations. Therefore, it is essential to consider
line balancing in the generation of cost-effective assembly sequences. To
generate such line-balanced assembly sequences for robotic assembly, this paper
treats a single-model and deterministic (SMD) assembly line balancing (ALB)
problem, and proposes a new method using a simulated annealing. In this method,
an energy function is derived in consideration of the satisfaction of assembly
constraints, and the minimization of assembly cost and the idle time. Then, the
energy function is iteratively minimized and occasionally perturbed by a
simulated annealing. When no further change in energy occurs, a solution of
assembly sequence with consideration of line balancing is finally obtained.
To show the effectiveness of the proposed scheme, case studies are presented
for industrial products such as an electrical relay and an automobile alternator.