A systematic approach to the grammar and syntax of assembly rules for the flexible development of composite production systems

Holonic Manufacturing Systems (HMS) represent one of the most recent approaches in next generation manufacturing systems, as they typically exhibit such features as rapid development and deployment, flexibility with respect to product quantity and variety, and reusability of equipment. The holonic assembly approach has been utilized in a previous work, as the basis for the development of a composite construction and as a paradigm to show the major steps in the implementation of a large variety of similar systems. Actual prototypes were constructed using LEGO blocks, with the clear objective to assimilate real-world conditions in the construction of a system, through low-cost, easy-to-handle and flexible means, which provide sufficient insight in the development process parameters. In the present work, we introduce the grammar and syntactic rules for the assembly of primitive and more composite holonic systems. The expected benefits from this work are to create holons and holarchies of assemblies typical of production systems, and to demonstrate tire concept with the LEGO blocks: however. it should be stressed that the proposed approach is generic enough to be followed for several types of elements that compose a real production system.