A methodology for generation of a 3-dimensional facility model

Abstract

The thesis is written in the area of 3-Dimensional (3-D) representation of the facility layout using Virtual Reality (VR) environment. The facility layout problem has been solved in literature by several mathematical programming and heuristic approaches. There have been few efforts to integrate a 2-Dimensional (2-D) layout solution and 3-D facility model representation. The thesis proposes a methodology to construct a 3-D facility from a 2-D layout. The 3-D facility model is generated by using Space-Filling Curves (SFC) and a scenegraph. Different hierarchy levels of the scenegraph and 3-D manufacturing objects represent this model. 3-D objects represent the manufacturing entities of the facility. They encapsulate information that is used for visualization of the facility in 3-D and formulation of a framework for performing planning and operational analyses. An iterative process is used to reorganize the scenegraph structure based on the cellular layout of the facility and on manufacturing objects' operational attributes. Additional CAD data models for the equipment within the facility provide depth within the scenegraph framework to synthesize basic manufacturing operations such as load, unload, move and process. The 3-D objects' attributes provide the links required for synthesizing the manufacturing operations in the framework. The manufacturing operations framework is realized by updating the hierarchy links between the manufacturing objects and the parts being produced within the scenegraph of the 3-D facility.