Automated Tape Layup Machine Selection

For Automated Tape Layup, aPriori selects the lowest-overhead, feasible machine. Overhead, here, is the sum of the machine properties Direct Overhead Rate and Indirect Overhead Rate.

A machine is considered feasible if all the following hold:

• Machine can accommodate the part’s height; that is, part height is no greater than the machine property Max Vertical Travel Distance.

• Machine can accommodate the part’s length; that is, part length is no greater than the machine property Table Length.

• Machine can accommodate the part’s width; that is, part width is no greater than the machine property Table Width.

• Machine can accommodate the width of the roll of raw material for each of the part’s materials; that is, the Material Width of part’s widest material is no greater than the machine’s Max Material Width.

aPriori selects only from preferred machines, if there is a feasible preferred machine and the cost model variable usePreferredMachines is set to true (the default in starting point VPEs). If there is no feasible preferred machine, or if the cost model variable usePreferredMachines is set to false, aPriori selects from all machines. A machine is preferred if the machine property isPreferred (typically displayed as Is Preferred) is true.