Design of an Automated Container-Handling System in a Seaport Terminal Considering Operating Machine Performance

To provide a highly efficient and automated container-handling system in a seaport terminal, it is necessary to take into account the performance of operating machines, such as quay container cranes, automated guided vehicles, and rubber-tired gantry cranes, in addition to their fleet sizes. In this paper, we introduce these parameters as design objectives. However, this is a serious combinatorial design problem that consists of the objectives presented above. Moreover, it is not always true that a terminal system, in which larger numbers of machines are used with upgraded operation performance, obtains higher throughput. It thus becomes a challenge to identify a design parameter with an impact on the system throughput and to find the most reasonable combination of design parameters. In this issue, we apply a design strategy to this challenge and then modify a previously proposed hybrid design methodology. As a case study for the system design, we determine the combinatorial design solutions to meet given demands. Finally, we show the effectiveness of the system design in consideration of the machine performance.