Balancing of mixed-model assembly line based on ant colony optimization algorithm

The mixed-model assembly line balancing problem is a typical NP-Hard combinatorial optimization problem. In this article, the mixed-model assembly line balancing problem is turned into a single-model assembly line balancing problem by the prior sequence diagram. Firstly, mathematical modeling is set up with the given takt time, the least number of workstations and the highest assembly line balancing rate as optimization objective. Then an ant colony optimization algorithm is designed for solving such a mixed-model assembly line balancing problem. A VB program is developed and the effectiveness of the algorithm is proved through a number of specific examples.