Simulation optimization in manufacturing analysis: incorporating fuzzy logic admission control in simulation models

Admission Control is of great interest in computer, communication and production network applications. As systems become more complex or need to make decision based on multiple objectives or require to satisfy several constraints, Fuzzy Logic Control (FLC) is a natural tool to handle admission problems. This paper discusses the framework of a tool developed for easily integrating fuzzy logic admission control into Arena simulation models. The tool is implemented as a "drop-in" model block that performs admission control. The block can be configured to perform simple or priority-based admission, as well as multiple queue selection. The FLC "rules" are set through a design-time user interface and stored in an MS Access database. Because multiple FLC blocks may be included in a model, almost any possible admission scenario (multiple entry points, parallel lines, etc) may be modeled. A case study is used to demonstrate the developed framework.