ALEX. An expert system for truck loading

Abstract

An expert system has been built that plans the loading of boxed products into semi-trailer trucks. The system seeks to optimize the volumetric utilization of a trailer while minimizing the likelihood of damage to the products while in transit. It is currently operating in both interactive and batch modes in the production data processing environment of a large manufacturer of household appliances. This paper describes and compares the methods of expert loaders and the expert system, as well as general information about the implementation.