Abstract
The questions facing distribution center are when the market demand and environment are rapidly changing and facing to the enterprise competition, how to achieve quick response? how to decrease inventory? how to provide good service? how to fulfill the order? These were always discussed in business logistics enterprise. A flexible and automated distribution center will be necessary, which is to rely on the distributed information system with the business logistics developed in high agility. The picking system is the core of business logistics, thus as we can see, the picking system based on the multi-agent concept be able to fit in with the multi-agent system in manufacturing system. The objectives of this paper are: 1. based on agent concept to construct a basic agent model for business logistics system in distribution center. 2. use multi-agent infrastructures in distributed information system; conventional picking information system can be improved with a multi-agent based picking system focused on flexible information processing flow, using a set of rules in executive unit and a methodology based on the multi-agent model. This paper shows that the multi-agent system (MASs) play an important role in the construction of a picking management system and picking controllers. Each agent has specific knowledge to process picking operations. We can use the features of agent system in picking operation. A major capability is the autonomous behavior; it includes communication, cooperation, negotiation, reaction and deliberation. Agents can adapt in the picking environment, and work toward a common goal. Referring to an actual business logistics case, when the system was changed, the multi-agent system can avoid the massive source program modifications.