Top-down approach to systematic synthesis of Petri net models for manufacturing systems

The authors propose an approach to systematic synthesis of Petri net models for manufacturing systems. It is based on top-down, modular, and decomposition philosophies which make the stepwise refinement of the Petri-net models possible. Using the proposed method, it is possible to obtain a Petri net model which is guaranteed to have the most important properties in the context of manufacturing: safeness, liveness, and reversibility. A formal problem statement is presented first. Then the previous research on the synthesis approaches is reviewed. Next, several modules are defined which, when combined according to a proposed algorithm, lead to the derived model. It is proven that the algorithm yields the safeness, liveness, and reversibility properties. An example of piston-rod assembly is used to demonstrate the proposed method.