Abstract
Holonic and agent-based paradigms are very suitable in the development of distributed manufacturing control systems, taking advantage of their modularity, decentralization, and ability to support dynamic and complex system design features. However, the integration of manufacturing resources within the holonic manufacturing control applications remains a problem, because no efficient standard allows an easy, transparent and essentially independent integration. This paper proposes an integration process that allows the integration of automation resources independently from the holonic control application, using some concepts derived from the Manufacturing Message Specification (MMS) application protocol and implemented over a distributed object platform.

Abstract

Abstract
This paper discusses the actual state of the manufacturing systems, focusing on the paradigms, requirements and problems for control and supervision. Based on the experience of the authors in those fields, a new approach to agile, distributed and cooperative manufacturing systems is presented and discussed. This new approach is based on a multi-agent platform that supports three main components: control and cooperation, communication, and re-engineering. Copyright (C) 2001 IFAC.

Abstract
Manufacturing is nowadays facing with markets trends that ask for more customized products, shorter product life-cycles, best quality and shorter prices. Addressing these requirements, manufacturing systems need to be more responsive and reconfigurable, adapting their behaviors to changing conditions. The concepts inherited from biology and nature seem suitable to design reconfigurable manufacturing systems. In this paper, a bio-inspired solution, where self-organization and multi-agent systems play key roles, is described, contributing to achieve an adaptive and evolvable reconfigurable manufacturing control system.

Abstract
Manufacturing scheduling is a complex combinotorial problem, particularly in distributed and dynamic environments. This paper presents a holonic approach to manufacturing scheduling, which in opposite to traditional approaches, distributes the scheduling functions over several entities, combining their calculation power and local optimization. In this scheduling and control approach, the scheduling mechanism evolves dynamically to combine optimized scheduling, achieved by central entities, and distributed scheduling, improving its responsiveness and robustness.

Abstract
Old-fashioned centralized and rigid control structures are becoming inflexible to address the current requirements of reconfigurability, responsiveness and robustness. The Holonic Manufacturing Systems (HMS) paradigm, which was pointed out to face these requirements, translates the concepts inherited from social organizations and biology to the manufacturing world. It offers an alternative way of designing adaptive systems where the traditional centralized control is replaced by decentralization over distributed entities. In spite of its potential, methods regarding the self-adaptation and self-organization of complex systems are still missing. This paper discusses how the insights from biology in connection with new fields of computer science can be useful to enhance the holonic design aiming to achieve more self-adaptive and evolvable systems.