Real-time task scheduling behavior in agent-based product development process simulation

In order to model the designer´s autonomous real-time task scheduling behavior and use it in the agent-based product development process simulation, this paper constructed an agent´s benefit function in which task urgency, task importance, agent individual preference, and recovery time are considered. To validate and show applications of the benefit function in agent-based product development process simulation, some comparative simulation experiments are carried out in a case study. The result shows that the simulation analysis based on the benefit function can help an organization identify reasonable scheduling behaviors in the collaborative and complex product development process.