The study of the adaptive combination optimisation problem of the handling unit

This study proposes an adaptive configuration search method to address inefficient formation selection and slow computation in multi-unit collaborative handling of special-shaped workpieces. The method introduces two evaluation metrics (fitness degree and remaining effective space) and two constraint strategies: an overstepping boundary constraint for extended placement possibilities, and a combination constraint for stability. Finally, these strategies are embedded into the genetic algorithm to propose a hybrid heuristic algorithm based on effective area. Validation on a dedicated dataset of special-shaped workpieces demonstrates significant improvements - the overstepping boundary constraint strategy reduces the total handling unit requirement by 23.94%, while the fitness degree and remaining effective space metrics achieve a 22.86% reduction in total unit demand while simultaneously significantly improving remaining space quality.