Optimal Production Capacity Matching for Blockchain-Enabled Manufacturing Collaboration with the Iterative Double Auction Method

Abstract

The increased demand for personalized customization calls for new production modes to enhance collaborations among a wide range of manufacturing practitioners who unnecessarily trust each other. In this article, a blockchain-enabled manufacturing collaboration framework is proposed, with a focus on the production capacity matching problem for blockchain-based peer-to-peer (P2P) collaboration. First, a digital model of production capacity description is built for trustworthy and transparent sharing over the blockchain. Second, an optimization problem is formulated for P2P production capacity matching with objectives to maximize both social welfare and individual benefits of all participants. Third, a feasible solution based on an iterative double auction mechanism is designed to determine the optimal price and quantity for production capacity matching with a lack of personal information. It facilitates automation of the matching process while protecting users' privacy via blockchain-based smart contracts. Finally, simulation results from the Hyperledger Fabric-based prototype show that the proposed approach increases social welfare by 1.4% compared to the Bayesian game-based approach, makes all participants profitable, and achieves 90% fairness of enterprises.