Patent ID: 8560363

Claim:
A computer-implemented method of continuous production planning, comprising: accessing, by a computer, a transition matrix comprising a plurality of transition values each associated with first and second end products; identifying, by the computer, a forbidden transition associated with production of the first and second end products, the forbidden transition identifying an unusable transition product produced when production equipment continues manufacturing a product while the production equipment is in the process of changing from manufacturing the first end product to manufacturing the second end product; identifying, by the computer, a bridge product associated with the forbidden transition, the bridge product representing a product to be manufactured between production of the first and second end products and selected based on one or more rules reflecting one or more user preferences, the one or more rules identifying criteria that identifies the bridge product; determining, by the computer, a quantity of the bridge product to be manufactured by identifying an existing demand of the bridge product and an additional quantity of the bridge product to be produced by the production equipment; and scheduling, by the computer, production of the first and second end products and the bridge product, wherein the bridge product is scheduled for production between the production of the first and second end products.