# Lifelong Multi-Subsystem Pickup and Delivery with Buffer-Limited Handover Stations

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.17724 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.17724/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 7 of its 25 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 20 Jul 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 7 of 7)

- [Multi-Agent Pathfinding: Definitions, Variants, and Benchmarks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1906.08291/) (2019)
- [Lifelong Multi-Agent Path Finding for Online Pickup and Delivery Tasks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1705.10868/) (2017)
- [Integrated Task Assignment and Path Planning for Capacitated Multi-Agent Pickup and Delivery](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2110.14891/) (2021)
- [Lifelong Path Planning with Kinematic Constraints for Multi-Agent Pickup and Delivery](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1812.06355/) (2018)
- [Scaling Lifelong Multi-Agent Path Finding to More Realistic Settings: Research Challenges and Opportunities](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.16162/) (2024)
- [Online Multi-Agent Pickup and Delivery with Task Deadlines](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.12377/) (2024)
- [Conflict-Based Search for Multi-Agent Path Finding with Elevators](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.20512/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Coordinating payload transfers between subsystems is a critical challenge in lifelong Multi-Agent Pickup and Delivery (MAPD). We study systems where agents are confined to separate regions and must exchange payloads through shared handover stations. These stations, equipped with single docks and finite buffers, are inherently vulnerable to blocking and starvation. We formalize this problem as Multi-Subsystem MAPD with Buffer-limited Handover Stations (MS-MAPD-BHS). We then propose Handover-Aware Reservation and Routing (HARR), an online controller that couples per-subsystem planners. HARR uses a shared dock reservation calendar and a deterministic rolling-horizon projection of buffer occupancy to coordinate actions. A candidate route is accepted only if its dock interval is free and the resulting buffer occupancy projection remains within capacity. Under perfect execution, these checks ensure collision-free dock use and buffer-safe committed operations within the reservation horizon. In simulation, HARR achieves up to 77% higher throughput and 92% lower backlog than a fixed-dock ablation at moderate load, while also reducing planning time relative to a coupled station-aware Token Passing baseline. These results show that explicit interface coordination substantially improves stability in modular multi-subsystem transport.