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arXiv · 2609.35153

Optimal Control of a Non-Stationary Inventory-Queue, with Applications to EV-Battery Swapping

Hanyu Cheng·David Yao
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Abstract

We study a non-stationary queueing system with multiple parallel servers and a finite buffer capacity, over a finite planning horizon. Motivated by an operation that is central to an EV (electric vehicle) battery-swapping station -- how to best manage the charging of batteries swapped off from EVs, we develop a continuous-time MDP (Markov decision process) approach to the problem. The main technical challenge is to allow both the arrival rate and the service-cost rate to be functions of time with jumps at discrete time points, key features of the EV swapping station's operation. We derive an exact and explicit threshold structure that characterizes the optimal control policy. Moreover, we give conditions under which the thresholds are monotone over time, and with respect to key system parameters such as service and buffer capacities. Extensive numerical experiments are carried out to supplement as well as validate the theoretical results, and also to illustrate the robustness of the threshold structure in practical implementations.

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Hanyu Cheng, David Yao. 2026-09-28. Optimal Control of a Non-Stationary Inventory-Queue, with Applications to EV-Battery Swapping. https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.35153

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