The online Prize-Collecting Traveling Salesman Problem

We study the online version of the Prize-Collecting Traveling Salesman Problem (PCTSP), a generalization of the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP). In the TSP, the salesman has to visit a set of cities while minimizing the length of the overall tour. In the PCTSP, each city has a given weight and penalty, and the goal is to collect a given quota of the weights of the cities while minimizing the length of the tour plus the penalties of the cities not in the tour. In the online version, cities are disclosed over time. We give a 7/3-competitive algorithm for the problem, which compares with a lower bound of 2 on the competitive ratio of any deterministic algorithm. We also show how our approach can be combined with an approximation algorithm in order to obtain an O(1)-competitive algorithm that runs in polynomial time.     

Algorithms for the On-Line Travelling Salesman 1

In this paper the problem of efficiently serving a sequence of requests presented in an on-line fashion located at points of a metric space is considered. We call this problem the On-Line Travelling Salesman Problem (OLTSP). It has a variety of relevant applications in logistics and robotics. We consider two versions of the problem. In the first one the server is not required to return to the departure point after all presented requests have been served. For this problem we derive a lower bound on the competitive ratio of 2 on the real line. Besides, a 2.5 -competitive algorithm for a wide class of metric spaces, and a 7/3 -competitive algorithm for the real line are provided. For the other version of the problem, in which returning to the departure point is required, we present an optimal 2 -competitive algorithm for the above-mentioned general class of metric spaces. If in this case the metric space is the real line we present a 1.75 -competitive algorithm that compares with a \approx 1.64 lower bound. Received November 12, 1997; revised June 8, 1998.     

A correction algorithm for token-passing sequences in mobile communication networks

We present a distributed approximation algorithm for the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) in networks that use a broadcast, multiaccess communication channel. The application for which the algorithm was originally designed is maintaining a short token-passing path (which means low scheduling overhead) in radio networks with mobile nodes. The algorithm is adaptive in the sense that it shifts gradually between performing a slight correction of an existing tour and recomputing one “from scratch.” It can thus be viewed as a generalization, or extension, of conventional TSP algorithms. The proposed algorithm guarantees the same worst-case tour length as the one guaranteed by any conventional “from scratch” algorithm, yet it is capable of taking advantage of certain node layouts (e.g., geographically clustered nodes) to reduce the cost of computing the path. The correction algorithm is suitable for dynamic graphs with slowly changing edge weights, and for which a Traveling Salesman tour (optimal or approximate) has previously been computed and is “deteriorating” with time due to the weight changes. The algorithm can be used to “refresh” the tour whenever it deteriorates beyond a given level, and thus maintain a reasonable average tour length at relatively low computation and communication costs. For a Euclidean graph withn nodes laid out in a bounded area with diameterD, the maximal length of the tour produced by the algorithm is proportional toD√n, like the maximal length of an optimal tour in that graph (the two differ by a factor of 2 at the worst case).     

New Algorithms for Disk Scheduling

Processor speed and memory capacity are increasing several times faster than disk speed. This disparity suggests that disk I/ O performance could become an important bottleneck. Methods are needed for using disks more efficiently. Past analysis of disk scheduling algorithms has largely been experimental and little attempt has been made to develop algorithms with provable performance guarantees. We consider the following disk scheduling problem. Given a set of requests on a computer disk and a convex reachability function that determines how fast the disk head travels between tracks, our goal is to schedule the disk head so that it services all the requests in the shortest time possible. We present a 3/2 -approximation algorithm (with a constant additive term). For the special case in which the reachability function is linear we present an optimal polynomial-time solution. The disk scheduling problem is related to the special case of the Asymmetric Traveling Salesman Problem with the triangle inequality (ATSP-Δ ) in which all distances are either 0 or some constant α . We show how to find the optimal tour in polynomial time and describe how this gives another approximation algorithm for the disk scheduling problem. Finally we consider the on-line version of the problem in which uniformly distributed requests arrive over time. We present an algorithm related to the above ATSP-Δ .     

求解TTP问题新优化模型的混合遗传算法

流窜犯问题（Traveling Thief Problem,TTP）是旅行商问题和背包问题的一个组合问题,同时具有两个问题的计算复杂度。在现有TTP问题中考虑了小偷提前不知道物品具体位置的情况,给出了新的具有概率分布信息的优化模型;利用有效价值指标,给出了物品的选取方法;基于一个TSP的遗传算法框架和新设计的局部搜索策略,提出了求解该模型的混合遗传算法。数值仿真结果表明,提出的算法是可行有效的。     

New Algorithms for Disk Scheduling

Abstract. Processor speed and memory capacity are increasing several times faster than disk speed. This disparity suggests that disk I/ O performance could become an important bottleneck. Methods are needed for using disks more efficiently. Past analysis of disk scheduling algorithms has largely been experimental and little attempt has been made to develop algorithms with provable performance guarantees. We consider the following disk scheduling problem. Given a set of requests on a computer disk and a convex reachability function that determines how fast the disk head travels between tracks, our goal is to schedule the disk head so that it services all the requests in the shortest time possible. We present a 3/2 -approximation algorithm (with a constant additive term). For the special case in which the reachability function is linear we present an optimal polynomial-time solution. The disk scheduling problem is related to the special case of the Asymmetric Traveling Salesman Problem with the triangle inequality (ATSP-Δ ) in which all distances are either 0 or some constant α . We show how to find the optimal tour in polynomial time and describe how this gives another approximation algorithm for the disk scheduling problem. Finally we consider the on-line version of the problem in which uniformly distributed requests arrive over time. We present an algorithm related to the above ATSP-Δ .     

– Ant System

Ant System, the first Ant Colony Optimization algorithm, showed to be a viable method for attacking hard combinatorial optimization problems. Yet, its performance, when compared to more fine-tuned algorithms, was rather poor for large instances of traditional benchmark problems like the Traveling Salesman Problem. To show that Ant Colony Optimization algorithms could be good alternatives to existing algorithms for hard combinatorial optimization problems, recent research in this area has mainly focused on the development of algorithmic variants which achieve better performance than Ant System.In this paper, we present – Ant System ( ), an Ant Colony Optimization algorithm derived from Ant System. differs from Ant System in several important aspects, whose usefulness we demonstrate by means of an experimental study. Additionally, we relate one of the characteristics specific to — that of using a greedier search than Ant System — to results from the search space analysis of the combinatorial optimization problems attacked in this paper. Our computational results on the Traveling Salesman Problem and the Quadratic Assignment Problem show that is currently among the best performing algorithms for these problems.     

An integer programming approach for the time-dependent traveling salesman problem with time windows

Congestion in large cities and populated areas is one of the major challenges in urban logistics, and should be addressed at different planning and operational levels. The Time Dependent Travelling Salesman Problem (TDTSP) is a generalization of the well known Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) where the travel times are not assumed to be constant along the day. The motivation to consider the time dependency factor is that it enables to have better approximations to many problems arising from practice. In this paper, we consider the Time-Dependent Traveling Salesman Problem with Time Windows (TDTSP-TW), where the time dependence is captured by considering variable average travel speeds. We propose an Integer Linear Programming model for the problem and develop an exact algorithm, which is compared on benchmark instances with another approach from the related literature. The results show that the approach is able to solve instances with up to 40 customers.     

A competitive neural network algorithm for solving vehicle routing problem

This paper describes a self organization Neural Network algorithm for a class of Vehicle Routing Problems. Motivated by the outstanding performance of adaptive Neural Network approach in the Traveling Salesman Problem, we devised an algorithm to extend the domain of applicability of this approach to more complex problems. First, relevant adaptation is proposed to refine the model for the Multiple Traveling Salesman Problem. Then, an additional mechanism to satisfy further constraints are embodied into the algorithm. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is evaluated by considering a series of standard problems from the literature. The results show that the algorithm can yield solutions within a few percent of optimality.     

A Hybrid Multi-Swarm Particle Swarm Optimization algorithm for the Probabilistic Traveling Salesman Problem

The Probabilistic Traveling Salesman Problem (PTSP) is a variation of the classic Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) and one of the most significant stochastic routing problems. In the PTSP, only a subset of potential customers need to be visited on any given instance of the problem. The number of customers to be visited each time is a random variable. In this paper, a new hybrid algorithmic nature inspired approach based on Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP) and Expanding Neighborhood Search (ENS) Strategy is proposed for the solution of the PTSP. The proposed algorithm is tested on numerous benchmark problems from TSPLIB with very satisfactory results. Comparisons with the classic GRASP algorithm, the classic PSO and with a Tabu Search algorithm are also presented. Also, a comparison is performed with the results of a number of implementations of the Ant Colony Optimization algorithm from the literature and in 13 out of 20 cases the proposed algorithm gives a new best solution.     

改进微粒群优化算法求解旅行商问题

对微粒群优化算法的速度位置算式进行了改进,提出一种改进的微粒群优化算法。该算法符合组合优化问题的特点,在求解旅行商问题上有较高的搜索效率。将改进的PSO算法分别应用于14点的TSP问题以及中国旅行商问题中,该算法在较短时间内获得了目前已知的最好解。     

使用面向离散搜索空间的蛙跳算法求解TSP

针对搜索空间是离散的问题近似求解,提出了一种名为DSSLFA的蛙跳算法;给出了该算法的具体流程和实现细节;探讨了将该算法用于求解旅行商（TSP）问题的过程。在若干公用数据集上的实验结果表明,该文算法是有效、可行的。     

人工神经网络求解TSP问题新方法

本文在分析Hopfield/Tank方法的基础上提出一种新的人工神经网络方法,采用优化约束条件的能量函数,具有收敛速度快、不易陷入无效解、易获得亚优解等优点。     

基于蚂蚁算法的连接增强问题求解

描述了连接增强问题的实质,提出了基于蚂蚁算法求解连接增强问题的算法,针对如何处理约束条件提出了两种不同的策略。通过模拟实验证明了算法的可行性,评价了算法的性能,讨论了参数的设定,最后比较了两种不同策略的性能。     

GRASP with path relinking for the symmetric Euclidean clustered traveling salesman problem

In this paper, we propose new heuristics using several path-relinking strategies to solve the Clustered Traveling Salesman Problem (CTSP). The CTSP is a generalization of the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) in which the set of vertices is partitioned into clusters and the objective is to find a minimum cost Hamiltonian cycle such that the vertices of each cluster are visited continuously. A comparison among the performance of the several different adopted path-relinking strategies is presented using instances with up to 2000 vertices and clusters varying between 4 and 150 vertices. Also computational experiments were performed to compare the performance of the proposed heuristics with an exact algorithm and a Genetic Algorithm. The obtained computational results showed that the proposed heuristics were able to obtain competitive results related to the quality of the solutions and computational execution time.     

Profit maximization of TSP through a hybrid algorithm

Here a new model of Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) with uncertain parameters is formulated and solved using a hybrid algorithm. For this TSP, there are some fixed number of cities and the costs and time durations for traveling from one city to another are known. Here a Traveling Salesman (TS) visits and spends some time in each city for selling the company’s product. The return and expenditure at each city are dependent on the time spent by the TS at that city and these are given in functional forms of t. The total time limit for the entire tour is fixed and known. Now, the problem for the TS is to identify a tour program and also to determine the stay time at each city so that total profit out of the system is maximum. Here the model is solved by a hybrid method combining the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Ant Colony Optimization (ACO). The problem is divided into two subproblems where ACO and PSO are used successively iteratively in a generation using one’s result for the other. Numerical experiments are performed to illustrate the models. Some behavioral studies of the models and convergences of the proposed hybrid algorithm with respect to iteration numbers and cost matrix sizes are presented.     

基于梯森分割的城市物流配送路线优化选择

物流配送车辆路径优化问题是一个典型的NP难题,也是近年来物流研究中的一个热点。文章利用先分组再排路线的思想,把城市零售商品物流配送车辆路径优化问题分解成一个分派问题和一个类似旅行商问题(TravelingSalesm an Problem,TSP)。应用空间分析中的梯森分割(Thiessen Tessellation)理论解决分派问题,同时改进用于求解TSP问题的插队算法,将其应用于对车辆巡回路线寻优问题的求解,最后,对此算法进行了应用举例。     

考虑时间窗与随机航行时间的船舶航线规划

良好的航线设计是船运公司降低运营成本,提高服务质量的关键。船舶运输中存在航行时间不确定,码头资源稀缺等特点,基于此将其航线问题抽象为考虑时间窗与随机旅行时间的多重流动旅行商问题。针对航行时间的随机性,设计了线性近似方法,提出了虚拟时间窗的概念,构建了初始模型与修正模型;给出了该问题的一个算例,验证了模型与算法的有效性和合理性。     

旅行商问题的闭环DNA算法

旅行商问题TSP是NP完全问题,在工程实践中有着广泛的应用,利用常规算法很难在多项式时间内解决。DNA计算是一种新兴的计算模式,与生俱来的强大并行计算能力使得它在解决众多NP问题上表现出了巨大的优势。尝试利用DNA计算中改进的闭环模型解决TSP问题。首先介绍了闭环DNA 计算模型及其改进;随后提出了一种基于改进的闭环模型求解TSP问题的算法,并对算法的实验过程进行了详细的描述;最后运用该算法解决了一个小规模的TSP问题算例,结果表明,该算法能在较低的时间复杂度内有效地解决TSP问题。     

遗传算法在旅行商问题中的实践与探究

TSP问题是组合优化领域的经典问题之一,旨在求出遍历若干个城市的最短路径。本文通过遗传算法GA的选择和变异算子的确定和、交叉算子的改进,并在TSP问题中的实践来探索这个经典的NP(Nondeterministic Polynomial)难题。