Efficient stochastic hybrid heuristics for the multi-depot vehicle routing problem

The paper addresses the problem of multi-depot vehicle routing in order to minimize the delivery time of vehicle objective. Three hybrid heuristics are presented to solve the multi-depot vehicle routing problem. Each hybrid heuristic combines elements from both constructive heuristic search and improvement techniques. The improvement techniques are deterministic, stochastic and simulated annealing (SA) methods. Experiments are run on a number of randomly generated test problems of varying depots and customer sizes. Our heuristics are shown to outperform one of the best-known existing heuristic. Statistical tests of significance are performed to substantiate the claims of improvement.     

分支定价方法求解带二维装箱约束的车辆路径问题EI北大核心CSCD

面向家具、电器等货物的物流配送场景,研究带二维装箱约束的车辆路径问题(2L–CVRP),构建了2L–CVRP的混合整数线性规划模型.为求解大规模2L–CVRP,构建了该问题集合划分模型,提出基于分支定价的方法.针对分支节点的松弛模型,基于列生成策略将其分解为线性规划主问题、带资源和二维装箱约束的最短路径子问题,并提出基于ng-route松弛策略的标签算法和基于禁忌搜索的装箱算法有效求解复杂子问题.仿真结果表明,提出的方法可高效求解大规模2L–CVRP,其中ng-route松弛策略能有效提升算法求解效率,研究成果为装箱约束下大规模车辆路径问题的高效求解提供了有效途径.     

Solving the truck and trailer routing problem based on a simulated annealing heuristic

In this study, we consider the application of a simulated annealing (SA) heuristic to the truck and trailer routing problem (TTRP), a variant of the vehicle routing problem (VRP). In the TTRP, some customers can be serviced by either a complete vehicle (that is, a truck pulling a trailer) or a single truck, while others can only be serviced by a single truck for various reasons. SA has seen widespread applications to various combinatorial optimization problems, including the VRP. However, to our best knowledge, it has not been applied to the TTRP. So far, all the best known results for benchmark TTRP instances were obtained using tabu search (TS). We applied SA to the TTRP and obtained 17 best solutions to the 21 benchmark TTRP benchmark problems, including 11 new best solutions. Moreover, the computational time required by the proposed SA heuristic is less than those reported in prior studies. The results suggest that SA is competitive with TS on solving the TTRP.     

Heuristic and exact algorithms for a min–max selective vehicle routing problem

In this work, we investigate a vehicle routing problem where not all clients need to be visited and the goal is to minimize the longest vehicle route. We propose two exact solution approaches for solving the problem: a Branch-and-cut (BC) algorithm and a Local Branching (LB) method that uses BC as its inner solver. Our computational experience indicates that, in practice, the problem is difficult to solve, mainly when the number of vehicles grows. In addition to the exact methods, we present a heuristic that relies on GRASP and on the resolution of a restricted integer program based on a set covering reformulation for the problem. The heuristic was capable of significantly improving the best solutions provided by BC and LB, in one tenth of the times taken by them to achieve their best upper bounds.     

定位2运输路线安排问题的两阶段启发式算法

重点研究了集成化物流中一类特殊的定位一运输路线安排问题(LRP)的解决方法．LRP问题包括设施定位和运输路线优化两方面决策，属于NP-hard难题．由于问题的复杂性，提出基于假设前提的LRP模型及其两阶段启发式求解算法．该方法分两步实现：首先，采用基于最小包络聚类分析的启发式方法确定被选择的潜在设施及由每一个选中的设施所要提供服务的客户群；其次，运用带有控制开关的遗传算法求解每一确定客户类中的优化运输路线．提出利用两阶段启发式算法求解LRP问题，此方法实现容易、运算简单，一定程度上避免了遗传算法中的“局部最优现象”．仿真实验证明了该算法求解单目标LRP的有效性和准确性．     

Solving school bus routing using the multiple vehicle traveling purchaser problem: A branch-and-cut approach

School bus routing problems, combining bus stop selection and bus route generation, look simultaneously for a set of bus stops to pick up students from among a group of potential locations, and for bus routes to visit the selected stops and carry the students to their school. These problems, classified as Location-Routing problems, are of interest in densely populated urban areas.This article introduces a generalization of the vehicle routing problem called the multi-vehicle traveling purchaser problem, modeling a family of routing problems combining stop selection and bus route generation. It discusses a Mixed Integer Programming formulation extending previous studies on the classical single vehicle traveling purchaser problem. The proposed model is based on a single commodity flow formulation combining continuous variables with binary variables by means of coupling constraints. Additional valid inequalities are proposed with the purpose of strengthening its Linear Programming relaxation. These valid inequalities are obtained by projecting out the flow variables.We develop a branch-and-cut algorithm that makes use of the proposed model and valid inequalities. This cutting plane algorithm is implemented and tested on a large family of symmetric and asymmetric instances derived from randomly generated problems, showing the usefulness of the proposed valid inequalities.     

多车型开放式车辆路线问题的混合启发式算法

多车型开放式车辆路线问题,是物流配送优化中不可缺少的环节。针对标准遗传算法存在收敛速度慢,局部搜索能力差,易早熟的缺点,采用混合启发式算法进行优化求解。采用实数序列编码,使问题变得更简洁;有针对性地构建初始解,提高了解的可行性;用基于排序的选择与最佳保留相结合策略,保证群体的多样性;引入部分算术交叉算子,加强染色体的全局搜索能力;利用模拟退火算法的Boltzmann机制,控制遗传算法的交叉、变异操作,提高了算法的收敛速度和搜索效率。仿真结果表明混合启发式算法在求解质量和计算效率上好于标准遗传算法。     

基于启发式蚁群算法的VRP问题研究

针对蚁群算法求解VRP问题时收敛速度慢,求解质量不高的缺点,把城市和仓库间的距离矩阵和路径节约矩阵信息融入到初始信息素矩阵中作为启发式信息引入到蚁群算法中用于求解有容量限制的车辆路径规划问题（CVRP）,在三个基准数据集上的实验研究表明,基于启发式信息的蚁群算法与基本蚁群算法相比能够以较快的速度收敛到较好的解。     

An exact algorithm and a metaheuristic for the generalized vehicle routing problem with flexible fleet size

The generalized vehicle routing problem (GVRP) involves finding a minimum-length set of vehicle routes passing through a set of clusters, where each cluster contains a number of vertices, such that the tour includes exactly one vertex from each cluster and satisfies capacity constraints. We consider a version of the GVRP where the number of vehicles is a decision variable. This paper introduces a new mathematical formulation based on a two-commodity flow model. We solve the problem using a branch-and-cut algorithm and a metaheuristic that is a hybrid of the greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP) and the evolutionary local search (ELS) proposed in [18]. We perform computational experiments on instances from the literature to demonstrate the performance of our algorithms.     

双重信息引导的蚁群算法求解绿色多舱车辆路径问题

针对当前实际运输中广泛存在的绿色多舱车辆路径问题(GMCVRP), 文章提出一种双重信息引导的蚁群优化算法(DIACO)进行求解. 首先, 在DIACO的全局搜索阶段, 重新构建传统蚁群优化算法(TACO)中的信息素浓度矩阵(PCM), 使其同时包含客户块信息和客户序列信息, 即建立具有双重信息的PCM(DIPCM), 从而更全面学习和累积优质解的信息; 采用3种启发式方法生成较高质量个体, 用于初始化DIPCM, 可快速引导算法朝向解空间中优质区域进行搜索. 其次, 在DIACO的局部搜索阶段, 设计结合自适应策略的多种变邻域操作, 用于对解空间的优质区域执行深入搜索. 再次, 提出信息素浓度平衡机制, 以防止搜索陷入停滞. 最后, 使用不同规模的算例进行仿真测试和算法对比, 结果验证了DIACO是求解GMCVRP的有效算法.     

A branch-and-price approach for a multi-period vehicle routing problem

In this paper, we consider tactical planning for a class of multi-period vehicle routing problems (MPVRP). This problem involves optimizing daily product collections from several production locations over a given planning horizon. In this context, a single routing plan for the whole horizon must be prepared, and the seasonal variations in the producers’ supplies must be taken into account. Production variations over the horizon are approximated using a sequence of periods, each corresponding to a production season, while the intra-period variations are neglected. We propose a mathematical model that is based on the two-stage a priori optimization paradigm. The first stage corresponds to the design of a plan which, in the second stage, takes the different periods into account. The proposed set partitioning-based formulation is solved using a branch-and-price approach. The subproblem is a multi-period elementary shortest path problem with resource constraints (MPESPPRC), for which we propose an adaptation of the dynamic-programming-based label-correcting algorithm. Computational results show that this approach is able to solve instances with up to 60 producers and five periods.     

A note on the truck and trailer routing problem

This study considers the relaxed truck and trailer routing problem (RTTRP), a relaxation of the truck and trailer routing problem (TTRP). TTRP is a variant of the well studied vehicle routing problem (VRP). In TTRP, a fleet of trucks and trailers are used to service a set of customers with known demands. Some customers may be serviced by a truck pulling a trailer, while the others may only be serviced by a single truck. This is the main difference between TTRP and VRP. The number of available trucks and available trailers is limited in the original TTRP but there are no fixed costs associated with the use of trucks or trailers. Therefore, it is reasonable to relax this fleet size constraint to see if it is possible to further reduce the total routing cost (distance). In addition, the resulting RTTRP can also be used to determine a better fleet mix. We developed a simulated annealing heuristic for solving RTTRP and tested it on 21 existing TTRP benchmark problems and 36 newly generated TTRP instances. Computational results indicate that the solutions for RTTRP are generally better than the best solutions in the literature for TTRP. The proposed SA heuristic is able to find better solutions to 18 of the 21 existing benchmark TTRP instances. The solutions for the remaining three problems are tied with the best so far solutions in the literature. For the 36 newly generated problems, the average percentage improvement of RTTRP solutions over TTRP solutions is about 5%. Considering the ever rising crude oil price, even small reduction in the route length is significant.     

泰森多边形的离散蝙蝠算法求解多车场车辆路径问题

本文提出一种泰森多边形的离散蝙蝠算法求解多车场车辆路径问题(multi-depot vehicle routing problem,MDVRP).所提出算法以离散蝙蝠算法为核心,融入了一种基于多车场多车辆问题的编解码策略.所提出算法还使用基于泰森多边形的初始化策略加快算法的前期收敛速度,采用基于向量比较机制的适应度函数来控制算法收敛的方向,引入基于近邻策略和优先配送策略的局部搜索算法来提高算法的寻优能力.实验结果表明:在合理的时间耗费内,所提出的算法能有效地求解MDVRP,尤其是带配送距离约束的MDVRP;相对于对比算法,所提出的算法表现出较强的寻优能力和稳定性.     

基于GA的时变路网中车辆动态派遣的研究

为了使网络中的车辆调度问题更加符合实际交通状况,针对时变网络中的车辆调度问题进行了研究。将传统车辆调度模型进行了修改,目标函数中考虑了车辆的总行驶费用、总迟到惩罚、车辆总启用费用3种因素,以提高模型的适应性和通用性。由于车辆调度问题属于NP难问题,提出了采用遗传算法对问题进行求解。采用标准的VRP问题进行测试,仿真结果表明该算法简单可行,较BC-Saving启发式算法有更好的求解性能。     

学习型离散排超联赛算法求解带时间窗的绿色多车型两级车辆路径问题

针对现实中广泛存在的带时间窗的绿色多车型两级车辆路径问题(G2E-HVRP-TW),本文提出一种结合加权K-means算法(WKA)的学习型离散排超联赛算法(LDVPLA)进行求解.首先,根据该问题规模大、约束多的特点,采用WKA将原问题G2E-HVRP-TW分解为一个绿色多车型车辆路径子问题(GHVRP)和一组带时间窗的GHVRP(GHVRP-TW),从而实现两级问题间的部分解耦,以合理缩小搜索空间.然后,利用LDVPLA求解分解后的一系列子问题,并将各子问题的解合并后得到原问题的解. LDVPLA在竞赛阶段将标准排超联赛算法(VPLA)中实数个体更新操作替换为一系列排序操作,使其能够直接在问题离散解空间内执行基于VPLA机制的搜索,可提高搜索效率;在学习阶段构建三维概率矩阵模型合理学习并积累优质解信息,有利于驱动算法较快到达解空间中的优质解区域执行搜索;在淘汰阶段设计一种重启策略,可避免算法过早陷入局部最优.最后,通过在不同规模算例上的仿真实验和算法对比,验证了所提算法的有效性.     

A new approach on auxiliary vehicle assignment in capacitated location routing problem

The location routing problem (LRP) considers locating depots and vehicle routing decisions simultaneously. In classic LRP the number of customers in each route depends on the capacity of the vehicle. In this paper a capacitated LRP model with auxiliary vehicle assignment is presented in which the length of each route is not restricted by main vehicle capacity. Two kinds of vehicles are considered: main vehicles with higher capacity and fixed cost and auxiliary vehicles with lower capacity and fixed cost. The auxiliary vehicles can be added to the transportation system as an alternative strategy to cover the capacity limitations and they are just used to transfer goods from depots to vehicles and cannot serve the customers by themselves. To show the applicability of the proposed model, some numerical examples derived from the well-known instances are used. Moreover the model has been solved by some meta-heuristics for large sized instances. The results show the efficiency of the proposed model and the solution approach, considering the classic model and the exact solution approach, respectively.     

需求可拆分车辆路径问题的聚类求解算法

针对传统的车辆路径问题通常假设客户的需求不能拆分,即客户的需求由一辆车满足,而实际上通过需求的拆分可使需要的车辆数更少,从而降低配送成本的问题,分析了需求可拆分的车辆路径问题的解的特征,证明了客户需求不宜拆分应满足的条件,设计了符合解的特征的聚类算法,并对其求解.通过实验仿真,将所提出的聚类算法与蚁群算法和禁忌搜索算法进行比较,所得结果表明了所提出的算法可以更有效地求得需求可拆分车辆路径问题的优化解,是解决需求可拆分车辆路径问题的有效方法.     

A simulating annealing algorithm to solve the green vehicle routing & scheduling problem with hierarchical objectives and weighted tardiness

We present a green vehicle routing and scheduling problem (GVRSP) considering general time-dependent traffic conditions with the primary objective of minimizing CO₂ emissions and weighted tardiness. A new mathematical formulation is proposed to describe the GVRSP with hierarchical objectives and weighted tardiness. The proposed formulation is an alternative formulation of the GVRSP in the way that a vehicle is allowed to travel an arc in multiple time periods. The schedule of a vehicle is determined based on the actual distance that the vehicle travels each arc in each time period instead of the time point when the vehicle departs from each node. Thereby, more general time dependent traffic patterns can be considered in the model. The proposed formulation is studied using various objectives functions, such as minimizing the total CO₂ emissions, the total travel distance, and the total travel time. Computational results show that up to 50% reduction in CO₂ emissions can be achieved with average reductions of 12% and 28% compared to distance-oriented solutions and travel-time-oriented solutions, respectively. In addition, a simulated annealing (SA) algorithm is introduced to solve large-sized problem instances. To reduce the search space, the SA algorithm searches only for vehicle routes and rough schedules, and a straightforward heuristic procedure is used to determine near-optimal detailed schedules for a given set of routes. The performance of the SA algorithm is tested on large-sized problems with up to 100 nodes and 10 time periods.     

A column generation approach to the heterogeneous fleet vehicle routing problem

We consider a vehicle routing problem with a heterogeneous fleet of vehicles having various capacities, fixed costs and variable costs. An approach based on column generation (CG) is applied for its solution, hitherto successful only in the vehicle routing problem with time windows. A tight integer programming model is presented, the linear programming relaxation of which is solved by the CG technique. A couple of dynamic programming schemes developed for the classical vehicle routing problem are emulated with some modifications to efficiently generate feasible columns. With the tight lower bounds thereby obtained, the branch-and-bound procedure is activated to obtain an integer solution. Computational experience with the benchmark test instances confirms that our approach outperforms all the existing algorithms both in terms of the quality of solutions generated and the solution time.     

供应链中车辆路径问题的改进模拟退火算法

车辆路径的优化是供应链优化中的重要环节。设计了一种改进的模拟退火算法用于求解有客户需求、车辆最大载重量和最大行驶距离三个约束条件的车辆路径问题。主要改进在于：编码方案采用客户编号的顺序编码,并设计专门的解码方法能够把三种约束全都纳入考虑,再综合运用三种邻域生成算子提高局部搜索能力,采用基本的线性降温方式控制降温过程。运用此算法针对同一算例,采用三种不同的降温系数进行了仿真实验,得到了更好的配送方案。实验结果表明该算法不仅求解速度快,而且寻优能力也有显著增强。