Rapid Physarum Algorithm for shortest path problem

As shortest path (SP) problem has been one of the most fundamental network optimization problems for a long time, technologies for this problem are still being studied. In this paper, a new method by integrating a path finding mathematical model, inspired by Physarum polycephalum, with extracted one heuristic rule to solve SP problem has been proposed, which is called Rapid Physarum Algorithm (RPA). Simulation experiments have been carried out on three different network topologies with varying number of nodes. It is noted that the proposed RPA can find the optimal path as the path finding model does for most networks. What is more, experimental results show that the performance of RPA surpasses the path finding model on both iterations and solution time.     

On an exact method for the constrained shortest path problem

The constrained shortest path (CSP) is a well known NP-Hard problem. Besides from its straightforward application as a network problem, the CSP is also used as a building block under column-generation solution methods for crew scheduling and crew rostering problems. We propose an exact solution method for the CSP capable of handling large-scale networks in a reasonable amount of time. We compared our approach with three different state-of-the-art algorithms for the CSP and found optimal solutions on networks with up to 40,000 nodes and 800,000 arcs. We extended the algorithm to effectively solve the auxiliary problems of a multi-activity shift scheduling problem and a bus rapid transit route design problem tackled with column generation. We obtained significant speedups against alternative column generation schemes that solve the auxiliary problem with state-of-the-art commercial (linear) optimizers. We also present a first parallel version of our algorithm that shows promising results.     

Solving shortest path problem using particle swarm optimization

This paper presents the investigations on the application of particle swarm optimization (PSO) to solve shortest path (SP) routing problems. A modified priority-based encoding incorporating a heuristic operator for reducing the possibility of loop-formation in the path construction process is proposed for particle representation in PSO. Simulation experiments have been carried out on different network topologies for networks consisting of 15–70 nodes. It is noted that the proposed PSO-based approach can find the optimal path with good success rates and also can find closer sub-optimal paths with high certainty for all the tested networks. It is observed that the performance of the proposed algorithm surpasses those of recently reported genetic algorithm based approaches for this problem.     

An oriented spanning tree based genetic algorithm for multi-criteria shortest path problems

This paper investigates an oriented spanning tree (OST) based genetic algorithm (GA) for the multi-criteria shortest path problem (MSPP) as well as the multi-criteria constrained shortest path problem (MCSPP). By encoding a path as an OST, in contrast with the existing evolutionary algorithms (EA) for shortest path problem (SPP), the designed GA provides a “search from a paths set to another paths set” mutation mechanism such that both of its local search and global search capabilities are greatly improved. Because the possibility to find a feasible path in a paths set is usually larger than that of only one path is feasible, the designed GA has more predominance for solving MCSPPs. Some computational tests are presented and the test results are compared with those obtained by a recent EA of which the encoding approach and the ideas of evolution operators such as mutation and crossover are adopted in most of the existing EAs for shortest path problems. The test results indicate that the new algorithm is available for both of MSPP and MCSPP.     

Analysis of FPTASes for the multi-objective shortest path problem

We propose a new FPTAS for the multi-objective shortest path problem with non-negative and integer arc costs. The algorithm uses elements from both an exact labeling algorithm and an FPTAS proposed by Tsaggouris and Zaroliagis [25]. We analyze the running times of these three algorithms both from a theoretical and a computational point of view. Theoretically, we show that there are instances for which the new FPTAS runs arbitrarily faster than the other two algorithms. Furthermore, for the bi-objective case, the number of approximate solutions generated by the proposed FPTAS is at most the number of Pareto-optimal points multiplied by the number of nodes. By performing a set of computational tests, we show that the new FPTAS performs best in terms of running time in case there are many dominated paths and the number of Pareto-optimal points is not too small.     

The constrained shortest path tour problem

In this paper, we study the constrained shortest path tour problem. Given a directed graph with non-negative arc lengths, the aim is to find a single-origin single-destination shortest path, which needs to cross a sequence of node subsets that are given in a fixed order. The subsets are disjoint and may be of different size. In addition, it is required that the path does not include repeated arcs.Theoretical properties of the problem are studied, proving that it belongs to the complexity class NP-complete. To exactly solve it, a Branch & Bound method is proposed. Given the problem hardness, a Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure is also developed to find near-optimal solutions for medium to large scale instances.Extensive computational experiments, on a significant set of test problems, are carried out in order to empirically evaluate the performance of the proposed approaches. The computational results show that the Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure is effective in finding optimal or near optimal solutions in very limited computational time.     

Three-dimensional Euclidean distance transformation and its application to shortest path planning

In this paper, we present a novel method to obtain the three-dimensional Euclidean distance transformation (EDT) in two scans of the image. The shortest path can be extracted based on the distance maps using the minimum value tracing. The EDT is obtained correctly and efficiently in a constant time for arbitrary types of images, including the existence of obstacles. By adopting the new dynamically rotational mathematical morphology, we not only guarantee the collision-free in the shortest path, but also reduce the time complexity dramatically.     

Reduction approaches for robust shortest path problems

We investigate the uncertain versions of two classical combinatorial optimization problems, namely the Single-Pair Shortest Path Problem (SP-SPP) and the Single-Source Shortest Path Problem (SS-SPP). The former consists of finding a path of minimum length connecting two specific nodes in a finite directed graph G; the latter consists of finding the shortest paths from a fixed node to the remaining nodes of G. When considering the uncertain versions of both problems we assume that cycles may occur in G and that arc lengths are (possibly degenerating) nonnegative intervals. We provide sufficient conditions for a node and an arc to be always or never in an optimal solution of the Minimax regret Single-Pair Shortest Path Problem (MSP-SPP). Similarly, we provide sufficient conditions for an arc to be always or never in an optimal solution of the Minimax regret Single-Source Shortest Path Problem (MSS-SPP). We exploit such results to develop pegging tests useful to reduce the overall running time necessary to exactly solve both problems.     

Fuzzy Dijkstra algorithm for shortest path problem under uncertain environment

A common algorithm to solve the shortest path problem (SPP) is the Dijkstra algorithm. In this paper, a generalized Dijkstra algorithm is proposed to handle SPP in an uncertain environment. Two key issues need to be addressed in SPP with fuzzy parameters. One is how to determine the addition of two edges. The other is how to compare the distance between two different paths with their edge lengths represented by fuzzy numbers. To solve these problems, the graded mean integration representation of fuzzy numbers is adopted to improve the classical Dijkstra algorithm. A numerical example of a transportation network is used to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed method.     

Privacy preserving shortest path routing with an application to navigation

Mobile navigation is a frequently used application, especially with the increasing proliferation of online geographical data. However, the origin and destination are often private information closely tied to a user’s personal life. Sharing those with an online map provider greatly increases the chance of the user being profiled. Contrary to existing location privacy problems, the origin and the destination are essential for finding the shortest path in a realtime traffic setting. In this paper, we show that the problem can be solved with Private Information Retrieval (PIR) techniques without disclosing the origin or the destination. We analyze the cost associated with this approach and propose a practical solution with the assumption of a semi-honest third party to improve the efficiency. The proposed practical solution only introduces encryption overhead over the plain scenario where the path is returned by knowing the origin and destination.     

An efficient fault-containing self-stabilizing algorithm for the shortest path problem

Shortest path finding has a variety of applications in transportation and communication. In this paper, we propose a fault-containing self-stabilizing algorithm for the shortest path problem in a distributed system. The improvement made by the proposed algorithm in stabilization times for single-fault situations can demonstrate the desirability of an efficient fault-containing self-stabilizing algorithm. For single-fault situations, the worst-case stabilization time of the proposed algorithm is O(Δ), where Δ is the maximum node degree in the system, and the contamination number of the proposed algorithm is 1.     

Multi-objective and multi-constrained non-additive shortest path problems

Shortest path problems appear as subproblems in numerous optimization problems. In most papers concerning multiple objective shortest path problems, additivity of the objective is a de-facto assumption, but in many real-life situations objectives and criteria, can be non-additive. The purpose of this paper is to give a general framework for dominance tests for problems involving a number of non-additive criteria. These dominance tests can help to eliminate paths in a dynamic programming framework when using multiple objectives. Results on real-life multi-objective problems containing non-additive criteria are reported. We show that in many cases the framework can be used to efficiently reduce the number of generated paths.     

A hill-jump algorithm of Hopfield neural network for shortest path problem in communication network

In this paper, we present a hill-jump algorithm of the Hopfield neural network for the shortest path problem in communication networks, where the goal is to find the shortest path from a starting node to an ending node. The method is intended to provide a near-optimum parallel algorithm for solving the shortest path problem. To do this, first the method uses the Hopfield neural network to get a path. Because the neural network always falls into a local minimum, the found path is usually not a shortest path. To search the shortest path, the method then helps the neural network jump from local minima of energy function by using another neural network built from a part of energy function of the problem. The method is tested through simulating some randomly generated communication networks, with the simulation results showing that the solution found by the proposed method is superior to that of the best existing neural network based algorithm.     

图的赋权路径矩阵与所有点对最短路径问题

给出了二维元素矩阵的概念,对于赋权图对应的赋权矩阵,定义了二维元素初始赋权路径矩阵和二维元素一般赋权路径矩阵,在通常赋权矩阵“乘法”运算基础上定义了路径“乘法”运算,从而得到了二维元素一般赋权路径矩阵的“乘法”运算,通过其“乘法”运算来求出所有点对的最短距离与对应路径,在得到最短距离的同时也得到对应的路径,结果显示在最终的一般赋权路径矩阵上。该算法易于通过计算机编程实现,对于大规模有向图或无向图,更有优势。     

一种快速求解最短路径巡游问题的涟漪扩散算法

针对最短路径巡游问题（SPTP）,提出了基于涟漪扩散算法（RSA）特征的SPTP分解方法。RSA通过模拟水面上涟漪传播的现象,在SPTP子问题间建立联系,相较于其他基于问题分解的算法减少了计算冗余度。进一步改进RSA,使其在维持时间复杂度不变的情况下求解多起点—多终点SPTP。在多种拓扑结构的网络中进行对比实验,结果表明,RSA在保证最优性的同时运算效率最高。RSA对于多起点—多终点SPTP的高效求解,可为多种现实问题快速提供解决方案,具有很高的应用价值。     

Hybrid shortest path algorithm for vehicle navigation

Vehicle navigation is one of the important applications of the single-source single-target shortest path algorithm. This application frequently involves large scale networks with limited computing power and memory space. In this study, several heuristic concepts, including hierarchical, bidirectional, and A^*, are combined and used to develop hybrid algorithms that reduce searching space, improve searching speed, and provide the shortest path that closely resembles the behavior of most road users. The proposed algorithms are demonstrated on a real network consisting 374,520 nodes and 502,485 links. The network is preprocessed and separated into two connected subnetworks. The upper layer of network is constructed with high mobility links, while the lower layer comprises high accessibility links. The proposed hybrid algorithms are implemented on both PC and hand-held platforms. Experiments show a significant acceleration compared to the Dijkstra and A^* algorithm. Memory consumption of the hybrid algorithm is also considerably less than traditional algorithms. Results of this study showed the hybrid algorithms have an advantage over the traditional algorithm for vehicle navigation systems.     

Modeling wildfire propagation with the stochastic shortest path: A fast simulation approach

Wildfires have significant environmental and economic effects. Since containment of wildfires involves deciding under tight time constraints, there is an increasing need for accurate yet computationally efficient wildfire prediction models. We consider the problem of finding the fire traversal time across a landscape considering wind speed as an unpredictable phenomenon. The landscape is represented as a graph network and fire propagation time is modeled as the Stochastic Shortest Path problem. Monte-Carlo simulation is utilized to determine the fire travel-time distribution. A network size reduction methodology is introduced to quicken the simulation time by eliminating the unimportant parts of the network. This methodology is implemented in Java to simulate the wildfire propagation on a study area located in Massachusetts. This method shows the capability of substantially reducing the simulation time without affecting prediction accuracy, enabling the algorithm to serve as a fast and reliable tool for fire prediction.     

Stochastic shortest path with unlimited hops

We present new results for the Stochastic Shortest Path problem when an unlimited number of hops may be used. Nodes and links in the network may be congested or uncongested, and their states change over time. The goal is to adaptively choose the next node to visit such that the expected cost to the destination is minimized. Since the state of a node may change, having the option to revisit a node can improve the expected cost. Therefore, the option to use an unbounded number of hops may be required to achieve the minimum expected cost. We show that when revisits are prohibited, the optimal routing problem is np-hard. We also prove properties about networks for which continual improvement may occur.We study the related routing problem which asks whether it is possible to determine the optimal next node based on the current node and state, when an unlimited number of hops is allowed. We show that as the number of hops increases, this problem may not converge to a solution.     

Shortest path problem with uncertain arc lengths

Uncertainty theory provides a new tool to deal with the shortest path problem with nondeterministic arc lengths. With help from the operational law of uncertainty theory, this paper gives the uncertainty distribution of the shortest path length. Also, it investigates solutions to the α-shortest path and the most shortest path in an uncertain network. It points out that there exists an equivalence relation between the α-shortest path in an uncertain network and the shortest path in a corresponding deterministic network, which leads to an effective algorithm to find the α-shortest path and the most shortest path. Roughly speaking, this algorithm can be broken down into two parts: constructing a deterministic network and then invoking the Dijkstra algorithm.     

最小时间路径算法的改进及在路径优化中的应用

由于城市交通网络中路径行程时间是随着时间的变化而变化的,求解最小时间路径比较困难,为此提出把交通网络抽象为时间依赖的网络模型的解决方法。对时间依赖网络模型和理论基础进行分析,指出文献［1］描述的最小时间路径算法存在的不足,即不能正确记录路径;通过引入一个记录路径的数组来对此算法进行改进,改进后的算法不仅解决了原算法存在的问题,而且可以满足n∶1的最短路径搜索,扩展了原算法的应用范围。最后用实验验证了改进算法的正确性和有效性。