A heuristic for the container loading problem: A tertiary-tree-based dynamic space decomposition approach

Increasing fuel costs, post-911 security concerns, and economic globalization provide a strong incentive for container carriers to use available container space more efficiently, thereby minimizing the number of container trips and reducing socio-economic vulnerability. A heuristic algorithm based on a tertiary tree model is proposed to handle the container loading problem (CLP) with weakly heterogeneous boxes. A dynamic space decomposition method based on the tertiary tree structure is developed to partition the remaining container space after a block of homogeneous rectangular boxes is loaded into a container. This decomposition approach, together with an optimal-fitting sequencing and an inner-right-corner-occupying placement rule, permits a holistic loading strategy to pack a container. Comparative studies with existing algorithms and an illustrative example demonstrate the efficiency of this algorithm.     

A reference length approach for the 3D strip packing problem

In the three-dimensional strip packing problem (3DSP), we are given a container with an open dimension and a set of rectangular cuboids (boxes) and the task is to orthogonally pack all the boxes into the container such that the magnitude of the open dimension is minimized. We propose a block building heuristic based on extreme points for this problem that uses a reference length to guide its solution. Our 3DSP approach employs this heuristic in a one-step lookahead tree search algorithm using an iterative construction strategy. We tested our approach on standard 3DSP benchmark test data; the results show that our approach produces better solutions on average than all other approaches in literature for the majority of these data sets using comparable computation time.     

A hybrid genetic algorithm for the container loading problem

This paper presents a hybrid genetic algorithm (GA) for the container loading problem with boxes of different sizes and a single container for loading. Generated stowage plans include several vertical layers each containing several boxes. Within the procedure, stowage plans are represented by complex data structures closely related to the problem. To generate offspring, specific genetic operators are used that are based on an integrated greedy heuristic. The process takes several practical constraints into account. Extensive test calculations including procedures from other authors vouch for the good performance of the GA, above all for problems with strongly heterogeneous boxes.     

Local search for a multi-drop multi-container loading problem

We consider a complex variant of the Container Loading Problem arising from a real-world industrial application. It includes several features such as multiple containers, box rotation, and bearable weight, which are of importance in many practical situations. In addition, it also considers the situation in which boxes have to be delivered to different destinations (multi-drop). Our solution technique is based on local search metaheuristics. Local search works on the space of sequences of boxes to be loaded, while the actual load is obtained by invoking, at each iteration, a specialized procedure called loader. The loader inserts the boxes in the container using a deterministic heuristic which produces a load that is feasible according to the constraints. We test our solver on real-world instances provided by our industrial partner, showing a clear improvement on the previous heuristic solution. In addition, we compare our solver on benchmarks from the literature on the basic container loading problems. The outcome is that the results are in some cases in-line with the best ones in the literature and for other cases they also improve upon the best known ones. All instances and solutions are made available on the web for future comparisons.     

Multiple Container Packing: A Case Study of Pipe Packing

While the problem of packing single containers and pallets has been thoroughly investigated very little attention has been given to the efficient packing of multiple container loads. Normally in practice a multiple container load is packed by a single container algorithm used in a greedy fashion. This paper introduces the issues involved in multiple container loading. It lays out three different strategies for solving the problem: sequential packing using a single container heuristic, pre-allocating items to the containers and choosing container loads using simultaneous packing models. The principal simultaneous models are pattern selection IP models. We present an application of packing pipes in shipping containers using two pattern selection IP models, a pattern selection heuristic, a sequential greedy algorithm and a pre-allocation method. The experimental results use randomly generated data sets. We discuss several useful insights into the methods and show that for this application the pattern selection methods perform best.     

A new iterative-doubling Greedy–Lookahead algorithm for the single container loading problem

The aim of the Single Container Loading Problem (SCLP) is to pack three-dimensional boxes into a three-dimensional container so as to maximize the volume utilization of the container. We propose a new block building approach that constructs packings by placing one block (of boxes) at a time until no more boxes can be loaded. The key to obtaining high quality solutions is to select the right block to place into the right free space cuboid (or residual space) in the container. We propose a new heuristic for evaluating the fitness of residual spaces, and use a tree search to decide the best residual space-block pair at each step. The resultant algorithm outperforms the best known algorithms based on the 1600 commonly used benchmark instances even when given fewer computational resources. We also adapted our approach to address the full support constraint. The computational results for the full support support variant on the 1600 instances similarly show a significant improvement over existing techniques even when given substantially fewer computational resources.     

A goal-driven prototype column generation strategy for the multiple container loading cost minimization problem

In the multiple container loading cost minimization problem (MCLCMP), rectangular boxes of various dimensions are loaded into rectangular containers of various sizes so as to minimize the total shipping cost. The MCLCMP can be naturally modeled as a set cover problem. We generalize the set cover formulation by introducing a new parameter to model the gross volume utilization of containers in a solution. The state-of-the-art algorithm tackles the MCLCMP using the prototype column generation (PCG) technique. PCG is an effective technique for speeding up the column generation technique for extremely hard optimization problems where their corresponding pricing subproblems are NP-hard. We propose a new approach to the MCLCMP that combines the PCG technique with a goal-driven search. Our goal-driven prototype column generation (GD-PCG) algorithm improves the original PCG approach in three respects. Computational experiments suggest that all three enhancements are effective. Our GD-PCG algorithm produces significantly better solutions for the 350 existing benchmark instances than all other approaches in the literature using less computation time. We also generate two new set instances based on industrial data and the classical single container loading instances.     

Solving container loading problems by block arrangement

In order to solve heterogeneous single and multiple container loading problems, an algorithm is presented that builds homogeneous blocks of identically orientated items. First a greedy heuristic is presented that generates the desired block arrangements. Second the solutions provided by the greedy heuristic are improved by a tree search. Additional aspects such as load stability and weight distribution within the container are also taken into account. The test cases of Bischoff and Ratcliff are used for benchmarking purposes.     

A tree search algorithm for solving the multi-dimensional strip packing problem with guillotine cutting constraint

The article presents a tree search algorithm (TRSA) for the strip packing problem in two and three dimensions with guillotine cutting constraint. In the 3D-SPP a set of rectangular items (boxes) and a container with fixed width and height but variable length are given. An arrangement of all boxes within the container has to be determined so that the required length is minimised. The 2D-SPP is analogously defined. The proposed TRSA is based on a tree search algorithm for the container loading problem by Fanslau and Bortfeldt (INFORMS J. Comput. 22:222?C235, 2010). The TRSA generates guillotine packing patterns throughout. In a comparison with all recently proposed 3D-SPP methods the TRSA performs very competitive. Fine results are also achieved for the 2D-SPP.     

A hybrid GRASP/VND algorithm for two- and three-dimensional bin packing

The three-dimensional bin packing problem consists of packing a set of boxes into the minimum number of bins. In this paper we propose a new GRASP algorithm for solving three-dimensional bin packing problems which can also be directly applied to the two-dimensional case. The constructive phase is based on a maximal-space heuristic developed for the container loading problem. In the improvement phase, several new moves are designed and combined in a VND structure. The resulting hybrid GRASP/VND algorithm is simple and quite fast and the extensive computational results on test instances from the literature show that the quality of the solutions is equal to or better than that obtained by the best existing heuristic procedures.     

Combination of local search and CLP in the vehicle-fleet scheduling problem

Vehicle-fleet scheduling is one of the most commonly occurring problems of transport management. In this paper a new approach facing the problem is introduced. It draws upon the combination of the advantages of Constraint Logic Programming (CLP) with the benefits of local search in order to obtain satisfactory results with respect to execution time. CLP is used for generating an initial feasible solution and then for checking every intermediate solution obtained from local search so that it is in accordance with the constraints of the problem. Local search is implemented for the minimisation of the cost of the initial solution. Several local search methods were tested on various cases of the problem and the results obtained are discussed and compared with respect to the cost of the solution and the execution time.     

Heuristic for constrained two-dimensional three-staged patterns

Three-staged cutting patterns are often used in dividing large plates into small rectangular items. Vertical cuts separate the plate into segments in the first stage, horizontal cuts split each segment into strips in the second stage, and vertical cuts divide each strip into items in the third stage. A heuristic algorithm for generating constrained three-staged patterns is presented in this paper. The optimization objective is to maximize the pattern value that is the total value of the included items, while the frequency of each item type should not exceed the specified upper bound. The algorithm uses an exact procedure to generate strips and two heuristic procedures to generate segments and the pattern. The pattern-generation procedure first determines an initial solution and then uses its information to generate more segments to extend the solution space. Computational results show that the algorithm is effective in improving solution quality.     

A hybrid placement strategy for the three-dimensional strip packing problem

This paper presents a hybrid placement strategy for the three-dimensional strip packing problem which involves packing a set of cuboids (‘boxes’) into a three-dimensional bin (parallelepiped) of fixed width and height but unconstrained length (the ‘container’). The goal is to pack all of the boxes into the container, minimising its resulting length. This problem has potential industry application in stock cutting (wood, polystyrene, etc. – minimising wastage) and also cargo loading, as well as other applications in areas such as multi-dimensional resource scheduling. In addition to the proposed strategy a number of test results on available literature benchmark problems are presented and analysed. The results of empirical testing of the algorithm show that it out-performs other methods from the literature, consistently in terms of speed and solution quality-producing 28 best known results from 35 test cases.     

A hybrid evolutionary algorithm for the two-dimensional packing problem

This paper presents a hybrid evolutionary algorithm for the two-dimensional non-guillotine packing problem. The problem consists of packing many rectangular pieces into a single rectangular sheet in order to maximize the total area of the pieces packed. Moreover, there is a constraint on the maximum number of times that a piece may be used in a packing pattern. The set of packing patterns is processed by an evolutionary algorithm. Three mutation operators and two types of quality functions are used in the algorithm. The best solution obtained by the evolutionary algorithm is used as the initial solution in a tree search improvement procedure. This approach is tested on a set of benchmark problems taken from the literature and compared with the results published by other authors.     

On the complexity of solving feasible systems of linear inequalities specified with approximate data

An algorithm that gives an approximate solution of a desired accuracy to a system of linear inequalities specified with approximate data is presented. It uses knowledge that the actual instance is feasible to reduce the data precision necessary to give an approximate solution to the actual instance. In some cases, this additional information allows problem instances that are ill-posed without the knowledge of feasibility to be solved.The algorithm is computationally efficient and requires not much more data accuracy than the minimal amount necessary to give an approximate solution of the desired accuracy. This work aids in the development of a computational complexity theory that uses approximate data and knowledge.     

A new VRPPD model and a hybrid heuristic solution approach for e-tailing

We analyze a business model for e-supermarkets to enable multi-product sourcing capacity through co-opetition (collaborative competition). The logistics aspect of our approach is to design and execute a network system where “premium” goods are acquired from vendors at multiple locations in the supply network and delivered to customers. Our specific goals are to: (i) investigate the role of premium product offerings in creating critical mass and profit; (ii) develop a model for the multiple-pickup single-delivery vehicle routing problem in the presence of multiple vendors; and (iii) propose a hybrid solution approach. To solve the problem introduced in this paper, we develop a hybrid metaheuristic approach that uses a Genetic Algorithm for vendor selection and allocation, and a modified savings algorithm for the capacitated VRP with multiple pickup, single delivery and time windows (CVRPMPDTW). The proposed Genetic Algorithm guides the search for optimal vendor pickup location decisions, and for each generated solution in the genetic population, a corresponding CVRPMPDTW is solved using the savings algorithm. We validate our solution approach against published VRPTW solutions and also test our algorithm with Solomon instances modified for CVRPMPDTW.     

Finite iterative solutions to coupled Sylvester-conjugate matrix equations

This paper is concerned with solutions to the so-called coupled Sylveter-conjugate matrix equations, which include the generalized Sylvester matrix equation and coupled Lyapunov matrix equation as special cases. An iterative algorithm is constructed to solve this kind of matrix equations. By using the proposed algorithm, the existence of a solution to a coupled Sylvester-conjugate matrix equation can be determined automatically. When the considered matrix equation is consistent, it is proven by using a real inner product in complex matrix spaces as a tool that a solution can be obtained within finite iteration steps for any initial values in the absence of round-off errors. Another feature of the proposed algorithm is that it can be implemented by using original coefficient matrices, and does not require to transform the coefficient matrices into any canonical forms. The algorithm is also generalized to solve a more general case. Two numerical examples are given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.     

Neighborhood structures for the container loading problem: a VNS implementation

This paper presents a Variable Neighborhood Search (VNS) algorithm for the container loading problem. The algorithm combines a constructive procedure based on the concept of maximal-space, with five new movements defined directly on the physical layout of the packed boxes, which involve insertion and deletion strategies. The new algorithm is tested on the complete set of Bischoff and Ratcliff problems, ranging from weakly to strongly heterogeneous instances, and outperforms all the reported algorithms which have used those test instances.     

Impact indentation of a rigid body into an elastic layer. Axisymmetric problem

An axisymmetric contact-impact problem is considered for an elastic layer subjected to normal indentation of a rigid body. An exact analytical solution is obtained in the case of a blunt shape of the indenter having a given velocity, and the stress pattern under multiple reflections is analyzed depending on the layer thickness. A numerical solution of the problem with arbitrary indenter shape is obtained on the basis of the simplified model of the theory of elasticity having a single displacement coincident with the impact direction. The explicit finite difference algorithm is designed on the basis of the mesh dispersion minimization technique. A parametric analysis is presented of the stress pattern developed with time with respect to variations of irregular shapes of the indenter and its masses.     

Finite iterative algorithms for a common solution to a group of complex matrix equations

An iterative algorithm is constructed to give a common solution to a group of complex matrix equations. By using the proposed algorithm, the existence of a common solution can be determined automatically. When a common solution exists for this group of matrix equations, it is proven by using a real inner product in complex matrix spaces as a tool that a solution can be obtained within finite iteration steps for any initial values in the absence of round-off errors. The algorithm is also generalized to solve a more general case. A numerical example is given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.