The average-case analysis of some on-line algorithms for bin packing

In this paper we give tighter bounds than were previously known for the performance of the bin packing algorithms Best Fit and First Fit when the inputs are uniformly distributed on [0, 1]. We also give a general lower bound for the performance of any on-line bin packing algorithm on this distribution. We prove these results by analyzing optimal matchings on points randomly distributed in a unit square. We give a new lower bound for the up-right matching problem. A preliminary version of this paper appeared inProc. 25th IEEE Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science, 193–200. This research was done while the author was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Dept. of Mathematics and was supported by a NSF Graduate Fellowship and by Air Force grant OSR-82-0326.     

A one-dimensional bin packing problem with shelf divisions

Given bins of size B, non-negative values d and Δ, and a list L of items, each item e∈L with size s_e and class c_e, we define a shelf as a subset of items packed inside a bin with total item sizes at most Δ such that all items in this shelf have the same class. Two subsequent shelves must be separated by a shelf division of size d. The size of a shelf is the total size of its items plus the size of the shelf division. The class constrained shelf bin packing problem (CCSBP) is to pack the items of L into the minimum number of bins, such that the items are divided into shelves and the total size of the shelves in a bin is at most B. We present hybrid algorithms based on the First Fit (Decreasing) and Best Fit (Decreasing) algorithms, and an APTAS for the problem CCSBP when the number of different classes is bounded by a constant C.     

A note on a selfish bin packing problem

In this paper, we consider a selfish bin packing problem, where each item is a selfish player and wants to minimize its cost. In our new model, if there are k items packed in the same bin, then each item pays a cost 1/k, where k ≥ 1. First we find a Nash Equilibrium (NE) in time O(n log n) within a social cost at most 1.69103OPT + 3, where OPT is the social cost of an optimal packing; where n is the number of items or players; then we give tight bounds for the worst NE on the social cost; finally we show that any feasible packing can be converged to a Nash Equilibrium in O(n ²) steps without increasing the social cost.     

Selfish Square Packing

We consider a game-theoretical bin packing problem. The 1D (one dimensional) case has been treated in the literature as the ʼselfish bin packing problemʼ. We investigate a 2D version, in which the items to be packed are squares and the bins are unit squares. In this game, a set of items is packed into bins. Each player controls exactly one item and is charged with a cost defined as the ratio between the area of the item and the occupied area of the respective bin. One at a time, players selfishly move their items from one bin to another, in order to minimize the costs they are charged. At a Nash equilibrium, no player can reduce the cost he is charged by moving his item to a different bin. In the 2D case, to decide whether an item can be placed in another bin with other items is NP-complete, so we consider that players use a packing algorithm to make this decision. We show that this game converges to a Nash equilibrium, independently of the packing algorithm used. We prove that the price of anarchy is at least 2.27. We also prove that, using the NFDH packing algorithm, the asymptotic price of anarchy is at most 2.6875.     

带参量的非合作装箱博弈

带参量的非合作装箱博弈是指:每个物品的尺寸都介于0和参量x(0相似文献   

超尺寸物品装箱问题

本文给出一类新的装箱问题，超尺寸物品装箱问题。就实际解决该问题所普遍彩的两步法，证明了当采用经典目标函数并且拆分次数不超过2时，第二步采用FFDLR的渐进最坏比为3/2。进而针对超尺寸物品装箱问题的算法提出了一个评价效率更高的目标函数。证明了在此目标函数下，当不限制物品的最大尺寸时，第二步采用最优装法两步法的渐近最坏比为2。最后，给出渐近最坏与拆分次数的关系。     

经典一维装箱问题近似算法的研究进展

自20世纪70年代开始,随着计算复杂性理论的建立,近似算法逐渐成为组合优化的重要研究方向。作为第一批研究对象,装箱问题引起了组合优化领域学者的极大关注。装箱问题模型简单、拓展性强,广泛出现在各种带容量约束的资源分配问题中。除了在物流装载和材料切割等方面愈来愈重要的应用外,装箱算法的任何理论突破都关乎到整个组合优化领域的发展。直到今天,对装箱问题近似算法的研究仍如火如荼。本文主要针对一维模型,简述若干经典Fit算法的发展历程,分析基于线性规划松弛的近似方案的主要思路,总结当前的研究现状并对未来的研究提供一些参考建议。     

经典一维装箱问题近似算法的研究进展

自20世纪70年代开始,随着计算复杂性理论的建立,近似算法逐渐成为组合优化的重要研究方向。作为第一批研究对象,装箱问题引起了组合优化领域学者的极大关注。装箱问题模型简单、拓展性强,广泛出现在各种带容量约束的资源分配问题中。除了在物流装载和材料切割等方面愈来愈重要的应用外,装箱算法的任何理论突破都关乎到整个组合优化领域的发展。直到今天,对装箱问题近似算法的研究仍如火如荼。本文主要针对一维模型,简述若干经典Fit算法的发展历程,分析基于线性规划松弛的近似方案的主要思路,总结当前的研究现状并对未来的研究提供一些参考建议。     

A hybrid heuristic algorithm for the 2D variable-sized bin packing problem

In this paper, we consider the two-dimensional variable-sized bin packing problem (2DVSBPP) with guillotine constraint. 2DVSBPP is a well-known NP-hard optimization problem which has several real applications. A mixed bin packing algorithm (MixPacking) which combines a heuristic packing algorithm with the Best Fit algorithm is proposed to solve the single bin problem, and then a backtracking algorithm which embeds MixPacking is developed to solve the 2DVSBPP. A hybrid heuristic algorithm based on iterative simulated annealing and binary search (named HHA) is then developed to further improve the results of our Backtracking algorithm. Computational experiments on the benchmark instances for 2DVSBPP show that HHA has achieved good results and outperforms existing algorithms.     

A note on the approximability of cutting stock problems

Cutting stock problems and bin packing problems are basically the same problems. They differ essentially on the variability of the input items. In the first, we have a set of items, each item with a given multiplicity; in the second, we have simply a list of items (each of which we may assume to have multiplicity 1). Many approximation algorithms have been designed for packing problems; a natural question is whether some of these algorithms can be extended to cutting stock problems. We define the notion of “well-behaved” algorithms and show that well-behaved approximation algorithms for one, two and higher dimensional bin packing problems can be translated to approximation algorithms for cutting stock problems with the same approximation ratios.     

Fast algorithms for fragmentable items bin packing

Bin packing with fragmentable items is a variant of the classic bin packing problem where items may be cut into smaller fragments. The objective is to minimize the number of item fragments, or equivalently, to minimize the number of cuts, for a given number of bins. Models based on packing fragmentable items are useful for representing finite shared resources. In this article, we present improvements to approximation and metaheuristic algorithms to obtain an optimality-preserving optimization algorithm with polynomial complexity, worst-case performance guarantees and parametrizable running time. We also present a new family of fast lower bounds and prove their worst-case performance ratios. We evaluate the performance and quality of the algorithm and the best lower bound through a series of computational experiments on representative problem instances. For the studied problem sets, one consisting of 180 problems with up to 20 items and another consisting of 450 problems with up to 1024 items, the lower bound performs no worse than 5 / 6. For the first problem set, the algorithm found an optimal solution in 92 % of all 1800 runs. For the second problem set, the algorithm found an optimal solution in 99 % of all 4500 runs. No run lasted longer than 220 ms.     

Construction heuristics for two-dimensional irregular shape bin packing with guillotine constraints

The paper examines a new problem in the irregular packing literature that has many applications in industry: two-dimensional irregular (convex) bin packing with guillotine constraints. Due to the cutting process of certain materials, cuts are restricted to extend from one edge of the stock-sheet to another, called guillotine cutting. This constraint is common place in glass cutting and is an important constraint in two-dimensional cutting and packing problems. In the literature, various exact and approximate algorithms exist for finding the two dimensional cutting patterns that satisfy the guillotine cutting constraint. However, to the best of our knowledge, all of the algorithms are designed for solving rectangular cutting where cuts are orthogonal with the edges of the stock-sheet. In order to satisfy the guillotine cutting constraint using these approaches, when the pieces are non-rectangular, practitioners implement a two stage approach. First, pieces are enclosed within rectangle shapes and then the rectangles are packed. Clearly, imposing this condition is likely to lead to additional waste. This paper aims to generate guillotine-cutting layouts of irregular shapes using a number of strategies. The investigation compares three two-stage approaches: one approximates pieces by rectangles, the other two approximate pairs of pieces by rectangles using a cluster heuristic or phi-functions for optimal clustering. All three approaches use a competitive algorithm for rectangle bin packing with guillotine constraints. Further, we design and implement a one-stage approach using an adaptive forest search algorithm. Experimental results show the one-stage strategy produces good solutions in less time over the two-stage approach.     

New lower bounds for the three-dimensional finite bin packing problem

The three-dimensional finite bin packing problem (3BP) consists of determining the minimum number of large identical three-dimensional rectangular boxes, bins, that are required for allocating without overlapping a given set of three-dimensional rectangular items. The items are allocated into a bin with their edges always parallel or orthogonal to the bin edges. The problem is strongly NP-hard and finds many practical applications. We propose new lower bounds for the problem where the items have a fixed orientation and then we extend these bounds to the more general problem where for each item the subset of rotations by 90° allowed is specified. The proposed lower bounds have been evaluated on different test problems derived from the literature. Computational results show the effectiveness of the new lower bounds.     

A note on a variant of the online open end bin packing problem

We study the minimum variant of the online open end bin packing problem. Items are presented one by one, and an item can be packed into a bin while the resulting total size of items excluding the minimum size item of the bin will be below 1. We design an improved online algorithm whose asymptotic competitive ratio does not exceed 1.180952381, and we prove a new lower bound of 1.1666666 on the asymptotic competitive ratio of any online algorithm.     

Biased Random Walks, Lyapunov Functions, and Stochastic Analysis of Best Fit Bin Packing

We study the average case performance of the Best Fit algorithm for on-line bin packing under the distributionU{j, k}, in which the item sizes are uniformly distributed in the discrete range {1/k, 2/k,…,j/k}. Our main result is that, in the casej = k − 2, the expected waste for an infinite stream of items remains bounded. This settles an open problem posed by Coffmanet al.[[4]]. It is also the first result which involves a detailed analysis of the infinite multidimensional Markov chain underlying the algorithm.     

THE FFD ALGORITHM FOR THE BIN PACKING PROBLEM WITH KERNEL ITEMS

The FFD algorithm is one of the most famous algorithms for the classical bin packing problem. In this paper,some versions of the FFD algorithm are considered in several bin packing problems. Especially,two of them applied to the bin packing problem with kernel items are analyzed. Tight worst-case performance ratios are obtained.     

Simulated annealing: Use of a new tool in bin packing

Simulated annealing (statistical cooling) is applied to bin packing problems. Different cooling strategies are compared empirically and for a particular 100 item problem a solution is given which is most likely the best known so far.The work was partially done during the author's visit to the University of California, Berkeley, sponsored by the Humboldt-Foundation.     

An agent-based approach to the two-dimensional guillotine bin packing problem

The two-dimensional guillotine bin packing problem consists of packing, without overlap, small rectangular items into the smallest number of large rectangular bins where items are obtained via guillotine cuts. This problem is solved using a new guillotine bottom left (GBL) constructive heuristic and its agent-based (A–B) implementation. GBL, which is sequential, successively packs items into a bin and creates a new bin every time it can no longer fit any unpacked item into the current one. A–B, which is pseudo-parallel, uses the simplest system of artificial life. This system consists of active agents dynamically interacting in real time to jointly fill the bins while each agent is driven by its own parameters, decision process, and fitness assessment. A–B is particularly fast and yields near-optimal solutions. Its modularity makes it easily adaptable to knapsack related problems.     

Relations between capacity utilization,minimal bin size and bin number

We consider the two-dimensional bin packing problem given a set of rectangular items, find the minimal number of rectangular bins needed to pack all items. Rotation of the items is not permitted. We show for any integer \({k} \ge 3\) that at most \({k}-1\) bins are needed to pack all items if every item fits into a bin and if the total area of items does not exceed \({k}/4\) -times the bin area. Moreover, this bound is tight. Furthermore, we show that only two bins are necessary to pack all items if the total area of items is not larger than the bin area, and if the height of each item is not larger than a third of the bin height and the width of every item does not exceed half of the bin width.     

Fuzzy bin packing problem

This paper deals with the fuzzy bin packing problem that is a packing problem of non-rigid rectangles into an open rectangular bin. This problem is different from the conventional bin packing problem, which considers only rigid rectangles. The goal of the fuzzy bin packing problem is to minimize both the height of a packing and the extra cost due to the reduction of each piece. The total cost of the problem is represented as the sum of the height cost and the extra cost due to reductions of the pieces, which is called reduction cost. Because the conventional bin packing problem itself is an NP-hard problem, the presented optimization method assumes that an initial packing for non-reduced pieces has already been found. A closed form solution is presented for fuzzy bin packing problems, in which fuzzy numbers are triangular and the reduction cost is given by a quadratic function.