TY - GEN A1 - Harks, Tobias A1 - Heinz, Stefan A1 - Pfetsch, Marc T1 - Competitive Online Multicommodity Routing N2 - We study online multicommodity minimum cost routing problems in networks, where commodities have to be routed sequentially. Arcs are equipped with load dependent price functions defining the routing weights. We discuss an online algorithm that routes each commodity by minimizing a convex cost function that depends on the demands that are previously routed. We present a competitive analysis of this algorithm showing that for affine linear price functions this algorithm is $4K/2+K$-competitive, where $K$ is the number of commodities. For the parallel arc case this algorithm is optimal. Without restrictions on the price functions and network, no algorithm is competitive. Finally, we investigate a variant in which the demands have to be routed unsplittably. T3 - ZIB-Report - 06-27 KW - Online Optimization KW - Routing KW - Telecommunications Y1 - 2006 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-9212 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Harks, Tobias A1 - Heinz, Stefan A1 - Pfetsch, Marc T1 - Competitive Online Multicommodity Routing N2 - In this paper we study online multicommodity routing problems in networks, in which commodities have to be routed sequentially. The flow of each commodity can be split on several paths. Arcs are equipped with load dependent price functions defining routing costs, which have to be minimized. We discuss a greedy online algorithm that routes each commodity by minimizing a convex cost function that only depends on the demands previously routed. We present a competitive analysis of this algorithm showing that for affine linear price functions this algorithm is 4K2 (1+K)2 -competitive, where K is the number of commodities. For the single-source single-destination case, this algorithm is optimal. Without restrictions on the price functions and network, no algorithm is competitive. Finally, we investigate a variant in which the demands have to be routed unsplittably. T3 - ZIB-Report - 07-16 KW - Online Optimization KW - Routing KW - Telecommunications Y1 - 2007 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-9599 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Harks, Tobias T1 - Nash Equilibria in Online Sequential Routing Games N2 - In this paper, we study the efficiency of Nash equilibria for a sequence of nonatomic routing games. We assume that the games are played consecutively in time in an online fashion: by the time of playing game $i$, future games $i+1,\dots,n$ are not known, and, once players of game $i$ are in equilibrium, their corresponding strategies and costs remain fixed. Given a sequence of games, the cost for the sequence of Nash equilibria is defined as the sum of the cost of each game. We analyze the efficiency of a sequence of Nash equilibria in terms of competitive analysis arising in the online optimization field. Our main result states that the online algorithm $\sl {SeqNash}$ consisting of the sequence of Nash equilibria is $\frac{4n}{2+n}$-competitive for affine linear latency functions. For $n=1$, this result contains the bound on the price of anarchy of $\frac{4}{3}$ for affine linear latency functions of Roughgarden and Tardos [2002] as a special case. Furthermore, we analyze a problem variant with a modified cost function that reflects the total congestion cost, when all games have been played. In this case, we prove an upper bound of $\frac{4n}{2+n}$ on the competitive ratio of $\sl {SeqNash}$. We further prove a lower bound of $\frac{3n-2}{n}$ of $\sl {SeqNash}$ showing that for $n=2$ our upper bound is tight. T3 - ZIB-Report - 06-43 KW - Congestion Game KW - Online Optimization KW - Nash equilibria Y1 - 2006 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-9376 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Wolf, Thomas T1 - A Study of Genetic Algorithms solving a combinatorial Puzzle N2 - The suitability of Genetic Algorithms (GAs) to solve a combinatorial problem with only one solution is investigated. The dependence of the performance is studied for GA-hard and GA-soft fitness functions, both with a range of different parameter values and different encodings. T3 - ZIB-Report - SC-98-01 Y1 - 1998 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-3445 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Berthold, Timo A1 - Heinz, Stefan A1 - Pfetsch, Marc A1 - Vigerske, Stefan T1 - Large Neighborhood Search beyond MIP N2 - Large neighborhood search (LNS) heuristics are an important component of modern branch-and-cut algorithms for solving mixed-integer linear programs (MIPs). Most of these LNS heuristics use the LP relaxation as the basis for their search, which is a reasonable choice in case of MIPs. However, for more general problem classes, the LP relaxation alone may not contain enough information about the original problem to find feasible solutions with these heuristics, e.g., if the problem is nonlinear or not all constraints are present in the current relaxation. In this paper, we discuss a generic way to extend LNS heuristics that have been developed for MIP to constraint integer programming (CIP), which is a generalization of MIP in the direction of constraint programming (CP). We present computational results of LNS heuristics for three problem classes: mixed-integer quadratically constrained programs, nonlinear pseudo-Boolean optimization instances, and resource-constrained project scheduling problems. Therefore, we have implemented extended versions of the following LNS heuristics in the constraint integer programming framework SCIP: Local Branching, RINS, RENS, Crossover, and DINS. Our results indicate that a generic generalization of LNS heuristics to CIP considerably improves the success rate of these heuristics. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-21 KW - Large Neighborhood Search KW - Primal Heuristic KW - MIP KW - MIQCP KW - Pseudo-Boolean Y1 - 2011 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-12989 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Sagnol, Guillaume T1 - Approximation of a Maximum-Submodular-Coverage problem involving spectral functions, with application to Experimental Design N2 - We study a family of combinatorial optimization problems defined by a parameter $p\in[0,1]$, which involves spectral functions applied to positive semidefinite matrices, and has some application in the theory of optimal experimental design. This family of problems tends to a generalization of the classical maximum coverage problem as $p$ goes to $0$, and to a trivial instance of the knapsack problem as $p$ goes to $1$. In this article, we establish a matrix inequality which shows that the objective function is submodular for all $p\in[0,1]$, from which it follows that the greedy approach, which has often been used for this problem, always gives a design within $1-1/e$ of the optimum. We next study the design found by rounding the solution of the continuous relaxed problem, an approach which has been applied by several authors. We prove an inequality which generalizes a classical result from the theory of optimal designs, and allows us to give a rounding procedure with an approximation factor which tends to $1$ as $p$ goes to $1$. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-53 KW - Maximum Coverage KW - Optimal Experimental Design KW - Polynomial Time Approximability KW - Kiefer's p-criterion Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14956 SN - 1438-0064 VL - 151 IS - 1--2 SP - 258 EP - 276 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Omont, Bertrand A1 - Sagnol, Guillaume A1 - Swarat, Elmar T1 - A Stackelberg game to optimize the distribution of controls in transportation networks N2 - We propose a game theoretic model for the spatial distribution of inspectors on a transportation network. The problem is to spread out the controls so as to enforce the payment of a transit toll. We formulate a linear program to find the control distribution which maximizes the expected toll revenue, and a mixed integer program for the problem of minimizing the number of evaders. Furthermore, we show that the problem of finding an optimal mixed strategy for a coalition of $N$ inspectors can be solved efficiently by a column generation procedure. Finally, we give experimental results from an application to the truck toll on German motorways. T3 - ZIB-Report - 12-15 KW - Stackelberg game KW - Polymatrix game KW - Controls in transportation networks Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14995 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hiller, Benjamin A1 - Klug, Torsten A1 - Tuchscherer, Andreas T1 - An Exact Reoptimization Algorithm for the Scheduling of Elevator Groups N2 - The task of an elevator control is to schedule the elevators of a group such that small waiting and travel times for the passengers are obtained. We present an exact reoptimization algorithm for this problem. A reoptimization algorithm computes a new schedule for the elevator group each time a new passenger arrives. Our algorithm uses column generation techniques and is, to the best of our knowledge, the first exact reoptimization algorithms for a group of passenger elevators. To solve the column generation problem, we propose a Branch & Bound method. T3 - ZIB-Report - 12-43 KW - elevator control, online optimization, reoptimization algorithms, column generation Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-16485 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hiller, Benjamin A1 - Vredeveld, Tjark T1 - Stochastic dominance analysis of Online Bin Coloring algorithms N2 - This paper proposes a new method for probabilistic analysis of online algorithms. It is based on the notion of stochastic dominance. We develop the method for the online bin coloring problem introduced by Krumke et al (2008). Using methods for the stochastic comparison of Markov chains we establish the result that the performance of the online algorithm GreedyFit is stochastically better than the performance of the algorithm OneBin for any number of items processed. This result gives a more realistic picture than competitive analysis and explains the behavior observed in simulations. T3 - ZIB-Report - 12-42 KW - online algorithms, stochastic dominance, algorithm analysis, Markov chains Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-16502 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Wessäly, Roland A1 - Werner, Axel A1 - Eckel, Klaus A1 - Seibel, Julia A1 - Orlowski, Sebastian A1 - Louchet, Hadrien A1 - Patzak, Erwin A1 - Bentz, Winfried T1 - Schätze heben bei der Planung von FTTx-Netzen: optimierte Nutzung von existierenden Leerrohren - eine Praxisstudie N2 - Das vom BMBF geförderte Projekt FTTX-PLAN entwickelt mathematische Modelle und Optimierungsverfahren, um automatisiert kostenoptimierte FTTx-Netze berechnen zu können. Wir zeigen anhand einer Praxisstudie in Zusammenarbeit mit der Regensburger R-KOM, wie ein Planer von diesen Verfahren profitieren kann, um die Auswirkungen bestimmter Entscheidungen auf die Netzstruktur und -kosten zu untersuchen. Wir illustrieren dies am Beispiel eines FTTB/FTTH-Vergleichs, der Variation von Kundenanbindungsraten und der gezielten Ausnutzung existierender Leerrohre, um Tiefbau zu vermeiden. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-47 KW - Praxisstudie KW - Optische Zugangsnetze KW - Optimierung Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14861 UR - http://www.vde-verlag.de/buecher/453339/breitbandversorgung-in-deutschland-itg-fb-227.html SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - Kombinatorische Optimierung und die 40-Punkte-Regel N2 - Wieviele Punkte braucht eine Mannschaft in der Fußball-Bundesliga mindestens, um sicher dem Abstieg zu entgehen? Wir benutzen kombinatorische Optimierung, um diese und ähnliche Fragen zu beantworten. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-48 KW - Kombinatorische Optimierung KW - Sport KW - Bundesliga Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14871 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Orlowski, Sebastian A1 - Werner, Axel A1 - Wessäly, Roland T1 - Estimating trenching costs in FTTx network planning N2 - In this paper we assess to which extent trenching costs of an FTTx network are unavoidable, even if technical side constraints are neglected. For that purpose we present an extended Steiner tree model. Using a variety of realistic problem instances we demonstrate that the total trenching cost can only be reduced by about 5 percent in realistic scenarios. This work has been funded by BMBF (German Federal Ministry of Education and Research) within the program "KMU-innovativ". T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-49 KW - Optical access networks KW - Optimization KW - Steiner trees Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14884 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Sagnol, Guillaume T1 - Network-related problems in Optimal Experimental Design and Second Order Cone Programming N2 - In the past few years several applications of optimal experimental designs have emerged to optimize the measurements in communication networks. The optimal design problems arising from this kind of applications share three interesting properties: (i) measurements are only available at a small number of locations of the network; (ii) each monitor can simultaneously measure several quantities, which can be modeled by ``multiresponse experiments"; (iii) the observation matrices depend on the topology of the network. In this paper, we give an overview of these experimental design problems and recall recent results for the computation of optimal designs by Second Order Cone Programming (SOCP). New results for the network-monitoring of a discrete time process are presented. In particular, we show that the optimal design problem for the monitoring of an AR1 process can be reduced to the standard form and we give experimental results. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-52 KW - Optimal Experimental Design KW - Second Order Cone Programming KW - Network measurements Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14942 SN - 1438-0064 VL - 51 IS - 51 SP - 161 EP - 171 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Humpola, Jesco T1 - A Unified View on Relaxations for a Nonlinear Network Flow Problem N2 - We consider a nonlinear nonconvex network flow problem that arises, for example, in natural gas or water transmission networks. Given is such network with active and passive components, that is, valves, compressors, pressure regulators (active) and pipelines (passive), and a desired amount of flow at certain specified entry and exit nodes of the network. Besides flow conservation constraints in the nodes the flow must fulfill nonlinear nonconvex pressure loss constraints on the arcs subject to potential values (i.e., pressure levels) in both end nodes of each arc. The problem is how to numerically compute this flow and pressures. We review an existing approach of Maugis (1977) and extend it to the case of networks with active elements (for example, compressors). We further examine different ways of relaxations for the nonlinear network flow model. We compare different approaches based on nonlinear optimization numerically on a set of test instances. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-31 KW - Nonlinear Network Flow KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - Relaxations Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18857 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Klug, Torsten A1 - Schang, Thilo A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Schülldorf, Hanno T1 - The Freight Train Routing Problem N2 - We consider the following freight train routing problem (FTRP). Given is a transportation network with fixed routes for passenger trains and a set of freight trains (requests), each defined by an origin and destination station pair. The objective is to calculate a feasible route for each freight train such that a sum of all expected delays and all running times is minimal. Previous research concentrated on microscopic train routings for junctions or inside major stations. Only recently approaches were developed to tackle larger corridors or even networks. We investigate the routing problem from a strategic perspective, calculating the routes in a macroscopic transportation network of Deutsche Bahn AG. Here macroscopic refers to an aggregation of complex real-world structures are into fewer network elements. Moreover, the departure and arrival times of freight trains are approximated. The problem has a strategic character since it asks only for a coarse routing through the network without the precise timings. We give a mixed-integer nonlinear programming~(MINLP) formulation for FTRP, which is a multi-commodity flow model on a time-expanded graph with additional routing constraints. The model's nonlinearities are due to an algebraic approximation of the delays of the trains on the arcs of the network by capacity restraint functions. The MINLP is reduced to a mixed-integer linear model~(MILP) by piecewise linear approximation. The latter is solved by a state of the art MILP solver for various real-world test instances. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-36 KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - multi-commodity flows KW - freight train routing Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18991 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Gamrath, Gerald T1 - Improving strong branching by propagation N2 - Strong branching is an important component of most variable selection rules in branch-and-bound based mixed-integer linear programming solvers. It predicts the dual bounds of potential child nodes by solving auxiliary LPs and thereby helps to keep the branch-and-bound tree small. In this paper, we describe how these dual bound predictions can be improved by including domain propagation into strong branching. Computational experiments on standard MIP instances indicate that this is beneficial in three aspects: It helps to reduce the average number of LP iterations per strong branching call, the number of branch-and-bound nodes, and the overall solving time. T3 - ZIB-Report - 12-46 KW - mixed-integer programming KW - branch-and-bound KW - branching rule KW - strong branching KW - domain propagation Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-17701 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Humpola, Jesco A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin T1 - A New Class of Valid Inequalities for Nonlinear Network Design Problems N2 - We consider a nonlinear nonconvex network design problem that arises in the extension of natural gas transmission networks. Given is such network with active and passive components, that is, valves, compressors, pressure regulators (active) and pipelines (passive), and a desired amount of flow at certain specified entry and exit nodes of the network. Besides flow conservation constraints in the nodes the flow must fulfill nonlinear nonconvex pressure loss constraints on the arcs subject to potential values (i.e., pressure levels) in both end nodes of each arc. Assume that there does not exist a feasible flow that fulfills all physical constraints and meets the desired entry and exit amounts. Then a natural question is where to extend the network by adding pipes in the most economic way such that this flow becomes feasible. Answering this question is computationally demanding because of the difficult problem structure. We use mixed-integer nonlinear programming techniques that rely on an outer approximation of the overall problem, and a branching on decision variables. We formulate a new class of valid inequalities (or cutting planes) which reduce the overall solution time when added to the formulation. We demonstrate the computational merits of our approach on test instances. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-06 KW - Network Design KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - Cutting Planes Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-17771 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schiela, Anton A1 - Wachsmuth, Daniel T1 - Convergence Analysis of Smoothing Methods for Optimal Control of Stationary Variational Inequalities N2 - In the article an optimal control problem subject to a stationary variational inequality is investigated. The optimal control problem is complemented with pointwise control constraints. The convergence of a smoothing scheme is analyzed. There, the variational inequality is replaced by a semilinear elliptic equation. It is shown that solutions of the regularized optimal control problem converge to solutions of the original one. Passing to the limit in the optimality system of the regularized problem allows to prove C-stationarity of local solutions of the original problem. Moreover, convergence rates with respect to the regularization parameter for the error in the control are obtained. These rates coincide with rates obtained by numerical experiments, which are included in the paper. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-23 KW - Variational inequalities KW - optimal control KW - control constraints KW - path-following KW - C-stationarity Y1 - 2011 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-13125 ER - TY - THES A1 - Hendel, Gregor T1 - New Rounding and Propagation Heuristics for Mixed Integer Programming N2 - Die vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich mit Primalheuristiken für gemischt-ganzzahlige, lineare Optimierungsprobleme (engl.: mixed integer program MIP). Zahlreiche Optimierungsprobleme aus der Praxis lassen sich als MIP modellieren, Beispiele hierfür sind u. a. Optimierungsprobleme im öffentlichen Nah- und Fernverkehr, bei logistischen Fragestellungen oder im Bereich der Chip-Verifikation. Das Lösen von MIP ist NP-schwer und wird heutzutage meistens mit Hilfe von Branch-and-Bound-basierenden Algorithmen versucht. Das Branch-and-Bound-Ver\-fah\-ren profitiert unter Umständen von bereits frühzeitig zur Verfügung stehenden Lösungen, daher sind wir sehr an heuristischen Verfahren interessiert, die in der Praxis schnell eine gute Lösung für eine große Zahl an MIPs liefern und somit die Lösezeit des Branch-and-Bound-Verfahrens erheblich beschleunigen können. Primalheuristiken sind Suchverfahren zum Auffinden zulässiger Lösungen eines MIP. Verschiedene Typen von Primalheuristiken sollen dabei den jeweiligen Bedarf des Anwenders zu unterschiedlichen Zeiten während der Branch-and-Bound-Suche decken. Während Start- und Rundeheuristiken zu Beginn des Löseprozesses eine große Rolle bei der Suche nach der ersten zulässigen Lösung haben, arbeiten Verbesserungs-heuristiken auf schon bekannten Lösungen, um neue, bessere Lösungen zu produzieren. Diese Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit Primalheuristiken, welche Teil des MIP-Lösers SCIP sind. Im ersten Kapitel werden nach der Erarbeitung grundlegender Definitionen viele der durch Tobias Achterberg und Timo Berthold in SCIP integrierten heuristischen Verfahren vorgestellt und kategorisiert. Auf dieser Grundlage bauen dann die Kapitel 2-4 der Arbeit auf. In diesen werden drei zusätzliche Heuristiken vorgestellt, im Einzelnen sind dies ZI Round, eine Rundeheuristik, welche zuerst von Wallace beschrieben wurde, außerdem eine 2-Opt-Heuristik für MIP und eine neue Startheuristik, Shift-And-Propagate. Großer Wert wird in jedem Kapitel auf die algorithmische Beschreibung der Heuristiken gelegt, die stets anhand von motivierenden Beispielen eingeführt und anhand von Pseudocode-Algorithmen begleitet werden. Zusätzlich enthält jedes Kapitel Auswertungen der mit den neuen Heuristiken gemessenen Ergebnisse von SCIP. Eine kurze Zusammenfassung in Kapitel 5 schließt diese Arbeit ab. N2 - Many practically relevant problems can be formulated in terms of a mixed integer programming (MIP) model. MIP denotes the optimization of a linear objective function under a certain number of linear side constraints including the need for some of the involved variables to take integral solution values. Applications of MIP based optimization can be found in the area of public transit, scheduling, automatic vehicle routing, network design, etc. From a complexity point of view, MIP solving is known to be NP-hard and most commonly tried to be solved via Branch-and-Bound based algorithms. Branch-and-Bound algorithms benefit from early and good feasible solutions of a MIP in various ways. Primal heuristics are aimed at finding new solutions during the MIP solving process. There are different types of primal heuristics: while start heuristics are particularly valuable to find an early solution, improvement heuristics hopefully drive a given solution further towards optimality. This thesis focusses on primal heuristics which are part of the MIP-solving framework SCIP. The first chapter comes with basic definitions and a brief description of SCIP and the test set which we used. The remainder of the first chapter is an overview of the existing heuristics in SCIP which have been implemented by Achterberg and Berthold. In the following chapters we introduce three new heuristics which apply rounding or propagation techniques for their specific purpose, namely the new rounding heuristic ZI Round, taken from Wallace, a 2-Opt improvement heuristic for MIP and the propagation heuristic Shift-and-Propagate. It is characteristic of all three heuristics that they mainly apply computationally inexpensive algorithms. Each of them is presented in an own chapter, starting with an algorithmic description, followed by implementational details. All chapters close with a discussion of the computational results obtained with the respective implementations in SCIP. KW - Primal Heuristics, MIP, mixed integer programming, ZI Round, Shift-and-Propagate, optimization Y1 - 2011 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-13322 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Weider, Steffen T1 - A Hypergraph Model for Railway Vehicle Rotation Planning N2 - We propose a model for the integrated optimization of vehicle rotations and vehicle compositions in long distance railway passenger transport. The main contribution of the paper is a hypergraph model that is able to handle the challenging technical requirements as well as very general stipulations with respect to the ``regularity'' of a schedule. The hypergraph model directly generalizes network flow models, replacing arcs with hyperarcs. Although NP-hard in general, the model is computationally well-behaved in practice. High quality solutions can be produced in reasonable time using high performance Integer Programming techniques, in particular, column generation and rapid branching. We show that, in this way, large-scale real world instances of our cooperation partner DB Fernverkehr can be solved. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-36 KW - Rolling Stock Planning, Hypergraph Modeling, Integer Programming, Column Generation, Rapid Branching Y1 - 2011 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-32746 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Heinz, Stefan A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Stephan, Rüdiger A1 - Winkler, Michael T1 - Solving steel mill slab design problems N2 - The steel mill slab design problem from the CSPLIB is a combinatorial optimization problem motivated by an application of the steel industry. It has been widely studied in the constraint programming community. Several methods were proposed to solve this problem. A steel mill slab library was created which contains 380 instances. A closely related binpacking problem called the multiple knapsack problem with color constraints, originated from the same industrial problem, was discussed in the integer programming community. In particular, a simple integer program for this problem has been given by Forrest et al. The aim of this paper is to bring these different studies together. Moreover, we adapt the model of Forrest et al. for the steel mill slab design problem. Using this model and a state-of-the-art integer program solver all instances of the steel mill slab library can be solved efficiently to optimality. We improved, thereby, the solution values of 76 instances compared to previous results. Finally, we consider a recently introduced variant of the steel mill slab design problem, where within all solutions which minimize the leftover one is interested in a solution which requires a minimum number of slabs. For that variant we introduce two approaches and solve all instances of the steel mill slab library with this slightly changed objective function to optimality. T3 - ZIB-Report - 11-38 KW - steel mill slab design problem KW - multiple knapsack problem with color constraints KW - integer programming KW - set partitioning KW - binpacking with side constraints Y1 - 2011 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-14089 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Büsing, Christina A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio T1 - A new theoretical framework for Robust Optimization under multi-band uncertainty N2 - We provide an overview of our main results about studying Linear Programming Problems whose coefficient matrix is subject to uncertainty and the uncertainty is modeled through a multi-band set. Such an uncertainty set generalizes the classical one proposed by Bertsimas and Sim and is particularly suitable in the common case of arbitrary non-symmetric distributions of the parameters. Our investigations were inspired by practical needs of our industrial partner in ongoing projects with focus on the design of robust telecommunications networks. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-61 KW - Robust Optimization, Uncertainty Set, Multiband Robustness, Network Design Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-42644 UR - http://www.springer.com/business+%26+management/operations+research/book/978-3-319-00794-6 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Bley, Andreas A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio A1 - Karch, Daniel T1 - Scheduling technology migration in WDM Networks N2 - The rapid technological evolution of telecommunication networks demands service providers to regularly update their technology, with the aim of remaining competitive in the marketplace. However, upgrading the technology in a network is not a trivial task. New hardware components need to be installed in the network and during the installation network connectivity may be temporarily compromised. The Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) technology, whose upgrade is considered in here, shares fiber links among several optical connections and tearing down a single link may disrupt several optical connections at once. When the upgrades involve large parts of a network, typically not all links can be upgraded in parallel, which may lead to an unavoidable longer disruption of some connections. A bad scheduling of the overall endeavor, however, can dramatically increase the disconnection time of parts of the networks, causing extended service disruption. In this contribution, we study the problem of finding a schedule of the fiber link upgrades that minimizes the total service disruption time. To the best of our knowledge, this problem has not yet been formalized and investigated. The aim of our work is to close this gap by presenting a mathematical optimization model for the problem and an innovative solution algorithm that tackles the intrinsic difficulties of the problem. Computational experience on realistic instances completes our study. Our original investigations have been driven by real needs of DFN, operator of the German National Research and Education Network and our partner in the BMBF research project ROBUKOM (http://www.robukom.de/). T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-62 KW - Scheduling, Extended Formulations, Network Migration, WDM Networks Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-42654 UR - http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6507677&isnumber=6507670 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Zakrzewska, Anna A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio A1 - Ruepp, Sarah A1 - Berger, Michael S. T1 - Biobjective Optimization of Radio Access Technology Selection and Resource Allocation in Heterogeneous Wireless Networks N2 - We propose a novel optimization model for resource assignment in heterogeneous wireless network. The model adopts two objective functions maximizing the number of served users and the minimum granted utility at once. A distinctive feature of our new model is to consider two consecutive time slots, in order to include handover as an additional decision dimension. Furthermore, the solution algorithm that we propose refines a heuristic solution approach recently proposed in literature, by considering a real joint optimization of the considered resources. The simulation study shows that the new model leads to a significant reduction in handover frequency, when compared to a traditional scheme based on maximum SNR. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-63 KW - Heterogeneous Wireless Networks, Biobjective Optimization, Mixed Integer Linear Programming, Simulation Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-42675 UR - http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6576416&isnumber=6576384 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Blanco, Marco A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Analysis of Micro-Macro Transformations of Railway Networks N2 - A common technique in the solution of large or complex optimization problems is the use of micro-macro transformations. In this paper, we carry out a theoretical analysis of such transformations for the track allocation problem in railway networks. We prove that the cumulative rounding technique of Schlechte et al. satisfies two of three natural optimality criteria and that this performance cannot be improved. We also show that under extreme circumstances, this technique can perform inconvieniently by underestimating the global optimal value. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-65 Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-42710 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Fischer, Frank A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Strong Relaxations for the Train Timetabling Problem using Connected Configurations N2 - The task of the train timetabling problem or track allocation problem is to find conflict free schedules for a set of trains with predefined routes in a railway network. Especially for non-periodic instances models based on time expanded networks are often used. Unfortunately, the linear programming relaxation of these models is often extremely weak because these models do not describe combinatorial relations like overtaking possibilities very well. In this paper we extend the model by so called connected configuration subproblems. These subproblems perfectly describe feasible schedules of a small subset of trains (2-3) on consecutive track segments. In a Lagrangian relaxation approach we solve several of these subproblems together in order to produce solutions which consist of combinatorially compatible schedules along the track segments. The computational results on a mostly single track corridor taken from the INFORMS RAS Problem Solving Competition 2012 data indicate that our new solution approach is rather strong. Indeed, for this instance the solution of the Lagrangian relaxation is already integral. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-46 Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-64743 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Blanco, Marco A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Hoang, Nam-Dung A1 - Kaier, Anton A1 - Maristany de las Casas, Pedro A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Schlobach, Swen T1 - Cost Projection Methods for the Shortest Path Problem with Crossing Costs N2 - Real world routing problems, e.g., in the airline industry or in public and rail transit, can feature complex non-linear cost functions. An important case are costs for crossing regions, such as countries or fare zones. We introduce the shortest path problem with crossing costs (SPPCC) to address such situations; it generalizes the classical shortest path problem and variants such as the resource constrained shortest path problem and the minimum label path problem. Motivated by an application in flight trajectory optimization with overflight costs, we focus on the case in which the crossing costs of a region depend only on the nodes used to enter or exit it. We propose an exact Two-Layer-Dijkstra Algorithm as well as a novel cost-projection linearization technique that approximates crossing costs by shadow costs on individual arcs, thus reducing the SPPCC to a standard shortest path problem. We evaluate all algorithms’ performance on real-world flight trajectory optimization instances, obtaining very good à posteriori error bounds. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-48 Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-64817 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Rehfeldt, Daniel A1 - Koch, Thorsten T1 - Generalized preprocessing techniques for Steiner tree and maximum-weight connected subgraph problems N2 - This article introduces new preprocessing techniques for the Steiner tree problem in graphs and one of its most popular relatives, the maximum-weight connected subgraph problem. Several of the techniques generalize previous results from the literature. The correctness of the new methods is shown, but also their NP-hardness is demonstrated. Despite this pessimistic worst-case complexity, several relaxations are discussed that are expected to allow for a strong practical efficiency of these techniques in strengthening both exact and heuristic solving approaches. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-57 KW - Steiner tree KW - maximum-weight connected subgraph Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-65439 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Renken, Malte A1 - Ahmadi, Amin A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Sahin, Guvenc A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Demand-Driven Line Planning with Selfish Routing N2 - Bus rapid transit systems in developing and newly industrialized countries are often operated at the limits of passenger capacity. In particular, demand during morning and afternoon peaks is hardly or even not covered with available line plans. In order to develop demand-driven line plans, we use two mathematical models in the form of integer programming problem formulations. While the actual demand data is specified with origin-destination pairs, the arc-based model considers the demand over the arcs derived from the origin-destination demand. In order to test the accuracy of the models in terms of demand satisfaction, we simulate the optimal solutions and compare number of transfers and travel times. We also question the effect of a selfish route choice behavior which in theory results in a Braess-like paradox by increasing the number of transfers when system capacity is increased with additional lines. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-38 Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-64547 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Miltenberger, Matthias A1 - Ralphs, Ted A1 - Steffy, Daniel T1 - Exploring the Numerics of Branch-and-Cut for Mixed Integer Linear Optimization T2 - Operations Research Proceedings 2017 N2 - We investigate how the numerical properties of the LP relaxations evolve throughout the solution procedure in a solver employing the branch-and-cut algorithm. The long-term goal of this work is to determine whether the effect on the numerical conditioning of the LP relaxations resulting from the branching and cutting operations can be effectively predicted and whether such predictions can be used to make better algorithmic choices. In a first step towards this goal, we discuss here the numerical behavior of an existing solver in order to determine whether our intuitive understanding of this behavior is correct. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-43 KW - Mixed Integer Programming KW - Linear Programming KW - Algorithm Analysis Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-64645 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio A1 - Raymond, Annie T1 - Multiband Robust Optimization and its Adoption in Harvest Scheduling N2 - A central assumption in classical optimization is that all the input data of a problem are exact. However, in many real-world problems, the input data are subject to uncertainty. In such situations, neglecting uncertainty may lead to nominally optimal solutions that are actually suboptimal or even infeasible. Robust optimization offers a remedy for optimization under uncertainty by considering only the subset of solutions protected against the data deviations. In this paper, we provide an overview of the main theoretical results of multiband robustness, a new robust optimization model that extends and refines the classical theory introduced by Bertsimas and Sim. After introducing some new results for the special case of pure binary programs, we focus on the harvest scheduling problem and show how multiband robustness can be adopted to tackle the uncertainty affecting the volume of produced timber and grant a reduction in the price of robustness. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-76 KW - Data Uncertainty KW - Robust Optimization KW - Multiband Robustness KW - Harvest Scheduling Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-43380 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - THES A1 - Gamrath, Gerald T1 - Generic Branch-Cut-and-Price N2 - In this thesis, we present the theoretical background, implementational details and computational results concerning the generic branch-cut-and-price solver GCG. KW - mixed-integer programming KW - column generation KW - branch-and-price Y1 - 2010 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-57543 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Fischer, Frank A1 - Grimm, Boris A1 - Klug, Torsten A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - A Re-optimization Approach for Train Dispatching N2 - The Train Dispatching Problem (TDP) is to schedule trains through a network in a cost optimal way. Due to disturbances during operation existing track allocations often have to be re-scheduled and integrated into the timetable. This has to be done in seconds and with minimal timetable changes to guarantee smooth and conflict free operation. We present an integrated modeling approach for the re-optimization task using Mixed Integer Programming. Finally, we provide computational results for scenarios provided by the INFORMS RAS Problem Soling Competition 2012. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-49 Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-60493 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Cheung, Kevin K. H. A1 - Gleixner, Ambros A1 - Steffy, Daniel T1 - Verifying Integer Programming Results N2 - Software for mixed-integer linear programming can return incorrect results for a number of reasons, one being the use of inexact floating-point arithmetic. Even solvers that employ exact arithmetic may suffer from programming or algorithmic errors, motivating the desire for a way to produce independently verifiable certificates of claimed results. Due to the complex nature of state-of-the-art MILP solution algorithms, the ideal form of such a certificate is not entirely clear. This paper proposes such a certificate format, illustrating its capabilities and structure through examples. The certificate format is designed with simplicity in mind and is composed of a list of statements that can be sequentially verified using a limited number of simple yet powerful inference rules. We present a supplementary verification tool for compressing and checking these certificates independently of how they were created. We report computational results on a selection of mixed-integer linear programming instances from the literature. To this end, we have extended the exact rational version of the MIP solver SCIP to produce such certificates. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-58 KW - correctness, verification, proof, certificate, optimality, infeasibility, mixed-integer linear programming Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-61044 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Arslan, Oytun A1 - Elijazyfer, Ziena A1 - Güler, Hakan A1 - Renken, Malte A1 - Sahin, Güvenc A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Line Planning on Path Networks with Application to the Istanbul Metrobüs N2 - Bus rapid transit systems in developing and newly industrialized countries often consist of a trunk with a path topology. On this trunk, several overlapping lines are operated which provide direct connections. The demand varies heavily over the day, with morning and afternoon peaks typically in reverse directions. We propose an integer programming model for this problem, derive a structural property of line plans in the static (or single period) ``unimodal demand'' case, and consider approaches to the solution of the multi-period version that rely on clustering the demand into peak and off-peak service periods. An application to the Metrobüs system of Istanbul is discussed. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-38 KW - line planning KW - unimodal demand Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-60119 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Blanco, Marco A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Hoang, Nam-Dung A1 - Kaier, Anton A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Schlobach, Swen T1 - The Shortest Path Problem with Crossing Costs N2 - We introduce the shortest path problem with crossing costs (SPPCC), a shortest path problem in a directed graph, in which the objective function is the sum of arc weights and crossing costs. The former are independently paid for each arc used by the path, the latter need to be paid every time the path intersects certain sets of arcs, which we call regions. The SPPCC generalizes not only the classical shortest path problem but also variants such as the resource constrained shortest path problem and the minimum label path problem. We use the SPPCC to model the flight trajectory optimization problem with overflight costs. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the problem. In particular, we identify efficient exact and approximation algorithms for the cases that are most relevant in practice. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-70 Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-61240 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schwartz, Stephan A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Bartz, Gerald T1 - The Graph Segmentation Problem N2 - We investigate a graph theoretical problem arising in the automatic billing of a network toll. Given a network and a family of user paths, we study the graph segmentation problem (GSP) to cover parts of the user paths by a set of disjoint segments. The GSP is shown to be NP-hard but for special cases it can be solved in polynomial time. We also show that the marginal utility of a segment is bounded. Computational results for real-world instances show that in practice the problem is more amenable than the theoretic bounds suggest. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-53 KW - toll billing KW - graph segmentation KW - combinatorial optimization Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-60750 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Bauschert, Thomas A1 - Büsing, Christina A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio A1 - Koster, Arie M.C.A. A1 - Kutschka, Manuel A1 - Steglich, Uwe T1 - Network Planning under Demand Uncertainty with Robust Optimization N2 - The planning of a communication network is inevitably depending on the quality of both the planning tool and the demand forecast used. In this article, we show exemplarily how the emerging area of Robust Optimization can advance the network planning by a more accurate mathematical description of the demand uncertainty. After a general introduction of the concept and its application to a basic network design problem, we present two applications: multi-layer and mixed-line-rate network design. We conclude with a discussion of extensions of the robustness concept to increase the accuracy of handling uncertainties. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-59 KW - Network Design, Demand Uncertainty, Robust Optimization, Telecommunications Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-42557 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Mehrgardt, Julika A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Waas, Kerstin T1 - Re-optimization of Rolling Stock Rotations N2 - The Rolling Stock Rotation Problem is to schedule rail vehicles in order to cover timetabled trips by a cost optimal set of vehicle rotations. The problem integrates several facets of railway optimization, i.e., vehicle composition, maintenance constraints, and regularity aspects. In industrial applications existing schedules often have to be re-optimized to integrate timetable changes or construction sites. We present an integrated modeling and algorithmic approach for this task as well as computational results for industrial problem instances of DB Fernverkehr AG. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-60 Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-42569 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Grimm, Boris A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schade, Stanley A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - A Propagation Approach to Acyclic Rolling Stock Rotation Optimization N2 - The rolling stock, i.e., railway vehicles, are one of the key ingredients of a running railway system. As it is well known, the offer of a railway company to their customers, i.e., the railway timetable, changes from time to time. Typical reasons for that are different timetables associated with different seasons, maintenance periods or holidays. Therefore, the regular lifetime of a timetable is split into (more or less) irregular periods where parts of the timetable are changed. In order to operate a railway timetable most railway companies set up sequences that define the operation of timetabled trips by a single physical railway vehicle called (rolling stock) rotations. Not surprisingly, the individual parts of a timetable also affect the rotations. More precisely, each of the parts brings up an acyclic rolling stock rotation problem with start and end conditions associated with the beginning and ending of the corresponding period. In this paper, we propose a propagation approach to deal with large planning horizons that are composed of many timetables with shorter individual lifetimes. The approach is based on an integer linear programming formulation that propagates rolling stock rotations through the irregular parts of the timetable while taking a large variety of operational requirements into account. This approach is implemented within the rolling stock rotation optimization framework ROTOR used by DB Fernverkehr AG, one of the leading railway operators in Europe. Computational results for real world scenarios are presented to evaluate the approach. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-24 Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-63930 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Gilg, Brady A1 - Klug, Torsten A1 - Martienssen, Rosemarie A1 - Paat, Joseph A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Schulz, Christof A1 - Seymen, Sinan A1 - Tesch, Alexander T1 - Conflict-Free Railway Track Assignment at Depots N2 - Managing rolling stock with no passengers aboard is a critical component of railway operations. In particular, one problem is to park the rolling stock on a given set of tracks at the end of a day or service. Depending on the parking assignment, shunting may be required in order for a parked train to depart or for an incoming train to park. Given a collection of tracks M and a collection of trains T with fixed arrival-departure timetable, the train assignment problem (TAP) is to determine the maximum number of trains from T that can be parked on M according to the timetable and without the use of shunting. Hence, efficiently solving the TAP allows to quickly compute feasible parking schedules that do not require further shunting adjustments. In this paper, we present two integer programming models for solving the TAP. To our knowledge, this is the first integrated approach that considers track lengths along with the three most common types of parking tracks. We compare these models on a theoretical level. We also prove that a decision version of the TAP is NP-complete, justifying the use of integer programming techniques. Using stochastic and robust modelling techniques, both models produce parking assignments that are optimized and robust according to random train delays. We conclude with computational results for both models, observing that they perform well on real timetables. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-23 KW - Depot Planning KW - Railway Track Assignment Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-63843 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schade, Stanley A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Breuer, Matthias A1 - Grimm, Boris A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Siebeneicher, Patrick T1 - Pattern Detection For Large-Scale Railway Timetables N2 - We consider railway timetables of our industrial partner DB Fernverkehr AG that operates the ICE high speed trains in the long-distance passenger railway network of Germany. Such a timetable covers a whole year with 364 days and, typically, includes more than 45,000 trips. A rolling stock rotation plan is not created for the whole timetable at once. Instead the timetable is divided into regular invariant sections and irregular deviations (e.g. for public holidays). A separate rotation plan with a weekly period can then be provided for each of the different sections of the timetable. We present an algorithmic approach to automatically recognize these sections. Together with the supplementing visualisation of the timetable this method has shown to be very relevant for our industrial partner. T3 - ZIB-Report - 17-17 KW - railway timetables KW - visualization KW - pattern detection Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-63390 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Vierhaus, Ingmar A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Gottwald, Robert Lion A1 - Grösser, Stefan N. T1 - Modern Nonlinear Optimization Techniques for an Optimal Control of System Dynamics Models N2 - We study System Dynamics models with several free parameters that can be altered by the user. We assume that the user's goal is to achieve a certain dynamic behavior of the model by varying these parameters. In order to the find best possible combination of parameter settings, several automatic parameter tuning methods are described in the literature and readily available within existing System Dynamic software packages. We give a survey on the available techniques in the market and describe their theoretical background. Some of these methods are already six decades old, and meanwhile newer and more powerful optimization methods have emerged in the mathematical literature. One major obstacle for their direct use are tabled data in System Dynamics models, which are usually interpreted as piecewise linear functions. However, modern optimization methods usually require smooth functions which are twice continuously differentiable. We overcome this problem by a smooth spline interpolation of the tabled data. We use a test set of three complex System Dynamic models from the literature, describe their individual transition into optimization problems, and demonstrate the applicability of modern optimization algorithms to these System Dynamics Optimization problems. T3 - ZIB-Report - 14-08 KW - System Dynamics KW - Optimal Control KW - Nonlinear Optimization KW - Spline Interpolation Y1 - 2014 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-48159 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Rehfeldt, Daniel A1 - Koch, Thorsten T1 - SCIP-Jack—a solver for STP and variants with parallelization extensions: An update N2 - The Steiner tree problem in graphs is a classical problem that commonly arises in practical applications as one of many variants. Although the different Steiner tree problem variants are usually strongly related, solution approaches employed so far have been prevalently problem-specific. Against this backdrop, the solver SCIP-Jack was created as a general-purpose framework that can be used to solve the classical Steiner tree problem and 11 of its variants. This versatility is achieved by transforming various problem variants into a general form and solving them by using a state-of-the-art MIP-framework. Furthermore, SCIP-Jack includes various newly developed algorithmic components such as preprocessing routines and heuristics. The result is a high-performance solver that can be employed in massively parallel environments and is capable of solving previously unsolved instances. After the introduction of SCIP-Jack at the 2014 DIMACS Challenge on Steiner problems, the overall performance of the solver has considerably improved. This article provides an overview on the current state. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-05 Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-66416 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - THES A1 - Eifler, Leon T1 - Mixed-Integer Programming for Clustering in Non-reversible Markov Processes N2 - The topic of this thesis is the examination of an optimization model which stems from the clustering process of non-reversible markov processes. We introduce the cycle clustering problem und formulate it as a mixed integer program (MIP). We prove that this problem is N P-hard and discuss polytopal aspects such as facets and dimension. The focus of this thesis is the development of solving methods for this clustering problem. We develop problem specific primal heuristics, as well as separation methods and an approximation algorithm. These techniques are implemented in practice as an application for the MIP solver SCIP. Our computational experiments show that these solving methods result in an average speedup of ×4 compared to generic solvers and that our application is able to solve more instances to optimality within the given time limit of one hour. KW - Markov State Models KW - NESS KW - Non-reversible Markov Processes KW - Mixed-Integer Programming Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-66486 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Grimm, Boris A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Optimization of Handouts for Rolling Stock Rotations Visualization N2 - A railway operator creates (rolling stock) rotations in order to have a precise master plan for the operation of a timetable by railway vehicles. A rotation is considered as a cycle that multiply traverses a set of operational days while covering trips of the timetable. As it is well known, the proper creation of rolling stock rotations by, e.g., optimization algorithms is challenging and still a topical research subject. Nevertheless, we study a completely different but strongly related question in this paper, i.e.: How to visualize a rotation? For this purpose, we introduce a basic handout concept, which directly leads to the visualization, i.e., handout of a rotation. In our industrial application at DB Fernverkehr AG, the handout is exactly as important as the rotation itself. Moreover, it turns out that also other European railway operators use exactly the same methodology (but not terminology). Since a rotation can have many handouts of different quality, we show how to compute optimal ones through an integer program (IP) by standard software. In addition, a construction as well as an improvement heuristic are presented. Our computational results show that the heuristics are a very reliable standalone approach to quickly find near-optimal and even optimal handouts. The efficiency of the heuristics is shown via a computational comparison to the IP approach. T3 - ZIB-Report - ZR-16-73 Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-61430 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hennig, Kai A1 - Schwarz, Robert T1 - Using Bilevel Optimization to find Severe Transport Situations in Gas Transmission Networks N2 - In the context of gas transmission in decoupled entry-exit systems, many approaches to determine the network capacity are based on the evaluation of realistic and severe transport situations. In this paper, we review the Reference Point Method, which is an algorithm used in practice to generate a set of scenarios using the so-called transport moment as a measure for severity. We introduce a new algorithm for finding severe transport situations that considers an actual routing of the flow through the network and is designed to handle issues arising from cyclic structures in a more dynamical manner. Further, in order to better approximate the physics of gas, an alternative, potential based flow formulation is proposed. The report concludes with a case study based on data from the benchmark library GasLib. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-68 KW - bilevel optimization KW - gas networks KW - network flow Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-61519 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Lenz, Ralf A1 - Schwarz, Robert T1 - Optimal Looping of Pipelines in Gas Networks N2 - In this paper, we compare several approaches for the problem of gas network expansions using loops, that is, to build new pipelines in parallel to existing ones. We present different model formulations for the problem of continuous loop expansions as well as discrete loop expansions. We then analyze problem properties, such as the structure and convexity of the underlying feasible regions. The paper concludes with a computational study comparing the continuous and the discrete formulations. T3 - ZIB-Report - 16-67 KW - Mixed Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - Gas Network Applications KW - Expansion Planning Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-61564 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Vierhaus, Ingmar T1 - System Dynamic Optimization in the Sustainability Assessment of a World-Model N2 - The System Dynamics (SD) methodology is a framework for modeling and simulating the dynamic behavior of socioeconomic systems. Characteristic for the description of such systems is the occurrence of feedback loops together with stocks and flows. The mathematical equations that describe the system are usually nonlinear. Therefore seemingly simple systems can show a nonintuitive, nonpredictable behavior over time. Controlling a dynamical system means to define a desired final state in which the system should be, and to specify potential interventions from outside that should keep the system on the right track. The central question is how to compute such globally optimal control for a given SD model. We propose a branch-and-bound approach that is based on a bound propagation method, primal heuristics, and spatial branching. We apply our new SD-control method to a small System Dynamics model, that describes the evolution of a social-economic system over time. We examine the problem of steering this system on a sustainable consumption path. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-23 KW - System Dynamics; Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Optimization Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18148 UR - http://opus4.kobv.de/opus4-tuberlin/frontdoor/index/index/docId/4026 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Brose, Achim A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Gausemeier, Pia A1 - Vierhaus, Ingmar A1 - Seliger, Günther T1 - A System Dynamic Enhancement for the Scenario Technique N2 - The Scenario Technique is a strategic planning method that aims to describe and analyze potential developments of a considered system in the future. Its application consists of several steps, from an initial problem analysis over an influence analysis to projections of key factors and a definition of the scenarios to a final interpretation of the results. The technique itself combines qualitative and quantitative methods and is an enhancement of the standard Scenario Technique. We use the numerical values gathered during the influence analysis, and embed them in a System Dynamics framework. This yields a mathematically rigorous way to achieve predictions of the system‘s future behavior from an initial impulse and the feedback structure of the factors. The outcome of our new method is a further way of projecting the present into the future, which enables the user of the Scenario Technique to obtain a validation of the results achieved by the standard method. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-24 KW - Scenario Technique; System Dynamics Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18150 UR - http://opus4.kobv.de/opus4-tuberlin/frontdoor/index/index/docId/4026 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Vierhaus, Ingmar T1 - A Global Approach to the Optimal Control of System Dynamics Models N2 - The System Dynamics (SD) methodology is a framework for modeling and simulating the dynamic behavior of socioeconomic systems. Characteristic for the description of such systems is the occurrence of feedback loops together with stocks and flows. The mathematical equations that describe the system are usually ordinary differential equations and nonlinear algebraic constraints. Therefore seemingly simple systems can show a nonintuitive, unpredictable behavior over time. Controlling a dynamical system means to specify potential interventions from outside that should keep the system on the desired track, and to define an evaluation schema to compare different controls among each other, so that a "best" control can be defined in a meaningful way. The central question is how to compute such globally optimal control for a given SD model, that allows the transition of the system into a desired state with minimum effort. We propose a mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) reformulation of the System Dynamics Optimization (SDO) problem. MINLP problems can be solved by linear programming based branch-and-bound approach. We demonstrate that standard MINLP solvers are not able to solve SDO problem. To overcome this obstacle, we introduce a special-tailored bound propagation method. We apply our new method to a predator-prey model with additional hunting activity as control, and to a mini-world model with the consumption level as control. Numerical results for these test cases are presented. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-28 KW - System Dynamics KW - Global Optimal Control KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Optimization KW - Bounds Strengthening Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18600 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Leitner, Markus A1 - Ljubic, Ivana A1 - Sinnl, Markus A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - On the Two-Architecture Connected Facility Location Problem N2 - We introduce a new variant of the connected facility location problem that allows for modeling mixed deployment strategies (FTTC/FTTB/FTTH) in the design of local access telecommunication networks. Several mixed integer programming models and valid inequalities are presented. Computational studies on realistic instances from three towns in Germany are provided. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-29 KW - Connected Facility Location, Branch-and-Cut, FTTx Deployment Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18610 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Grötschel, Martin A1 - Raack, Christian A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - Towards optimizing the deployment of optical access networks N2 - In this paper we study the cost-optimal deployment of optical access networks considering variants of the problem such as fiber to the home (FTTH), fiber to the building (FTTB), fiber to the curb (FTTC), or fiber to the neighborhood (FTTN). We identify the combinatorial structures of the most important sub-problems arising in this area and model these, e.g., as capacitated facility location, concentrator location, or Steiner tree problems. We discuss modeling alternatives as well. We finally construct a “unified” integer programming model that combines all sub-models and provides a global view of all these FTTx problems. We also summarize computational studies of various special cases. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-11 KW - FTTx, FTTH, FTTB, FTTC, FTTN, telecommunications, access networks, passive optical networks, network design, routing, energy efficiency Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-18627 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Lubkoll, Lars A1 - Schiela, Anton A1 - Weiser, Martin T1 - An affine covariant composite step method for optimization with PDEs as equality constraints N2 - We propose a composite step method, designed for equality constrained optimization with partial differential equations. Focus is laid on the construction of a globalization scheme, which is based on cubic regularization of the objective and an affine covariant damped Newton method for feasibility. We show finite termination of the inner loop and fast local convergence of the algorithm. We discuss preconditioning strategies for the iterative solution of the arising linear systems with projected conjugate gradient. Numerical results are shown for optimal control problems subject to a nonlinear heat equation and subject to nonlinear elastic equations arising from an implant design problem in craniofacial surgery. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-09 KW - composite step methods KW - cubic regularization KW - affine covariant KW - optimization with PDEs Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53954 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Fischer, Frank A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Comparing two dual relaxations of large scale train timetabling problems N2 - Railway transportation and in particular train timetabling is one of the basic and source application areas of combinatorial optimization and integer programming. We will discuss two well established modeling techniques for the train timetabling problem. In this paper we focus on one major ingredient - the bounding by dual relaxations. We compare two classical dual relaxations of large scale time expanded train timetabling problems - the Lagrangean Dual and Lagrangean Decomposition. We discuss the convergence behavior and show limitations of the Lagrangean Decomposition approach for a configuration based model. We introduce a third dualization approach to overcome those limitations. Finally, we present promising preliminary computational experiments that show that our new approach indeed has superior convergence properties. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-43 Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-56068 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Schulz, Christof A1 - Swarat, Elmar A1 - Weider, Steffen T1 - Duty Rostering in Public Transport - Facing Preferences, Fairness, and Fatigue N2 - Duty rostering problems occur in different application contexts and come in different flavors. They give rise to very large scale integer programs which ypically have lots of solutions and extremely fractional LP relaxations. In such a situation, heuristics can be a viable algorithmic choice. We propose an mprovement method of the Lin-Kernighan type for the solution of duty rostering problems. We illustrate its versatility and solution quality on three different applications in public transit, vehicle routing, and airline rostering with a focus on the management of preferences, fairness, and fatigue, respectively. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-44 Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-56070 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Leitner, Markus A1 - Ljubic, Ivana A1 - Sinnl, Markus A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - Two algorithms for solving 3-objective k-ArchConFL and IPs in general N2 - We present two algorithms to solve a 3-objective optimization problem arising in telecommunications access network planning, the k-Architecture Connected Facility Location Problem. The methods can also be used to solve any 3-objective integer linear programming model and can be extended to the multiobjective case. We give some exemplary computations using small and medium-sized instances for our problem. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-48 KW - multiobjective optimization KW - integer programming KW - telecommunications Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-56259 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Ahmadi, Sepideh A1 - Gritzbach, Sascha F. A1 - Lund-Nguyen, Kathryn A1 - McCullough-Amal, Devita T1 - Rolling Stock Rotation Optimization in Days of Strike: An Automated Approach for Creating an Alternative Timetable N2 - The operation of a railway network as large as Deutsche Bahn's Intercity Express (ICE) hinges on a number of factors, such as the availability of personnel and the assignment of physical vehicles to a timetable schedule, a problem known as the rolling stock rotation problem (RSRP). In this paper, we consider the problem of creating an alternative timetable in the case that there is a long-term disruption, such as a strike, and the effects that this alternative timetable has on the resulting vehicle rotation plan. We define a priority measure via the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to determine the importance of each trip in the timetable and therefore which trips to cancel or retain. We then compare our results with those of a limited timetable manually designed by Deutsche Bahn (DB). We find that while our timetable results in a more expensive rotation plan, its flexibility lends itself to a number of simple improvements. Furthermore, our priority measure has the potential to be integrated into the rolling stock rotation optimization process, in particular, the Rotation Optimizer for Railways (ROTOR) software, via the cost function. Ultimately, our method provides the foundation for an automated way of creating a new timetable quickly, and potentially in conjunction with a new rotation plan, in the case of a limited scenario. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-52 Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-56425 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hendel, Gregor T1 - Exploiting Solving Phases for Mixed-Integer Programs N2 - Modern MIP solving software incorporates dozens of auxiliary algorithmic components for supporting the branch-and-bound search in finding and improving solutions and in strengthening the relaxation. Intuitively, a dynamic solving strategy with an appropriate emphasis on different solving components and strategies is desirable during the search process. We propose an adaptive solver behavior that dynamically reacts on transitions between the three typical phases of a MIP solving process: The first phase objective is to find a feasible solution. During the second phase, a sequence of incumbent solutions gets constructed until the incumbent is eventually optimal. Proving optimality is the central objective of the remaining third phase. Based on the MIP-solver SCIP, we demonstrate the usefulness of the phase concept both with an exact recognition of the optimality of a solution, and provide heuristic alternatives to make use of the concept in practice. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-64 KW - Branch-and-Bound, Mixed-Integer Programming Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-57098 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio A1 - Krolikowski, Jonatan A1 - Pulaj, Jonad T1 - A hybrid primal heuristic for Robust Multiperiod Network Design N2 - We investigate the Robust Multiperiod Network Design Problem, a generalization of the classical Capacitated Network Design Problem that additionally considers multiple design periods and provides solutions protected against traffic uncertainty. Given the intrinsic difficulty of the problem, which proves challenging even for state-of-the art commercial solvers, we propose a hybrid primal heuristic based on the combination of ant colony optimization and an exact large neighborhood search. Computational experiments on a set of realistic instances from the SNDlib show that our heuristic can find solutions of extremely good quality with low optimality gap. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-78 KW - Multiperiod Network Design, Traffic Uncertainty, Robust Optimization, Multiband Robustness, Hybrid Heuristics Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-44081 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Büsing, Christina A1 - D'Andreagiovanni, Fabio A1 - Raymond, Annie T1 - 0-1 Multiband Robust Optimization N2 - We provide an overview of new theoretical results that we obtained while further investigating multiband robust optimization, a new model for robust optimization that we recently proposed to tackle uncertainty in mixed-integer linear programming. This new model extends and refines the classical Gamma-robustness model of Bertsimas and Sim and is particularly useful in the common case of arbitrary asymmetric distributions of the uncertainty. Here, we focus on uncertain 0-1 programs and we analyze their robust counterparts when the uncertainty is represented through a multiband set. Our investigations were inspired by the needs of our industrial partners in the research project ROBUKOM. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-77 KW - Combinatorial Optimization, Robust Optimization, Multiband Robustness, Network Design Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-44093 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Karbstein, Marika A1 - Mehrgardt, Julika A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - The Cycle Embedding Problem N2 - Given two hypergraphs, representing a fine and a coarse "layer", and a cycle cover of the nodes of the coarse layer, the cycle embedding problem (CEP) asks for an embedding of the coarse cycles into the fine layer. The CEP is NP-hard for general hypergraphs, but it can be solved in polynomial time for graphs. We propose an integer rogramming formulation for the CEP that provides a complete escription of the CEP polytope for the graphical case. The CEP comes up in railway vehicle rotation scheduling. We present computational results for problem instances of DB Fernverkehr AG that justify a sequential coarse-first-fine-second planning approach. T3 - ZIB-Report - 14-37 KW - cycle embedding problem KW - railway vehicle rotation scheduling KW - sequential coarse-first-fine-second planning approach Y1 - 2014 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-52788 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Humpola, Jesco T1 - Sufficient Pruning Conditions for MINLP in Gas Network Design N2 - One quarter of Europe’s energy demand is provided by natural gas distributed through a vast pipeline network covering the whole of Europe. At a cost of 1 million Euros per kilometer the extension of the European pipeline network is already a multi billion Euro business. Therefore, automatic planning tools that support the decision process are desired. We model the topology extension problem in gas networks by a mixed-integer nonlinear program (MINLP). This gives rise to a so-called active transmission problem, a continuous nonlinear non-convex feasibility problem which emerges from the MINLP model by fixing all integral variables. In this article we offer novel sufficient conditions for proving the infeasibility of this active transmission problem. These conditions can be expressed in the form of a mixed-integer program (MILP), i.e., the infeasibility of a non-convex NLP can be certified by solving an MILP. These results provide an efficient bounding procedure in a branch-and-bound algorithm. Our computational results demonstrate a substantial speed-up for the necessary computations. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-04 KW - Network Design KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - Infeasibility Detection Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53489 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Draegert, Andreas A1 - Eisenblätter, Andreas A1 - Gamrath, Inken A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - Optimal Battery Controlling for Smart Grid Nodes N2 - Energy storages can be of great value when added to power grids. They introduce the possibility to store and release energy whenever this is favorable. This is particularly relevant, for example, if power supply is volatile (as is the case with renewable energy) and the network is small (so that there are few other nodes that might balance fluctuations in consumption or production). We present models and methods from mathematical optimization for computing an optimized storage schedule for this purpose. We look at alternative optimization objectives, such as smallest possible peak load, low energy costs, or the close approximation of a prescribed load curve. The optimization needs to respect general operational and economic constraints as well as limitations in the use of storage, which are imposed by the chosen storage technology. We therefore introduce alternative approaches for modeling the non-linear properties of energy storages and study their impact on the efficiency of the optimization process. Finally, we present a computational study with batteries as storage devices. We use this to highlight the trade-off between solution quality and computational tractability. A version of the model for the purpose of leveling peaks and instabilities has been implemented into a control system for an office-building smart grid scenario. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-06 KW - energy optimization, non-linear optimization, smart grid Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53550 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Harman, Radoslav A1 - Sagnol, Guillaume T1 - Computing D-optimal experimental designs for estimating treatment contrasts under the presence of a nuisance time trend N2 - We prove a mathematical programming characterisation of approximate partial D-optimality under general linear constraints. We use this characterisation with a branch-and-bound method to compute a list of all exact D-optimal designs for estimating a pair of treatment contrasts in the presence of a nuisance time trend up to the size of 24 consecutive trials. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-02 KW - optimal design of experiments KW - nuisance trend KW - branch and bound Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53640 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Brett, Charles A1 - Hoberg, Rebecca A1 - Pacheco, Meritxell A1 - Smith, Kyle A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Euler, Ricardo A1 - Gamrath, Gerwin A1 - Grimm, Boris A1 - Heismann, Olga A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Tesch, Alexander T1 - G-RIPS 2014 RailLab - Towards robust rolling stock rotations N2 - The Graduate-Level Research in Industrial Projects (G-RIPS) Program provides an opportunity for high-achieving graduate-level students to work in teams on a real-world research project proposed by a sponsor from industry or the public sector. Each G-RIPS team consists of four international students (two from the US and two from European universities), an academic mentor, and an industrial sponsor. This is the report of the Rail-Lab project on the definition and integration of robustness aspects into optimizing rolling stock schedules. In general, there is a trade-off for complex systems between robustness and efficiency. The ambitious goal was to explore this trade-off by implementing numerical simulations and developing analytic models. In rolling stock planning a very large set of industrial railway requirements, such as vehicle composition, maintenance constraints, infrastructure capacity, and regularity aspects, have to be considered in an integrated model. General hypergraphs provide the modeling power to tackle those requirements. Furthermore, integer programming approaches are able to produce high quality solutions for the deterministic problem. When stochastic time delays are considered, the mathematical programming problem is much more complex and presents additional challenges. Thus, we started with a basic variant of the deterministic case, i.e., we are only considering hypergraphs representing vehicle composition and regularity. We transfered solution approaches for robust optimization from the airline industry to the setting of railways and attained a reasonable measure of robustness. Finally, we present and discuss different methods to optimize this robustness measure. T3 - ZIB-Report - 14-34 KW - robust optimization, rolling stock planning Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53475 SN - 1438-0064 N1 - ZIB-Report 14-34 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Humpola, Jesco A1 - Fügenschuh, Armin A1 - Lehmann, Thomas T1 - A Primal Heuristic for MINLP based on Dual Information N2 - We present a novel heuristic algorithm to identify feasible solutions of a mixed-integer nonlinear programming problem arising in natural gas transportation: the selection of new pipelines to enhance the network's capacity to a desired level in a cost-efficient way. We solve this problem in a linear programming based branch-and-cut approach, where we deal with the nonlinearities by linear outer approximation and spatial branching. At certain nodes of the branching tree, we compute a KKT point for a nonlinear relaxation. Based on the information from the KKT point we alter some of the integer variables in a locally promising way. We describe this heuristic for general MINLPs and then show how to tailor the heuristic to exploit our problem-specific structure. On a test set of real-world instances, we are able to increase the chance of identifying feasible solutions by some order of magnitude compared to standard MINLP heuristics that are already built in the general-purpose MINLP solver SCIP. T3 - ZIB-Report - 13-49 KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - Relaxations KW - Heuristics KW - Duality KW - Nonlinear Network Design Applications Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-43110 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hendel, Gregor T1 - Enhancing MIP branching decisions by using the sample variance of pseudo-costs N2 - The selection of a good branching variable is crucial for small search trees in Mixed Integer Programming. Most modern solvers employ a strategy guided by history information, mainly the variable pseudo-costs, which are used to estimate the objective gain. At the beginning of the search, such information is usually collected via an expensive look-ahead strategy called strong-branching until variables are considered reliable. The reliability notion is thereby mostly based on fixed-number thresholds, which may lead to ineffective branching decisions on problems with highly varying objective gains. We suggest two new notions of reliability motivated by mathematical statistics that take into account the sample variance of the past observations on each variable individually. The first method prioritizes additional strong-branching look-aheads on variables whose pseudo-costs show a large variance by measuring the relative error of a pseudo-cost confidence interval. The second method performs a two-sample Student-t test for filtering branching candidates with a high probability to be better than the best history candidate. Both methods were implemented in the MIP-solver SCIP and computational results on standard MIP test sets are presented. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-28 KW - mixed-integer programming KW - reliability branching Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-54591 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Pfeuffer, Frank A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - Adaptive telecommunication network operation with a limited number of reconfigurations N2 - Rising traffic in telecommunication networks lead to rising energy costs for the network operators. Meanwhile, increased flexibility of the networking hardware may help to realize load-adaptive operation of the networks to cut operation costs. To meet network operators’ concerns over stability, we propose to switch network configurations only a limited number of times per day. We present a method for the integrated computation of optimal switching times and network configurations that alternatingly solves mixed-integer programs and constrained shortest cycle problems in a certain graph. Similarly to the Branch & Bound Algorithm, it uses lower and upper bounds on the optimum value and allows for pivoting strategies to guide the computation and avoid the solution of irrelevant subproblems. The algorithm can act as a framework to be adapted and applied to suitable problems of different origin. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-36 KW - Telecommunication KW - Network Design KW - Dynamic Traffic KW - Branch and Bound Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-55547 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Sagnol, Guillaume A1 - Schwartz, Stephan T1 - An Extended Network Interdiction Problem for Optimal Toll Control N2 - We study an extension of the shortest path network interdiction problem and present a novel real-world application in this area. We consider the problem of determining optimal locations for toll control stations on the arcs of a transportation network. We handle the fact that drivers can avoid control stations on parallel secondary roads. The problem is formulated as a mixed integer program and solved using Benders decomposition. We present experimental results for the application of our models to German motorways. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-32 KW - network interdiction Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-55405 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Klug, Torsten A1 - Lamorgese, Leonardo A1 - Mannino, Carlo A1 - Reuther, Markus A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Recent Success Stories on Optimization of Railway Systems N2 - Planning and operating railway transportation systems is an extremely hard task due to the combinatorial complexity of the underlying discrete optimization problems, the technical intricacies, and the immense size of the problem instances. Because of that, however, mathematical models and optimization techniques can result in large gains for both railway cus- tomers and operators, e.g., in terms of cost reductions or service quality improvements. In the last years a large and growing group of researchers in the OR community have devoted their attention to this domain devel- oping mathematical models and optimization approaches to tackle many of the relevant problems in the railway planning process. However, there is still a gap to bridge between theory and practice, with a few notable exceptions. In this paper we address three success stories, namely, long-term freight train routing (part I), mid-term rolling stock rotation planning (part II), and real-time train dispatching (part III). In each case, we describe real-life, successful implementations. We will dis- cuss the individual problem setting, survey the optimization literature, and focus on particular aspects addressed by the mathematical models. We demonstrate on concrete applications how mathematical optimization can support railway planning and operations. This gives proof that math- ematical optimization can support the planning of rolling stock resources. Thus, mathematical models and optimization can lead to a greater effi- ciency of railway operations and will serve as a powerful and innovative tool to meet recent challenges of the railway industry. T3 - ZIB-Report - 14-47 KW - railway planning KW - railway operations KW - capacity optimization Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53726 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Uslu, Svenja A1 - Werner, Axel T1 - A Two-Phase Method for the Biobjective k-Architecture Connected Facility Location Problem and Hypervolume Computation N2 - We apply customized versions of the ε-constraint Method and the Two-Phase Method to a problem originating in access network planning. We introduce various notions of quality measures for approximated/partial sets of nondominated points, utilizing the concept of hypervolume for biobjective problems. We report on computations to assess the performance of the two methods in terms of these measures. T3 - ZIB-Report - 15-08 KW - Biobjective Optimization KW - Connected Facility Location KW - Hypervolume Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-53753 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hendel, Gregor T1 - Adaptive Large Neighborhood Search for Mixed Integer Programming N2 - Large Neighborhood Search (LNS) heuristics are among the most powerful but also most expensive heuristics for mixed integer programs (MIP). Ideally, a solver learns adaptively which LNS heuristics work best for the MIP problem at hand in order to concentrate its limited computational budget. To this end, this work introduces Adaptive Large Neighborhood Search (ALNS) for MIP, a primal heuristic that acts a framework for eight popular LNS heuristics such as Local Branching and Relaxation Induced Neighborhood Search (RINS). We distinguish the available LNS heuristics by their individual search domains, which we call neighborhoods. The decision which neighborhood should be executed is guided by selection strategies for the multi armed bandit problem, a related optimization problem during which suitable actions have to be chosen to maximize a reward function. In this paper, we propose an LNS-specific reward function to learn to distinguish between the available neighborhoods based on successful calls and failures. A second, algorithmic enhancement is a generic variable fixing priorization, which ALNS employs to adjust the subproblem complexity as needed. This is particularly useful for some neighborhoods which do not fix variables by themselves. The proposed primal heuristic has been implemented within the MIP solver SCIP. An extensive computational study is conducted to compare different LNS strategies within our ALNS framework on a large set of publicly available MIP instances from the MIPLIB and Coral benchmark sets. The results of this simulation are used to calibrate the parameters of the bandit selection strategies. A second computational experiment shows the computational benefits of the proposed ALNS framework within the MIP solver SCIP. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-60 KW - mixed integer programming KW - primal heuristics KW - large neighborhood search KW - multi armed bandit problem Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-71167 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - THES A1 - Reuther, Markus T1 - Mathematical Optimization of Rolling Stock Rotations N2 - We show how to optimize rolling stock rotations that are required for the operation of a passenger timetable. The underlying mathematical ptimization problem is called rolling stock rotation problem (RSRP) and the leitmotiv of the thesis is RotOR, i.e., a highly integrated optimization algorithm for the RSRP. RotOR is used by DB Fernverkehr AG (DBF) in order to optimize intercity express (ICE) rotations for the European high-speed network. In this application, RSRPs have to be solved which (A) require many different aspects to be simultaneously considered, (B) are typically of large scale, and (C) include constraints that have a difficult combinatorial structure. This thesis suggests answers to these issues via the following concepts. (A) The main model, which RotOR uses, relies on a hypergraph. The hypergraph provides an easy way to model manifold industrial railway requirements in great detail. This includes well known vehicle composition requirements as well as relatively unexplored regularity stipulations. At the same time, the hypergraph directly leads to a mixed-integer programming (MIP) model for the RSRP. (B) The main algorithmic ingredient to solve industrial instances of the RSRP is a coarse-to-fine (C2F) column generation procedure. In this approach, the hypergraph is layered into coarse and fine layers that distinguish different levels of detail of the RSRP. The coarse layers are algorithmically utilized while pricing fine columns until proven optimality. Initially, the C2F approach is presented in terms of pure linear programming in order to provide an interface for other applications. (C) Rolling stock rotations have to comply to resource constraints in order to ensure, e.g., enough maintenance inspections along the rotations. These constraints are computationally hard, but are well known in the literature on the vehicle routing problem (VRP). We define an interface problem in order to bridge between the RSRP and the VRP and derive a straightforward algorithmic concept, namely regional search (RS), from their common features and, moreover, differences. Our RS algorithms show promising results for classical VRPs and RSRPs. In the first part of the thesis we present these concepts, which encompass its main mathematical contribution. The second part explains all modeling and solving components of RotOR that turn out to be essential in its industrial application. The thesis concludes with a solution to a complex re-optimization RSRP that RotOR has computed successfully for DBF. In this application all ICE vehicles of the ICE-W fleets of DBF had to be redirected past a construction site on a high-speed line in the heart of Germany. Y1 - 2017 UR - https://depositonce.tu-berlin.de/handle/11303/6309 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Georges, Alexander A1 - Gleixner, Ambros A1 - Gojic, Gorana A1 - Gottwald, Robert Lion A1 - Haley, David A1 - Hendel, Gregor A1 - Matejczyk, Bartlomiej T1 - Feature-Based Algorithm Selection for Mixed Integer Programming N2 - Mixed integer programming is a versatile and valuable optimization tool. However, solving specific problem instances can be computationally demanding even for cutting-edge solvers. Such long running times are often significantly reduced by an appropriate change of the solver's parameters. In this paper we investigate "algorithm selection", the task of choosing among a set of algorithms the ones that are likely to perform best for a particular instance. In our case, we treat different parameter settings of the MIP solver SCIP as different algorithms to choose from. Two peculiarities of the MIP solving process have our special attention. We address the well-known problem of performance variability by using multiple random seeds. Besides solving time, primal dual integrals are recorded as a second performance measure in order to distinguish solvers that timed out. We collected feature and performance data for a large set of publicly available MIP instances. The algorithm selection problem is addressed by several popular, feature-based methods, which have been partly extended for our purpose. Finally, an analysis of the feature space and performance results of the selected algorithms are presented. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-17 KW - algorithm selection KW - mixed integer programming Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-68362 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Breugem, Thomas A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Schlechte, Thomas A1 - Schulz, Christof T1 - A Three-Phase Heuristic for Cyclic Crew Rostering with Fairness Requirements N2 - In this paper, we consider the Cyclic Crew Rostering Problem with Fairness Requirements (CCRP-FR). In this problem, attractive cyclic rosters have to be constructed for groups of employees, considering multiple, a priori determined, fairness levels. The attractiveness follows from the structure of the rosters (e.g., sufficient rest times and variation in work), whereas fairness is based on the work allocation among the different roster groups. We propose a three-phase heuristic for the CCRP-FR, which combines the strength of column generation techniques with a large-scale neighborhood search algorithm. The design of the heuristic assures that good solutions for all fairness levels are obtained quickly, and can still be further improved if additional running time is available. We evaluate the performance of the algorithm using real-world data from Netherlands Railways, and show that the heuristic finds close to optimal solutions for many of the considered instances. In particular, we show that the heuristic is able to quickly find major improvements upon the current sequential practice: For most instances, the heuristic is able to increase the attractiveness by at least 20% in just a few minutes. T3 - ZIB-Report - 19-43 KW - Crew Planning KW - Column Generation KW - Variable-Depth Neighborhood Search Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-74297 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - THES A1 - Beckenbach, Isabel T1 - Matchings and Flows in Hypergraphs N2 - In this dissertation, we study matchings and flows in hypergraphs using combinatorial methods. These two problems are among the best studied in the field of combinatorial optimization. As hypergraphs are a very general concept, not many results on graphs can be generalized to arbitrary hypergraphs. Therefore, we consider special classes of hypergraphs, which admit more structure, to transfer results from graph theory to hypergraph theory. In Chapter 2, we investigate the perfect matching problem on different classes of hypergraphs generalizing bipartite graphs. First, we give a polynomial time approximation algorithm for the maximum weight matching problem on so-called partitioned hypergraphs, whose approximation factor is best possible up to a constant. Afterwards, we look at the theorems of König and Hall and their relation. Our main result is a condition for the existence of perfect matchings in normal hypergraphs that generalizes Hall’s condition for bipartite graphs. In Chapter 3, we consider perfect f-matchings, f-factors, and (g,f)-matchings. We prove conditions for the existence of (g,f)-matchings in unimodular hypergraphs, perfect f-matchings in uniform Mengerian hypergraphs, and f-factors in uniform balanced hypergraphs. In addition, we give an overview about the complexity of the (g,f)-matching problem on different classes of hypergraphs generalizing bipartite graphs. In Chapter 4, we study the structure of hypergraphs that admit a perfect matching. We show that these hypergraphs can be decomposed along special cuts. For graphs it is known that the resulting decomposition is unique, which does not hold for hypergraphs in general. However, we prove the uniqueness of this decomposition (up to parallel hyperedges) for uniform hypergraphs. In Chapter 5, we investigate flows on directed hypergraphs, where we focus on graph-based directed hypergraphs, which means that every hyperarc is the union of a set of pairwise disjoint ordinary arcs. We define a residual network, which can be used to decide whether a given flow is optimal or not. Our main result in this chapter is an algorithm that computes a minimum cost flow on a graph-based directed hypergraph. This algorithm is a generalization of the network simplex algorithm. N2 - Diese Arbeit untersucht Matchings und Flüsse in Hypergraphen mit Hilfe kombinatorischer Methoden. In Graphen gehören diese Probleme zu den grundlegendsten der kombinatorischen Optimierung. Viele Resultate lassen sich nicht von Graphen auf Hypergraphen verallgemeinern, da Hypergraphen ein sehr abstraktes Konzept bilden. Daher schauen wir uns bestimmte Klassen von Hypergraphen an, die mehr Struktur besitzen, und nutzen diese aus um Resultate aus der Graphentheorie zu übertragen. In Kapitel 2 betrachten wir das perfekte Matchingproblem auf Klassen von „bipartiten“ Hypergraphen, wobei es verschiedene Möglichkeiten gibt den Begriff „bipartit“ auf Hypergraphen zu definieren. Für sogenannte partitionierte Hypergraphen geben wir einen polynomiellen Approximationsalgorithmus an, dessen Gütegarantie bis auf eine Konstante bestmöglich ist. Danach betrachten wir die Sätze von Konig und Hall und untersuchen deren Zusammenhang. Unser Hauptresultat ist eine Bedingung für die Existenz von perfekten Matchings auf normalen Hypergraphen, die Halls Bedingung für bipartite Graphen verallgemeinert. Als Verallgemeinerung von perfekten Matchings betrachten wir in Kapitel 3 perfekte f-Matchings, f-Faktoren und (g, f)-Matchings. Wir beweisen Bedingungen für die Existenz von (g, f)-Matchings auf unimodularen Hypergraphen, perfekten f-Matchings auf uniformen Mengerschen Hypergraphen und f-Faktoren auf uniformen balancierten Hypergraphen. Außerdem geben wir eine Übersicht über die Komplexität des (g, f)-Matchingproblems auf verschiedenen Klassen von Hypergraphen an, die bipartite Graphen verallgemeinern. In Kapitel 4 untersuchen wir die Struktur von Hypergraphen, die ein perfektes Matching besitzen. Wir zeigen, dass diese Hypergraphen entlang spezieller Schnitte zerlegt werden können. Für Graphen weiß man, dass die so erhaltene Zerlegung eindeutig ist, was im Allgemeinen für Hypergraphen nicht zutrifft. Wenn man jedoch uniforme Hypergraphen betrachtet, dann liefert jede Zerlegung die gleichen unzerlegbaren Hypergraphen bis auf parallele Hyperkanten. Kapitel 5 beschäftigt sich mit Flüssen in gerichteten Hypergraphen, wobei wir Hypergraphen betrachten, die auf gerichteten Graphen basieren. Das bedeutet, dass eine Hyperkante die Vereinigung einer Menge von disjunkten Kanten ist. Wir definieren ein Residualnetzwerk, mit dessen Hilfe man entscheiden kann, ob ein gegebener Fluss optimal ist. Unser Hauptresultat in diesem Kapitel ist ein Algorithmus, um einen Fluss minimaler Kosten zu finden, der den Netzwerksimplex verallgemeinert. KW - Matchings KW - Balanced Hypergraphs KW - Normal Hypergraphs KW - Mengerian Hypergraphs KW - Factors KW - Tight Cuts KW - Network Flows Y1 - 2019 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:188-refubium-24385-6 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Serrano, Felipe T1 - Visible points, the separation problem, and applications to MINLP N2 - In this paper we introduce a technique to produce tighter cutting planes for mixed-integer non-linear programs. Usually, a cutting plane is generated to cut off a specific infeasible point. The underlying idea is to use the infeasible point to restrict the feasible region in order to obtain a tighter domain. To ensure validity, we require that every valid cut separating the infeasible point from the restricted feasible region is still valid for the original feasible region. We translate this requirement in terms of the separation problem and the reverse polar. In particular, if the reverse polar of the restricted feasible region is the same as the reverse polar of the feasible region, then any cut valid for the restricted feasible region that \emph{separates} the infeasible point, is valid for the feasible region. We show that the reverse polar of the \emph{visible points} of the feasible region from the infeasible point coincides with the reverse polar of the feasible region. In the special where the feasible region is described by a single non-convex constraint intersected with a convex set we provide a characterization of the visible points. Furthermore, when the non-convex constraint is quadratic the characterization is particularly simple. We also provide an extended formulation for a relaxation of the visible points when the non-convex constraint is a general polynomial. Finally, we give some conditions under which for a given set there is an inclusion-wise smallest set, in some predefined family of sets, whose reverse polars coincide. T3 - ZIB-Report - 19-38 Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-74016 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Sahin, Guvenc A1 - Ahmadi, Amin A1 - Borndörfer, Ralf A1 - Schlechte, Thomas T1 - Multi-Period Line Planning with Resource Transfers N2 - Urban transportation systems are subject to a high level of variation and fluctuation in demand over the day. When this variation and fluctuation are observed in both time and space, it is crucial to develop line plans that are responsive to demand. A multi-period line planning approach that considers a changing demand during the planning horizon is proposed. If such systems are also subject to limitations of resources, a dynamic transfer of resources from one line to another throughout the planning horizon should also be considered. A mathematical modelling framework is developed to solve the line planning problem with transfer of resources during a finite length planning horizon of multiple periods. We analyze whether or not multi-period solutions outperform single period solutions in terms of feasibility and relevant costs. The importance of demand variation on multi-period solutions is investigated. We evaluate the impact of resource transfer constraints on the effectiveness of solutions. We also study the effect of line type designs and question the choice of period lengths along with the problem parameters that are significant for and sensitive to the optimality of solutions. T3 - ZIB-Report - 19-51 Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-74662 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hendel, Gregor A1 - Anderson, Daniel A1 - Le Bodic, Pierre A1 - Pfetsch, Marc T1 - Estimating the Size of Branch-And-Bound Trees N2 - This paper investigates the estimation of the size of Branch-and-Bound (B&B) trees for solving mixed-integer programs. We first prove that the size of the B&B tree cannot be approximated within a factor of~2 for general binary programs, unless P equals NP. Second, we review measures of the progress of the B&B search, such as the gap, and propose a new measure, which we call leaf frequency. We study two simple ways to transform these progress measures into B&B tree size estimates, either as a direct projection, or via double-exponential smoothing, a standard time-series forecasting technique. We then combine different progress measures and their trends into nontrivial estimates using Machine Learning techniques, which yields more precise estimates than any individual measure. The best method we have identified uses all individual measures as features of a random forest model. In a large computational study, we train and validate all methods on the publicly available MIPLIB and Coral general purpose benchmark sets. On average, the best method estimates B&B tree sizes within a factor of 3 on the set of unseen test instances even during the early stage of the search, and improves in accuracy as the search progresses. It also achieves a factor 2 over the entire search on each out of six additional sets of homogeneous instances we have tested. All techniques are available in version 7 of the branch-and-cut framework SCIP. T3 - ZIB-Report - 20-02 KW - mixed integer programming KW - machine learning KW - branch and bound KW - forecasting Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-78144 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Lenz, Ralf A1 - Serrano, Felipe T1 - Tight Convex Relaxations for the Expansion Planning Problem N2 - Secure energy transport is considered as highly relevant for the basic infrastructure of nowadays society and economy. To satisfy increasing demands and to handle more diverse transport situations, operators of energy networks regularly expand the capacity of their network by building new network elements, known as the expansion planning problem. A key constraint function in expansion planning problems is a nonlinear and nonconvex potential loss function. In order to improve the algorithmic performance of state-of-the-art MINLP solvers, this paper presents an algebraic description for the convex envelope of this function. Through a thorough computational study, we show that this tighter relaxation tremendously improve the performance of the MINLP solver SCIP on a large test set of practically relevant instances for the expansion planning problem. In particular, the results show that our achievements lead to an improvement of the solver performance for a development version by up to 58%. T3 - ZIB-Report - 21-05 KW - Convex envelopes KW - Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming KW - Expansion planning of energy networks Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-81459 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Lenz, Ralf T1 - Pipe Merging for Transient Gas Network Problems N2 - In practice, transient gas transport problems frequently have to be solved for large-scale gas networks. Gas network optimization problems typically belong to the class of Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming Problems (MINLP). However current state-of-the-art MINLP solvers are not yet mature enough to solve large-scale real-world instances. Therefore, an established approach in practice is to solve the problems with respect to a coarser representation of the network and thereby reducing the size of the underlying model. Two well-known aggregation methods that effectively reduce the network size are parallel and serial pipe merges. However, these methods have only been studied in stationary gas transport problems so far. This paper closes this gap and presents parallel and serial pipe merging methods in the context of transient gas transport. To this end, we introduce the concept of equivalent and heuristic subnetwork replacements. For the heuristic methods, we conduct a huge empirical evaluation based on real-world data taken from one of the largest gas networks in Europe. It turns out that both, parallel and serial pipe merging can be considered as appropriate aggregation methods for real-world transient gas flow problems. T3 - ZIB-Report - 21-10 KW - Pipe merging KW - Network aggregation KW - Gas network optimization KW - Transient gas flow transport KW - Nonlinear Programming Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-82116 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Anderson, Daniel A1 - Hendel, Gregor A1 - Le Bodic, Pierre A1 - Viernickel, Jan Merlin T1 - Clairvoyant Restarts in Branch-and-Bound Search Using Online Tree-Size Estimation N2 - We propose a simple and general online method to measure the search progress within the Branch-and-Bound algorithm, from which we estimate the size of the remaining search tree. We then show how this information can help solvers algorithmically at runtime by designing a restart strategy for Mixed-Integer Programming (MIP) solvers that decides whether to restart the search based on the current estimate of the number of remaining nodes in the tree. We refer to this type of algorithm as clairvoyant. Our clairvoyant restart strategy outperforms a state-of-the-art solver on a large set of publicly available MIP benchmark instances. It is implemented in the MIP solver SCIP and will be available in future releases. T3 - ZIB-Report - 19-11 KW - Mixed-Integer Programming solvers KW - Restart KW - Progress measures KW - tree-size estimates Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-72653 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - THES A1 - Wyczik, Christopher T1 - Optimierung von Deployment- und Umgebungs-Integrität durch ein dezentrales Konfigurationsrepository auf Basis einer Blockchain N2 - Viele Firmen nutzen für ihre eigenen Softwareentwicklungen verschiedene Server mit unterschiedlichen Konfigurationen. Manche Server werden dazu eingestzt das Verhalten einer Software in einer bestimmten Umgebung zu testen und andere dienen zur Bereitstellung der Software für den Endnutzer. Hierbei ist es wichtig, dass die Konfiguration der Server regelmäßig überprüft wird. Eine solche Sicherstellung der Deployment- und Umgebungs-Integrität wird meistens durch eine Mitarbeiter der Firma oder durch einen externen Dienstleister erbracht. D.h. die Firma muss sich auf die Zuverlässigkeit eines Mitarbeiters oder einer externen Dienstleistung verlassen, bie zunehmender Komplexität ist sie sogar abhängig. Das Ziel dieser Masterarbeit ist es, zu untersuchen, ob die Sicherstellung der Deployment- und Umgebungs-Integrität durch automatisierte kryptografische Beweise, anstelle externer Dienstleistungen oder anderer Mitarbeiter, gewährleistet werden kann. Als Anwendungsfall dient die Toll Collect GmbH. Im ersten Teil dieser Arbeit wird das Matheamtische Modell einer Blockchain erläutert. die Blockchain wurde erstmals in einem Dokument, welches unter dem Pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto veröffentlicht wurde, beschrieben. Die erste große Anwendungen der Blockchain ist das dezentrale Zahlungssystem Bitcoin. Im zweiten Teil dieser Arbeit wird die Softwareimplementierung vorgestellt, welche im Rahmen dieser Arbeit entstanden ist. Mithilfe dieses Programms kann die Deployment- und Umgebungs-Integrität durch eine heirführ entwickelte Blockchainlösung dezentralisiert werden. Es wird außerdem der Übergang vom Mathematischen Modell zur Implementierung gezeigt. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - THES A1 - Akil, Fatima T1 - Lineare Gleichungssysteme modulo T N2 - Mit dem Voranschreiten der Technologie erhalten die öffentlichen Verkehrsmittel eine größere Bedeutung. Die Beförderung mehrerer Personen eröffnet der Gesellschaft viele Möglichkeiten, unter Anderem den Vorteil der Zeitersparnis. Die Dauer des Verkehrswegs mit öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln ist häufig geringer, als die mit individuellen Verkehrsmitteln. Jedes öffentliche Transportmittel ist mit einem Fahrplan versehen. Dieser bietet Passagieren, die öffentliche Verkehrsmittel öfter nutzen, eine Strukturierung und Planung ihrer Zeit. Dabei lassen sich Taktfahrpläne aufgrund ihres periodischen Verhaltens leicht einprägen. Dieses periodische Verhalten ist durch mathematische Modellierungen darstellbar. Das persönliche Nutzverhalten vieler Bürger im Personenverkehr ist auf die öffentlichen Verkehrsmittel beschränkt. Diese beinhalten im Gegensatz zum individuellen Verkehrsmittel eine Wartezeit. Dabei stellt sich die Frage, ob man anhand mathematischer Modelle diese Wartezeit minimieren kann. Eine bekannte mathematische Modellierung dieses Problems ist das Periodic Event Scheduling Problem (PESP). Die optimale Planung eines periodischen Taktfahrplanes steht im Vordergrund. Während ich dieses Problem betrachtet habe, wurde ich auf das Rechnen mit linearen Gleichungssystemen modulo T aufmerksam. Bei periodischen Taktfahrplänen wird ein einheitliches zeitliches Muster, welches sich nach T Minuten wiederholt, betrachtet. Das dabei zu betrachtende Lösungsproblem eröffnet ein Teilgebiet der Mathematik, welches bislang nicht im Vordergrund stand: Das Lösen linearer Gleichungen modulo T, wobei T für die Zeit in Minuten steht und somit 60 ist. Da 60 keine Primzahl ist, kann – wie im Laufe der Arbeit präsentiert – das lineare Gleichungssystem nicht mehr über einen Körper gelöst werden. Lineare Gleichungssysteme werden nun über Nicht-Körpern betrachtet. Die Literatur weist sowohl im deutschsprachigem als auch im englischsprachigen Raum wenig Umfang bezüglich linearer Gleichungssysteme über Nicht-Körper auf. Der Bestand an Fachliteratur bezüglich den Themen lineare diophantische Gleichungssysteme, Hermite- Normalform und Smith-Normalform ist zurzeit gering, dennoch erreichbar, beispielsweise in [1], welches in dieser Bachelorarbeit genutzt wurde. Insbesondere wurde ich bei der Suche nach geeigneter Literatur zu linearen Gleichungssystemen über Restklassenringe, die keinen Körper bilden, nicht fündig. Dabei recherchierte ich sowohl in den Universitätsbibliotheken als auch in webbasierenden Suchmaschinen. Aufgrund dem geringen Bestand an Fachliteratur in diesem Kontext, war ich gezwungen, an vielen Stellen eigene logische Verknüpfungen zu konzipieren und zu beweisen. Dies brachte viele Schwierigkeiten mit sich, die mit bestmöglichem Verständnis bearbeitet wurden. Abseits der Zugänglichkeit der Literatur, finde ich es sehr überraschend, dass sich viele Professoren der Mathematik mit diesem Themenbereich nicht beschäftigten. Insbesondere gingen von den Dozenten, die ich um Literaturempfehlung bat, kein Werk aus. Damit wurde das Thema "Lineare Gleichungssysteme Modulo T" einerseits eine große Herausforderung, andererseits eine große Motivation, da ich mit dieser Bachelorarbeit vielen Interessenten der Mathematik als Sekundärliteratur dienen kann. Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-71560 ER - TY - THES A1 - Vornberger, Leo T1 - Approximation von Windkomponenten in der Luftfahrt durch lineare Interpolation N2 - Das Wind-Interpolation-Problem (WIP) ist ein bisher selten diskutiertes Problem der Flugplanungsoptimierung, bei dem es darum geht, Wind-Komponenten auf einer Luftstraße zu approximieren. Anhand von Winddaten, die vektoriell an den Gitterpunkten eines den Globus umspannenden Gitters vorliegen, soll bestimmt werden, wie viel Wind entlang der Luftstraße und quer zu ihr weht. Thema dieser Arbeit ist ein Spezialfall des WIP, nämlich das statische WIP auf einer Planfläche (SWIPP). Dazu wird zuerst ein Algorithmus besprochen, der das SWIPP zwar löst, aber einem Ansatz zugrunde liegt, der bei genauerem Hinsehen nicht sinnvoll erscheint: hier wird Wind zwischen vier Punkten interpoliert, wozu es keine triviale Methode gibt. Ähnlich zu diesem Algorithmus, der heute als State-of-the-Art gilt, wird als Ergebnis dieser Arbeit ein neuer Algorithmus vorgestellt, der das SWIPP akkurater und schneller löst. Hier wird deutlich seltener auf die Interpolation zwischen vier Punkten zurückgegriffen - stattdessen wird fast immer linear zwischen zwei Punkten interpoliert. Die Algorithmen zum Lösen des SWIPP werden auf ihre Genauigkeit, asymptotische Laufzeit und Geschwindigkeit untersucht und verglichen. Als Testareal dienen zum einen echte Wetterdaten sowie das Luftstraßennetz, das die Erde umspannt, und zum anderen ein eigens generiertes Windfeld und fiktive Luftstraßen. Es wird gezeigt, dass der hier vorgestellte Algorithmus die State-of-the-Art-Variante in allen genannten Aspekten übertrifft. Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-71570 ER - TY - THES A1 - Husemann, Christoph T1 - Multimodales Routing mit Leihfahrradsystemen am Beispiel Berlins N2 - The aim of multimodal routing is to extract the best integrated journey of multiple transportation networks. The integration of bike rental networks is challenging particularly with respect to recognizing a valid path dependent on real-time availability of bike boarding and alighting places. In this work a common model for station-based bike rental networks extended with boarding possibilities for free floating bikes is presented. Moreover a new model for alighting inside a free floating area is introduced. In addition, a prototype of multimodal routing with a bike rental network in Berlin is developed by extending the OpenTripPlanner software. Due to recent public dispute about bike rental networks in Berlin, an examination about speed-up potential of an integrated bike rental network in the public transit of Berlin is provided. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - THES A1 - Krug, Matthias T1 - Analysis of the Shortest Path Problem with Piecewise Constant Crossing Costs Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - THES A1 - Mett, Fabian T1 - Über die optimale Platzierung von Ladestationen für Elektrobusse N2 - In dieser Arbeit wird die Platzierung von Ladestationen für Elektrobusse untersucht. Dabei soll für eine Menge an gegebenen Linien eine Menge an Ladestationen gefunden werden, sodass jede Linie mit Nutzung der Ladestationen befahren werden kann und gleichzeitig die Kosten minimal sind. Zunächst wird der Fall betrachtet, dass die Batterie an jeder Station komplett vollgeladen werden könnte. Dieses Problem stellt sich als NP-schwer heraus. Für einige einfachere Fällewerden zudem Algorithmen entwickelt und untersucht. Anschließend wird der Fall einer unbegrenzt großen Batterie betrachtet, wobei an jeder Station derselbe Wert geladen werden kann. Auch dieses Problem ist NP-schwer. Erneut werden Algorithmen zur Lösung vereinfachter Problemstellungen gegeben und analysiert. Wird zudem angenommen, an jeder Station würde ein individueller Wert geladen, so ist das Problem schon für nur eine einzige Linie NP-schwer. Dennoch werden zwei exakte und ein approximierender Algorithmus entwickelt. Schließlich wird eine Batteriekapazität hinzugefügt und die zuvor entwickelten Algorithmen werden entsprechend angepasst. Für die abschließende Problemdefinition werden verschiedene Batteriegrößen betrachtet und es werden zwei gemischt-ganzzahlige Programme aufgestellt. Anhand von existierenden Buslinien aus Berlin werden diese untersucht. Dabei stellt sich heraus, dass die Batteriekosten einen deutlich größeren Teil der Kosten ausmachen als die Ladestationen. Zudem sollten kleinere Batterien statt größerer und mehr Ladestationen genutzt werden. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - THES A1 - Nöckel, Celine T1 - Bidirectional A* Search on Time-Dependent Airway Networks N2 - This thesis deals with a new algorithm for finding Shortest Paths on Airway Networks. It is about a Bidirectional A* Search, a Greedy algorithm exploring a network from two sides instead of one. We will use it to solve the so-called 'Horizontal Flight Trajectory Problem', where one searches for an aircraft trajectory between two airports of minimal costs on an Airway Network. The given network will be modeled as a directed graph and in order to reflect reality we concentrate on the dynamic version. Here a timedependent cost function for all arcs is integrated, that shall represent the winds blowing. This way we model the Horizontal Flight Trajectory Problem mathematically as a Time-Dependent Shortest Path Problem. The basic algorithm idea derives from the algorithm presented in 'Bidirectional A* Search on Time-Dependent Road Networks' [1], where a similar setting is elaborated for road networks. The algorithm procedure bears on a modified generalization of Dijkstra's algorithm, made bidirectional and improved in several aspects. As for the backwards search the arrival times are not known in advance, the reversed graph it occurs on has to be weighted by a lower bound. Contrary to the static case the forwards search still has to go on, when they 'meet' in one node. In the static case, the shortest path would have been found at this point. For road networks the TDSPP is well-studied, for airway networks cannot be found as much in literature. In order to test efficiency, we implement Dijkstra's algorithm, unidirectional A* Search and Bidirectional A* Search. We draw up how potential functions for the static case could look like and that with a suitable potential A* Search with works approx. 7 times faster than Dijkstra in the dynamic case. Our computations lead also to the result, that the unidirectional A* Search works even better on the network than our new bidirectional approach does. On average it labels fewer nodes and also yields 1,7 times faster to the solutions. For assessing the efficiency of the different algorithms we compare the running times and to exclude processor characteristics we consider also the set labels relative to the labels on the resulting optimal path. In addition, we present examples of routes visually and explain shortly why there appear local differences regarding performance of A* Search and Bidirectional A* Search. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Rehfeldt, Daniel A1 - Koch, Thorsten T1 - Reduction-based exact solution of prize-collecting Steiner tree problems T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-55 Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-70958 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Serrano, Felipe T1 - Intersection cuts for factorable MINLP N2 - Given a factorable function f, we propose a procedure that constructs a concave underestimor of f that is tight at a given point. These underestimators can be used to generate intersection cuts. A peculiarity of these underestimators is that they do not rely on a bounded domain. We propose a strengthening procedure for the intersection cuts that exploits the bounds of the domain. Finally, we propose an extension of monoidal strengthening to take advantage of the integrality of the non-basic variables. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-59 Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-71105 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - THES A1 - Euler, Ricardo T1 - The Bienstock Zuckerberg Algorithm for the Rolling Stock Rotation Problem N2 - The design of rolling stock rotations is an important task in large-scale railway planning. This so-called rolling stock rotation problem (RSRP) is usually tackled using an integer programming approach. Markus Reuther did so in his dissertation [15] for the ICE railway network of DB ("Deutsche Bahn"). Due to the size of the network and the complexity of further technical requirements, the resulting integer problems tend to become very large and computationally involved. In this thesis, we tackle the linear programming relaxation of the RSRP integer program. We will do so by applying a modified version of an algorithm recently proposed by Dan Bienstock and Mark Zuckerberg [2] for the precedence constrained production scheduling problem that arises in open pit mine scheduling. This problem contains a large number of "easy" constraints and a relatively small number of "hard" constraints. We will see that a similar problem structure can also be found in the RSRP. The Bienstock-Zuckerberg algorithm relies on applying Lagrangian relaxation to the hard constraints as well as on partitioning the variable set. We propose three different partition schemes which try to exploit the specific problem structure of the RSRP. Furthermore, we will discuss the influence of primal degeneracy on the algorithm's performance, as well as possible merits of perturbating the right-hand side of the constraint matrix. We provide computational results to assess the performance of those approaches. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - THES A1 - Wirsching, Marie T1 - Der Einfluss von Langzahlarithmetik auf das Gewichtsraumpolyeder in mehrkriterieller Optimierung N2 - Die Arbeit befasst sich mit einem gewichtsraumbasierten Algorithmus, der ganzzahlige und lineare Optimierungsprobleme mit mehreren Zielfunktionen löst und die Menge der unterstützt nicht dominierten Punkte ermittelt. Die dabei erzeugten Gewichtsraumpolyeder sind das entscheidende Mittel, um die gesuchte Lösungsmenge zu bestimmen. Aus softwaretechnischer Sicht sind numerische Ungenauigkeiten potentielle Fehlerquellen, die sich negativ auf das Endergebnis auswirken. Aus diesem Grund untersuchen wir anhand von Zuweisungs- und Rucksackinstanzen mit 3 Zielfunktionen, inwieweit der Gebrauch von Langzahlarithmetik die Gewichtsraumpolyeder und die damit verbundene Menge der unterstützt nicht dominierten Punkte beeinflusst. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - THES A1 - Jeschke, Björn-Marcel T1 - Alternativen zum Dijkstra Algorithmus in der (Nah-) Verkehrsoptimierung N2 - In dieser Arbeit betrachten wir das Problem, für den Fahrplan eines (Nah-) Verkehrsnetzes schnellste Wege zu berechnen. Da die Verkehrsmittel zu unterschiedlichen Zeiten von den einzelnen Haltestellen/Bahnhöfen abfahren, kann das Problem nicht ohne Weiteres mit einem „statischen“ Graphen modelliert werden. Es gibt zwei unterschiedliche Ansätze für dieses zeitabhängige Problem: Erstens können die verschiedenen An-/Abfahrtereignisse an einem Halt durch „Kopien“ dargestellt werden, das ist das zeit-expandierte Modell. Zweitens können die Gewichte der Kanten zeitabhängig sein, das ist das zeitabhängige Modell. Wir untersuchen in dieser Arbeit, wie der „klassische“ Dijkstra-Algorithmus und der A* Algorithmus mit einer geeigneten Heuristik im Vergleich abschneiden. Die gewählte Heuristik ist der Abstand zum Zielknoten, wenn die Abfahrtszeiten ignoriert werden. Nach unseren Untersuchungen zeigt sich, dass der A* Algorithmus dem Dijkstra-Algorithmus weit überlegen ist für genügend große Nahverkehrsnetze. Wir testen anhand der echten Verkehrsnetze von Berlin und Aachen. Unsere Berechnungen zeigen, dass die gewählte Heuristik besonders gut ist für Start- und Zielknoten, welche unabhängig von ihrer Distanz nur 1–2 verschiedene mögliche kürzeste Pfade für alle Zeitschritte haben. Dort ist der A* Algorithmus bis zu 20-mal schneller. Dies kommt aber nicht häufig in unseren Testinstanzen vor. Die einzelnen Laufzeitvergleich zeigen, dass der A* Algorithmus durchschnittlich 7-mal so schnell ist wie der Dikstra-Algorithmus. Y1 - 2017 ER - TY - THES A1 - Oleynikova, Ekaterina T1 - Mathematical optimization of joint order batching and picker routing problems N2 - In this thesis we study order picking optimization problems for a two-blocks rectangle warehouse layout. We present combinatorial formulations and linear programming models based on the Steiner graph representation for order batching, picker routing, and joint order batching and picker routing problems. A special case of the latter is considered. This case assumes that each order contains exactly one item and each item can be picked from different possible locations in a warehouse. The underlying optimization problem is called joint multi-location order batching and picker routing problem (JMLOBPRP). Since having only one-item orders turns the JMLOBPRP into a special case of a capacitated vehicle routing problem, we suggest to implement algorithmic approaches for those to solve the JMLOBPRP. In particular, we define the JMLOBPRP as a generalization of the resource constrained assignment problem, for which a regional search method exists. The intention of the thesis is to investigate how a relaxation of the JMLOBPRP, a so-called group assignment problem (GrAP), can be solved following the ideas of regional search. We present a mathematical model of the GrAP and prove that it is NP-hard. Furthermore, we propose a novel heuristic algorithm for the GrAP. We call this method a network search algorithm, as it is based on a Lagrangian relaxation of the GrAP, which is solved by the network simplex method. On each its iteration network search examines a solution region suggested by the network simplex algorithm and improves the incumbent solution. Numerical experiments are conducted to assess a performance of the network search method. We create more realistic problem instances. The proposed algorithm is compared to the integer optimal solution of the GrAP and optimal fractional solution of its linear relaxation. Both computed using the commercial linear solver Gurobi. Our experiments show that the developed network search algorithm leads to the hight-quality solution within a short computing time. The results obtained testing large problem instances which cannot be solved by Gurobi within a reasonable computing time, show that the network search method provides a solution approach which can be used in practice. Y1 - 2018 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Becker, Kai-Helge A1 - Hiller, Benjamin T1 - ASTS Orientations on Undirected Graphs: Structural analysis and enumeration N2 - All feasible flows in potential-driven networks induce an orientation on the undirected graph underlying the network. Clearly, these orientations must satisfy two conditions: they are acyclic and there are no "dead ends" in the network, i.e. each source requires outgoing flows, each sink requires incoming flows, and each transhipment vertex requires both an incoming and an outgoing flow. In this paper we will call orientations that satisfy these conditions acyclic source-transhipment-sink orientations (ASTS-orientation) and study their structure. In particular, we characterize graphs that allow for such an orientation, describe a way to enumerate all possible ASTS-orientations of a given graph, present an algorithm to simplify and decompose a graph before such an enumeration and shed light on the role of zero flows in the context of ASTS-orientations. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-31 Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-69632 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Lenz, Ralf A1 - Becker, Kai-Helge T1 - Optimization of Capacity Expansion in Potential-driven Networks including Multiple Looping - A comparison of modelling approaches N2 - In commodity transport networks such as natural gas, hydrogen and water networks, flows arise from nonlinear potential differences between the nodes, which can be represented by so-called "potential-driven" network models. When operators of these networks face increasing demand or the need to handle more diverse transport situations, they regularly seek to expand the capacity of their network by building new pipelines parallel to existing ones ("looping"). The paper introduces a new mixed-integer non-linear programming (MINLP) model and a new non-linear programming (NLP) model and compares these with existing models for the looping problem and related problems in the literature, both theoretically and experimentally. On this basis, we give recommendations about the circumstances under which a certain model should be used. In particular, it turns out that one of our novel models outperforms the existing models. Moreover, the paper is the first to include the practically relevant option that a particular pipeline may be looped several times. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-44 KW - OR in energy KW - Network expansion KW - MINLP Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-69726 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Serrano, Felipe A1 - Muñoz, Gonzalo T1 - Maximal Quadratic-Free Sets N2 - The intersection cut paradigm is a powerful framework that facilitates the generation of valid linear inequalities, or cutting planes, for a potentially complex set S. The key ingredients in this construction are a simplicial conic relaxation of S and an S-free set: a convex zone whose interior does not intersect S. Ideally, such S-free set would be maximal inclusion-wise, as it would generate a deeper cutting plane. However, maximality can be a challenging goal in general. In this work, we show how to construct maximal S-free sets when S is defined as a general quadratic inequality. Our maximal S-free sets are such that efficient separation of a vertex in LP-based approaches to quadratically constrained problems is guaranteed. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first to provide maximal quadratic-free sets. T3 - ZIB-Report - 19-56 KW - MINLP KW - Quadratic Optimization KW - Cutting planes Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-76922 SN - 1438-0064 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Eifler, Leon A1 - Gleixner, Ambros A1 - Pulaj, Jonad T1 - Chvátal’s Conjecture Holds for Ground Sets of Seven Elements N2 - We establish a general computational framework for Chvátal’s conjecture based on exact rational integer programming. As a result we prove Chvátal’s conjecture holds for all downsets whose union of sets contains seven elements or less. The computational proof relies on an exact branch-and-bound certificate that allows for elementary verification and is independent of the integer programming solver used. T3 - ZIB-Report - 18-49 KW - extremal combinatorics KW - exact rational integer programming Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-70240 SN - 1438-0064 ER -