90-XX OPERATIONS RESEARCH, MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING
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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.
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.
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.
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.
We consider a system dynamics model that describes the effect of human activity on natural resources. The central stocks are the accumulated profit, the industry structures, and the water resources. The model can be controlled through two time-dependent parameters. The goal in this paper is to find a parameter setting that leads to a maximization of a performance index, which reflects both environmental and economic aspects. Thus, the goal is to identify the most sustainable stock of industry structures within the model's constraints and assumptions. In order to find a proven global optimal parameter set, we formulate the System Dynamics Optimization model as a mixed-integer nonlinear problem that is accessible for numerical solvers. Due to the dynamic structure of the model, certain steps of the solution process must be handled with greater care, compared to standard non-dynamic problems. We describe our approach of solving the industry structure model and present computational results. In addition, we discuss the limitations of the approach and next steps.
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.
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.
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/).
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.
Recently, parallel computing environments have become significantly popular. In order to obtain the benefit of using parallel computing environments, we have to deploy our programs for these effectively. This paper focuses on a parallelization of SCIP (Solving Constraint Integer Programs), which is a MIP solver and constraint integer programming framework available in source code. There is a parallel extension of SCIP named ParaSCIP, which parallelizes SCIP on massively parallel distributed memory computing environments. This paper describes FiberSCIP, which is yet another parallel extension of SCIP to utilize multi-threaded parallel computation on shared memory computing environments, and has the following contributions: First, the basic concept of having two parallel extensions and the relationship between them and the parallelization framework provided by UG (Ubiquity Generator) is presented, including an implementation of deterministic parallelization. Second, the difficulties to achieve a good performance that utilizes all resources on an actual computing environment and the difficulties of performance evaluation of the parallel solvers are discussed. Third, a way to evaluate the performance of new algorithms and parameter settings of the parallel extensions is presented. Finally, current performance of FiberSCIP for solving mixed-integer linear programs (MIPs) and mixed-integer non-linear programs (MINLPs) in parallel is demonstrated.