A Node Current-based 2-Index Formulation for the Fixed-Destination Multi-Depot Travelling Salesman Problem

Reference

M. Burger, Z. Su, and B. De Schutter, "A node current-based 2-index formulation for the fixed-destination multi-depot travelling salesman problem," European Journal of Operational Research, vol. 265, no. 2, pp. 463-477, Mar. 2018.

Abstract

The travelling salesman problem forms a basis for many optimisation problems in logistics, finance, and engineering. Several variants exist to accommodate for different problem types. In this article we discuss the fixed-destination, multi-depot travelling salesman problem, where several salesmen will start from different depots, and they are required to return to the depot they originated from. We propose a novel formulation for this problem using 2-index binary variables and node currents, and compare it to other 2-index formulations from the literature. This novel formulation requires less binary variables and continuous variables to formulate a problem, resulting in lower computation times. Using a large benchmark the effectiveness of the new formulation is demonstrated.

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BibTeX

@article{BurSu:17-013,
   author  = {Burger, Mernout and Su, Zhou and De Schutter, Bart},
   title   = {A Node Current-based 2-Index Formulation for the
              Fixed-Destination Multi-Depot Travelling Salesman Problem},
   journal = {European Journal of Operational Research},
   volume  = {265},
   number  = {2},
   pages   = {463--477},
   month   = mar,
   year    = {2018}
   }


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