The balance space approach (introduced by Galperin in 1990) provides a new view on multicriteria optimization. Looking at deviations from global optimality of the different objectives, balance points and balance numbers are defined when either different or equal deviations for each objective are allowed. Apportioned balance numbers allow the specification of proportions among the deviations. Through this concept the decision maker can be involved in the decision process. In this paper we prove that the apportioned balance number can be formulated by a min-max operator. Furthermore we prove some relations between apportioned balance numbers and the balance set, and see the representation of balance numbers in the balance set. The main results are necessary and sufficient conditions for the balance set to be exhaustive, which means that by multiplying a vector of weights (proportions of deviation) with its corresponding apportioned balance number a balance point is attained. The results are used to formulate an interactive procedure for multicriteria optimization. All results are illustrated by examples.
La Teoría de localización abarca las posibilidades, para que con la ayuda de modelos matemáticos se busquen localizaciones teniendo en cuenta que los intereses económicos y administrativos sean óptimos. Así por ejemplo se encuentra la mejor localización para el almacén central de una empresa, cuando la suma de los gastos de transporte y de almacenaje sean mínimos y cuando se utilice el almacén óptimo. Si por otro lado, la administración busca la localización de una nueva estación de bomberos o de un hospital, hay que tener en cuenta un importante criterio para la localización óptima y es que la distancia mayor no sobrepase un valor dado.
Fragestellungen der Standortplanung sollen den Mathematikunterricht der Schule bereichern, dort behandelt und gelöst werden. In dieser Arbeit werden planare Standortprobleme vorgestellt, die im Mathematikunterricht behandelt werden können. Die Probleme Produktion von Halbleiterplatinen, Planung eines Feuerwehrhauses und das Zentrallagerproblem, die ausnahmlos real und nicht konstruiert sind, werden ausführlich durchgearbeitet, so dass es schnell möglich ist, daraus Unterrichtseinheiten zu entwickeln.
Many polynomially solvable combinatorial optimization problems (COP) become NP when we require solutions to satisfy an additional cardinality constraint. This family of problems has been considered only recently. We study a newproblem of this family: the k-cardinality minimum cut problem. Given an undirected edge-weighted graph the k-cardinality minimum cut problem is to find a partition of the vertex set V in two sets V 1 , V 2 such that the number of the edges between V 1 and V 2 is exactly k and the sum of the weights of these edges is minimal. A variant of this problem is the k-cardinality minimum s-t cut problem where s and t are fixed vertices and we have the additional request that s belongs to V 1 and t belongs to V 2 . We also consider other variants where the number of edges of the cut is constrained to be either less or greater than k. For all these problems we show complexity results in the most significant graph classes.
In this paper relationships between Pareto points and saddle points in multiple objective programming are investigated. Convex and nonconvex problems are considered and the equivalence between Pareto points and saddle points is proved in both cases. The results are based on scalarizations of multiple objective programs and related linear and augmented Lagrangian functions. Partitions of the index sets of objectives and constranints are introduced to reduce the size of the problems. The relevance of the results in the context of decision making is also discussed.
In this paper we prove a reduction result for the number of criteria in convex multiobjective optimization. This result states that to decide wheter a point x in the decision space is pareto optimal it suffices to consider at most n? criteria at a time, where n is the dimension of the decision space. The main theorem is based on a geometric characterization of pareto, strict pareto and weak pareto solutions
In this paper we address the question of how many objective functions are needed to decide whether a given point is a Pareto optimal solution for a multicriteria optimization problem. We extend earlier results showing that the set of weakly Pareto optimal points is the union of Pareto optimal sets of subproblems and show their limitations. We prove that for strictly quasi-convex problems in two variables Pareto optimality can be decided by consideration of at most three objectives at a time. Our results are based on a geometric characterization of Pareto, strict Pareto and weak Pareto solutions and Helly's Theorem. We also show that a generalization to quasi-convex objectives is not possible, and state a weaker result for this case. Furthermore, we show that a generalization to strictly Pareto optimal solutions is impossible, even in the convex case.
It is well known that the greedy algorithm solves matroid base problems for all linear cost functions and is, in fact, correct if and only if the underlying combinatorial structure of the problem is a matroid. Moreover, the algorithm can be applied to problems with sum, bottleneck, algebraic sum or \(k\)-sum objective functions.
In this paper we investigate two optimization problems for matroids with multiple objective functions, namely finding the pareto set and the max-ordering problem which conists in finding a basis such that the largest objective value is minimal. We prove that the decision versions of both problems are NP-complete. A solution procedure for the max-ordering problem is presented and a result on the relation of the solution sets of the two problems is given. The main results are a characterization of pareto bases by a basis exchange property and finally a connectivity result for proper pareto solutions.
In this paper we investigate the problem offending the Nadir point for multicriteria optimization problems (MOP). The Nadir point is characterized by the component wise maximal values of efficient points for (MOP). It can be easily computed in the bicriteria case. However, in general this problem is very difficult. We review some existing methods and heuristics and propose some new ones. We propose a general method to compute Nadir values for the case of three objectives, based on theoretical results valid for any number of criteria. We also investigate the use of the Nadir point for compromise programming, when the goal is to be as far away as possible from the worst outcomes. We prove some results about (weak) Pareto optimality of the resulting solutions. The results are illustrated by examples.
Multicriteria Optimization
(1999)
Life is about decisions. Decisions, no matter if taken by a group or an individual, involve several conflicting objectives. The observation that real world problems have to be solved optimally according to criteria, which prohibit an "ideal" solution - optimal for each decisionmaker under each of the criteria considered - , has led to the development of multicriteria optimization. From its first roots, which where laid by Pareto at the end of the 19th century the discilpine has prospered and grown, especially during the last three decades. Today, many decision support systems incorporate methods to deal with conflicting objectives. The foundation for such systems is a mathematical theory of optimaztion under multiple objectives. With this manuscript, which is based on lectures I taught in the winter semester 1998/99 at the University of Kaiserslautern, I intend to give an introduction to and overview of this fascinating field of mathematics. I tried to present theoretical questions such as existence of solutions as well as methodological issues and hope the reader finds the balance not too heavily on one side. The interested reader should be able to find classical results as well as up to date research. The text is accompanied by exercises, which hopefully help to deepen students' understanding of the topic.
In this paper we consider the problem of decomposing a given integer matrix A into
a positive integer linear combination of consecutive-ones matrices with a bound on the
number of columns per matrix. This problem is of relevance in the realization stage
of intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) using linear accelerators and multileaf
collimators with limited width. Constrained and unconstrained versions of the problem
with the objectives of minimizing beam-on time and decomposition cardinality are considered.
We introduce a new approach which can be used to find the minimum beam-on
time for both constrained and unconstrained versions of the problem. The decomposition
cardinality problem is shown to be NP-hard and an approach is proposed to solve the
lexicographic decomposition problem of minimizing the decomposition cardinality subject
to optimal beam-on time.
In this paper we consider the problem of decomposing a given integer matrix A into
a positive integer linear combination of consecutive-ones matrices with a bound on the
number of columns per matrix. This problem is of relevance in the realization stage
of intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) using linear accelerators and multileaf
collimators with limited width. Constrained and unconstrained versions of the problem
with the objectives of minimizing beam-on time and decomposition cardinality are considered.
We introduce a new approach which can be used to find the minimum beam-on
time for both constrained and unconstrained versions of the problem. The decomposition
cardinality problem is shown to be NP-hard and an approach is proposed to solve the
lexicographic decomposition problem of minimizing the decomposition cardinality subject
to optimal beam-on time.
The notion of the balance number introduced in [3,page 139] through a certain set contraction procedure for nonscalarized multiobjective global optimization is represented via a min-max operation on the data of the problem. This representation yields a different computational procedure for the calculation of the balance number and allows us to generalize the approach for problems with countably many performance criteria.
Dealing with problems from locational planning in schools can enrich the mathematical education. In this report we describe planar locational problems which can be used in mathematical lessons. The problems production of a semiconductor plate, design of a fire brigade building and the warehouse problem are from real-world. The problems are worked out detailed so that the usage for school lessons is possible.
In this paper we will introduce the concept of lexicographic max-ordering solutions for multicriteria combinatorial optimization problems. Section 1 provides the basic notions of
multicriteria combinatorial optimization and the definition of lexicographic max-ordering solutions. In Section 2 we will show that lexicographic max-ordering solutions are pareto optimal as well as max-ordering optimal solutions. Furthermore lexicographic max-ordering solutions can be used to characterize the set of pareto solutions. Further properties of lexicographic max-ordering solutions are given. Section 3 will be devoted to algorithms. We give a polynomial time algorithm for the two criteria case where one criterion is a sum and one is a bottleneck objective function, provided that the one criterion sum problem is solvable in polynomial time. For bottleneck functions an algorithm for the general case of Q criteria is presented.
In this paper we consider the problem of finding in a given graph a minimal weight subtree of connected subgraph, which has a given number of edges. These NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems have various applications in the oil industry, in facility layout and graph partitioning. We will present different heuristic approaches based on spanning tree and shortest path methods and on an exact algorithm solving the problem in polynomial time if the underlying graph is a tree. Both the edge- and node weighted case are investigated and extensive numerical results on the behaviour of the heuristics compared to optimal solutions are presented. The best heuristic yielded results within an error margin of less than one percent from optimality for most cases. In a large percentage of tests even optimal solutions have been found.
Location problems with Q (in general conflicting) criteria are considered. After reviewing previous results of the authors dealing with lexicographic and Pareto location the main focus of the paper is on max-ordering locations. In these location problems the worst of the single objectives is minimized. After discussing some general results (including reductions to single criterion problems and the relation to lexicographic and Pareto locations) three solution techniques are introduced and exemplified using one location problem class, each: The direct approach, the decision space approach and the objective space approach. In the resulting solution algorithms emphasis is on the representation of the underlying geometric idea without fully exploring the computational complexity issue. A further specialization of max-ordering locations is obtained by introducing lexicographic max-ordering locations, which can be found efficiently. The paper is concluded by some ideas about future research topics related to max-ordering location problems.
Discrete Decision Problems, Multiple Criteria Optimization Classes and Lexicographic Max-Ordering
(1999)
The topic of this paper are discrete decision problems with multiple criteria. We first define discrete multiple criteria decision problems and introduce a classification scheme for multiple criteria optimization problems. To do so we use multiople criteria optimization classes. The main result is a characterization of the class of lexicographic max-ordering problems by two very useful properties, reduction and regularity. Subsequently we discuss the assumptions under which the application of this specific MCO class is justified. Finally we provide (simple) solution methods to find optimal decisions in the case of discrete multiple criteria optimization problems.