The Multi-Stop Station Location Problem: Exact Approaches

The multi-stop station location problem (MSLP) aims to place stations such that a set of trips is feasible with respect to length bounds while minimizing cost. Each trip consists of a sequence of stops that must be visited in a given order, and a length bound that controls the maximum length that is possible without … Read more

New cuts and a branch-cut-and-price model for the Multi Vehicle Covering Tour Problem

The Multi-Vehicle Covering Tour Problem (m-CTP) involves a graph in which the set of vertices is partitioned into a depot and three distinct subsets representing customers, mandatory facilities, and optional facilities. Each customer is linked to a specific subset of optional facilities that define its coverage set. The goal is to determine a set of … Read more

A Clustering-based uncertainty set for Robust Optimization

Robust optimization is an approach for handling uncertainty in optimization problems, in which the uncertainty set determines the conservativeness of the solutions. In this paper, we propose a data-driven uncertainty set using a type of volume-based clustering, which we call Minimum-Volume Norm-Based Clustering (MVNBC). MVNBC extends the concept of minimum-volume ellipsoid clustering by allowing clusters … Read more

Heuristic Methods for Γ-Robust Mixed-Integer Linear Bilevel Problems

Due to their nested structure, bilevel problems are intrinsically hard to solve–even if all variables are continuous and all parameters of the problem are exactly known. In this paper, we study mixed-integer linear bilevel problems with lower-level objective uncertainty, which we address using the notion of Γ-robustness. To tackle the Γ-robust counterpart of the bilevel … Read more

A Parametric Approach for Solving Convex Quadratic Optimization with Indicators Over Trees

This paper investigates convex quadratic optimization problems involving $n$ indicator variables, each associated with a continuous variable, particularly focusing on scenarios where the matrix $Q$ defining the quadratic term is positive definite and its sparsity pattern corresponds to the adjacency matrix of a tree graph. We introduce a graph-based dynamic programming algorithm that solves this … Read more

A Proximal-Gradient Method for Constrained Optimization

We present a new algorithm for solving optimization problems with objective functions that are the sum of a smooth function and a (potentially) nonsmooth regularization function, and nonlinear equality constraints. The algorithm may be viewed as an extension of the well-known proximal-gradient method that is applicable when constraints are not present. To account for nonlinear … Read more

A Bilevel Hierarchy of Strengthened Complex Moment Relaxations for Complex Polynomial Optimization

This paper proposes a bilevel hierarchy of strengthened complex moment relaxations for complex polynomial optimization. The key trick entails considering a class of positive semidefinite conditions that arise naturally in characterizing the normality of the so-called shift operators. The relaxation problem in this new hierarchy is parameterized by the usual relaxation order as well as … Read more

Tricks from the Trade for Large-Scale Markdown Pricing: Heuristic Cut Generation for Lagrangian Decomposition

In automated decision making processes in the online fashion industry, the ‘predict-then-optimize’ paradigm is frequently applied, particularly for markdown pricing strategies. This typically involves a mixed-integer optimization step, which is crucial for maximizing profit and merchandise volume. In practice, the size and complexity of the optimization problem is prohibitive for using off-the-shelf solvers for mixed … Read more

A Sequential Benders-based Mixed-Integer Quadratic Programming Algorithm

For continuous decision spaces, nonlinear programs (NLPs) can be efficiently solved via sequential quadratic programming (SQP) and, more generally, sequential convex programming (SCP). These algorithms linearize only the nonlinear equality constraints and keep the outer convex structure of the problem intact, such as (conic) inequality constraints or convex objective terms. The aim of the presented … Read more

A Max-Min-Max Algorithm for Large-Scale Robust Optimization

Robust optimization (RO) is a powerful paradigm for decision making under uncertainty. Existing algorithms for solving RO, including the reformulation approach and the cutting-plane method, do not scale well, hindering the application of RO to large-scale decision problems. In this paper, we devise a first-order algorithm for solving RO based on a novel max-min-max perspective. … Read more