This tutorial provides an introduction to the use of decision diagrams for solving discrete optimization problems. A decision diagram is a graphical representation of the solution space, representing decisions sequentially as paths from a root node to a target node. By merging isomorphic subgraphs (or equivalent subproblems), decision diagrams can compactly represent an exponential solution … Read more
In this paper, we address the three-dimensional open-dimension rectangular packing problem (3D-ODRPP). This problem addresses a set of rectangular boxes of given dimensions and a rectangular container of open dimensions. The objective is to pack all boxes orthogonally into the container while minimizing the container volume. Real-world applications of the 3D-ODRPP arise in production systems … Read more
\(\) Within the topic of explainable AI, counterfactual explanations to classifiers have received significant recent attention. We study counterfactual explanations that try to explain why a data point received an undesirable classification by providing the closest data point that would have received a desirable one. Within the context of one the simplest and most popular … Read more
Pre-runtime scheduling of large-scale electronic systems, as those in modern aircraft, can be computationally challenging. In this paper, we study a distributed integrated modular avionic system of practical relevance where the scheduling includes to assign communication messages to time slots and to sequence tasks on modules. For this problem, the challenge is the huge number … Read more
Telecommunication networks frequently face technological advancements and need to upgrade their infrastructure. Adapting legacy networks to the latest technology requires synchronized technicians responsible for migrating the equipment. The goal of the network migration problem is to find an optimal plan for this process. This is a defining step in the customer acquisition of telecommunications service … Read more
In this paper, we address the Minimization of Open Stacks Problem (MOSP). This problem often appears during production planning of manufacturing industries, such as in the cutting of objects to comply with space constraints around the cutting machine in the glass, furniture, and metallurgical industries. The MOSP is also pertinent to the field of VLSI … Read more
Autonomous vertical farms (VFs) are becoming increasingly more popular, because they allow to grow food minimising water consumption and the use of pesticides, while greatly increasing the yield per square metre, compared with traditional agriculture. To meet sustainability goals, however, VFs must operate at maximum efficiency; it would be otherwise impossible to compete with the … Read more
We address two variants of the two-dimensional guillotine cutting problem that appear in different manufacturing settings that cut defective objects. Real-world applications include the production of flat glass in the glass industry and the cutting of wooden boards with knotholes in the furniture industry. These variants assume that there are several defects in the object, … Read more
A binary constraint satisfaction problem (BCSP) consist in determining an assignment of values to variables which is compatible with a set of constraints. The problem is called binary because the constraints involve only pairs of variables. The BCSP is a cornerstone problem in Constraint Programming (CP), appearing in a very wide range of real-world applications. … Read more
In this work, we suggest concepts and solution methodologies for a series of strategic network design problems that find application in highly data-sensitive industries, such as, for instance, the high-tech, governmental, or military sector. Our focus is on the installation of widely used cost-efficient tree-structured communication infrastructure. As base model we use the well-known Steiner … Read more