Job Assignments in a Multi-agent Transport Logistics Network

摘要：

A transport logistics network consists of a number of connected cargo handling facilities where logistics agents move the commodities from origins to destinations. A forwarder usually completes a set of contracted jobs using in-house resources and outsourced logistics services. This paper considers the job assignments of logistics service agents and route choices in completing a portfolio of jobs in the logistics network. The optimization problem is formulated as a graph model and an algorithm for searching the optimal solution is introduced. We propose a two-layer neighborhood search algorithm for the proposed model to avoid the route separating optimization from agent choices. In the first layer, the algorithm assigns jobs to suitable agents by the neighborhood policy of assigning, shifting, swapping and loop moving. In the second layer, the algorithm obtains the optimal paths by applying the paths integration policy and the path generation policy. The feasibility and validity of the proposed two-layer neighborhood search algorithm are examined from a set of randomly generated problems. The results are compared to that of enumerating algorithm based on the K-shortest path.

关键词： transport logistics network multi-agents neighborhood search algorithm

作者: Yong Wang Van Hui Yer Jinqi Wu Ke Wang

作者单位: College of Economics and Business Administration, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030, China, City University of Hong Kong College of Economics and Business Administration, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030, China Chongqing University of Post and Telecommunications

会议类型: 国际会议

会议名称: The Third International Conference on Operations and Supply Chain Management(第三届运营与供应链管理国际会议)

会议地点: 武汉

会议语种:英文

页码: 603-612

在线出版日期: 2009-07-28（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）