Discrete‐time analysis of MAP/PH/1 multiclass general preemptive priority queue

We use the matrix‐geometric method to study the MAP/PH/1 general preemptive priority queue with a multiple class of jobs. A procedure for obtaining the block matrices representing the transition matrix P is presented. We show that the special upper triangular structure of the matrix R obtained by Miller [Computation of steady‐state probabilities for M/M/1 priority queues, Oper Res 29(5) (1981), 945–958] can be extended to an upper triangular block structure. Moreover, the subblock matrices of matrix R also have such a structure. With this special structure, we develop a procedure to compute the matrix R. After obtaining the stationary distribution of the system, we study two primary performance indices, namely, the distributions of the number of jobs of each type in the system and their waiting times. Although most of our analysis is carried out for the case of K = 3, the developed approach is general enough to study the other cases (K ≥ 4). © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 50: 662–682, 2003.     

Scheduling patients in an ambulatory surgical center

This paper presents a deterministic approach to schedule patients in an ambulatory surgical center (ASC) such that the number of postanesthesia care unit nurses at the center is minimized. We formulate the patient scheduling problem as new variants of the no‐wait, two‐stage process shop scheduling problem and present computational complexity results for the new scheduling models. Also, we develop a tabu search‐based heuristic algorithm to solve the patient scheduling problem. Our algorithm is shown to be very effective in finding near optimal schedules on a set of real data from a university hospital's ASC. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2003     

海上游击战的信息作战机理分析

科学地研究游击战的获胜机理是军事学领域尚未解决的核心问题之一。运用信息作战原理,在海上游击战环境中,通过潜艇与航母战斗群反潜直升机的对抗来分析海上游击战的信息作战原理,研究表明:航母受到攻击的威胁通常为潜艇的1.5到5倍,只要发挥潜艇的信息与火力的联合作战优势来削弱航空母舰战斗群的反潜信息与火力的联合作战优势,仅单艘潜艇就可对航空母舰造成重创。信息作战原理不仅揭示了游击战环境中各种小概率事件及随机因素的影响机理,而且也可用作为对游击战指挥控制原理进行研究的理论基础及方法。     

A novel modeling approach for express package carrier planning

Express package carrier networks have large numbers of heavily‐interconnected and tightly‐constrained resources, making the planning process difficult. A decision made in one area of the network can impact virtually any other area as well. Mathematical programming therefore seems like a logical approach to solving such problems, taking into account all of these interactions. The tight time windows and nonlinear cost functions of these systems, however, often make traditional approaches such as multicommodity flow formulations intractable. This is due to both the large number of constraints and the weakness of the linear programming (LP) relaxations arising in these formulations. To overcome these obstacles, we propose a model in which variables represent combinations of loads and their corresponding routings, rather than assigning individual loads to individual arcs in the network. In doing so, we incorporate much of the problem complexity implicitly within the variable definition, rather than explicitly within the constraints. This approach enables us to linearize the cost structure, strengthen the LP relaxation of the formulation, and drastically reduce the number of constraints. In addition, it greatly facilitates the inclusion of other stages of the (typically decomposed) planning process. We show how the use of templates, in place of traditional delayed column generation, allows us to identify promising candidate variables, ensuring high‐quality solutions in reasonable run times while also enabling the inclusion of additional operational considerations that would be difficult if not impossible to capture in a traditional approach. Computational results are presented using data from a major international package carrier. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008     

Optimal empty vehicle redistribution for hub‐and‐spoke transportation systems

This article considers the empty vehicle redistribution problem in a hub‐and‐spoke transportation system, with random demands and stochastic transportation times. An event‐driven model is formulated, which yields the implicit optimal control policy. Based on the analytical results for two‐depot systems, a dynamic decomposition procedure is presented which produces a near‐optimal policy with linear computational complexity in terms of the number of spokes. The resulting policy has the same asymptotic behavior as that of the optimal policy. It is found that the threshold‐type control policy is not usually optimal in such systems. The results are illustrated through small‐scale numerical examples. Through simulation the robustness of the dynamic decomposition policy is tested using a variety of scenarios: more spokes, more vehicles, different combinations of distribution types for the empty vehicle travel times and loaded vehicle arrivals. This shows that the dynamic decomposition policy is significantly better than a heuristics policy in all scenarios and appears to be robust to the assumptions of the distribution types. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008     

Dynamic evacuation routes for personnel on a naval ship

We propose a dynamic escape route system for emergency evacuation of a naval ship. The system employs signals that adapt to the causative contingency and the crew's physical distribution about the ship. A mixed‐integer nonlinear programming model, with underlying network structure, optimizes the evacuation process. The network's nodes represent compartments, closures (e.g., doors and hatches) and intersections, while arcs represent various types of passageways. The objective function integrates two potentially conflicting factors: average evacuation time and the watertight and airtight integrity of the ship after evacuation. A heuristic solves the model approximately using a sequence of mixed‐integer linear approximating problems. Using data for a Spanish frigate, with standard static routes specified by the ship's designers, computational tests show that the dynamic system can reduce average evacuation times, nearly 23%, and can improve a combined measure of ship integrity by up to 50%. In addition, plausible design changes to the frigate yield further, substantial improvements. Published 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 2008     

一种参数曲线实时数控插补计算新方法

根据参数曲线数控插补原理,指出了Taylor展开算法、"参数-弧长"分段拟合算法等常用的参数曲线直接插补算法存在理论上的局限性.给出了一种新的基于牛顿迭代计算的参数曲线直接插补方法,并给出了算法流程.新算法稳定性好、收敛速度快、运算量小、计算结果精度高.仿真实验表明,同Taylor展开法相比,能够在计算量相当或增加不大的情况下将插补进给速度波动率减小102～107倍.     

参数和非参数滤波算法在贝叶斯估计问题中的比较

在贝叶斯估计问题中常用的滤波算法有两大类,一类是适用于非线性问题的,在卡尔曼滤波算法基础上发展出来的各种参数滤波算法,如扩展的卡尔曼滤波,拟线性卡尔曼滤波及近年提出的基于Unscented变换的Unscented卡尔曼滤波算法等;另一类是基于蒙特卡洛仿真技术的非参数滤波算法--粒子滤波.两类跟踪算法在实际问题中都得到了广泛应用.从原理上对这两类算法中的四种具体算法进行了介绍,重点分析了每种算法的长处及不足,可为实际应用中算法的选择提供依据.     

北京奥运场馆消防保卫车辆部署探讨

运用运筹学的线性规划理论对2008年奥运场馆消防保卫的战斗车部署问题进行了探讨,并得出了最优部署方案.     

地方本科院校转型应用技术大学的发展路径分析

作为高等教育大众化的主力军,地方本科院校既面临着遵循传统大学培养人才、科学研究的使命,又面临办学转型中外部环境的挑战以及组织内部治理带来的困难.对地方本科院校外部生态环境以及组织内部治理环境的SWOT分析,为转型实践廓清各种障碍,思考地方本科院校转型的发展路径,结合内部优势和外部背景机遇促进地方本科院校未来的转型发展.