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Real-time split-delivery pickup and delivery time window problems with transfers

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Abstract

In this research we present the design and implementation of heuristics for solving split-delivery pickup and delivery time window problems with transfer (SDPDTWP) of shipments between vehicles for both static and real-time data sets. In the SDPDTWP each shipment is constrained with the earliest possible pickup time from the origin and the latest acceptable delivery time to a destination. Split-deliveries occur when two or more vehicles service the same origin or destination. The proposed heuristics were applied to both static and real-time data sets. The heuristics computed a solution, in a few seconds, for a static problem from the literature, achieving an improvement of 60% in distance in comparison to the published solution. In the real-time SDPDTWP problems, requests for pickup and delivery of a package, breakdown of a truck or insertion of a truck can occur after the vehicle has left the origin and is enroute to service the customers. Thirty data sets, each consisting of one to seven real-time customer or truck events, were used to test the efficiency of the heuristics. The heuristics obtained solutions to real-time data sets in under five seconds of CPU time.

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Correspondence to Sam R. Thangiah.

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Thangiah, S.R., Fergany, A. & Awan, S. Real-time split-delivery pickup and delivery time window problems with transfers. cent.eur.j.oper.res. 15, 329–349 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10100-007-0035-x

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