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A comparison of problem decomposition techniques for the FAP

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Abstract

This paper proposes a problem decomposition approach to solve hard Frequency Assignment Problem instances with standard meta-heuristics. The proposed technique aims to divide the initial problem into a number of easier subproblems, solve them and then recompose the partial solutions into one of the original problem. We consider the COST-259 MI-FAP instances and other Cardiff University test problems in order to simulate larger and more realistic networks. For both benchmarks the standard implementations of meta-heuristics do not generally produce a satisfactory performance within reasonable times of execution. However, the decomposed assignment approach can improve their results, both in terms of solution quality and runtime.

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  1. Centre for Intelligent Network Design, School of Computer Science, Cardiff University, 5 The Parade, Roath, Cardiff, CF24 3AA, Wales, UK

    Gualtiero Colombo & Stuart M. Allen

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  1. Gualtiero Colombo
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  2. Stuart M. Allen
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Correspondence to Gualtiero Colombo.

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Colombo, G., Allen, S.M. A comparison of problem decomposition techniques for the FAP. J Heuristics 16, 259–288 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10732-009-9116-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10732-009-9116-4

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