物流中心选址与规模的层次优化模型

同时考虑生产商和分销商的利益,采用双层规划模型来描述物流中心选择以及规模问题.上层规划从生产商的角度出发,通过调整物流中心位置及规模使生产商的生产成本、运输成本和经营成本最小；下层规划从分销商的角度出发,通过调整从各个物流中心进货的数量使自身的平均运输成本最低.设计了基于遗传算法的求解方法,并用数值算例验证了模型和算法的有效性.     

Quasi-dynamic estimation of o–d flows from traffic counts: Formulation,statistical validation and performance analysis on real data

The paper proposes a “quasi-dynamic” framework for estimation of origin–destination (o–d) flow from traffic counts, under the assumption that o–d shares are constant across a reference period, whilst total flows leaving each origin vary for each sub-period within the reference period. The advantage of this approach over conventional within-day dynamic estimators is that of reducing drastically the number of unknowns given the same set of observed time-varying traffic counts. Obviously, the gain in accuracy depends on how realistic is the underlying assumption that total demand levels vary more rapidly over time than o–d shares. Firstly, the paper proposes a theoretical specification of the quasi-dynamic estimator. Subsequently, it proposes empirical and statistical tests to check the quasi-dynamic assumption and then compares the performances of the quasi-dynamic estimator of o–d flows with both classical off-line simultaneous dynamic estimators and on-line recursive Kalman filter-based estimators. Experiments are carried out on the real test site of A4–A23 motorways in North-Eastern Italy. Results confirm the acceptability of the assumption of quasi-dynamic o–d flows, even under the hypothesis of constant distribution shares for the whole day and show that the quasi-dynamic estimator outperforms significantly the simultaneous estimator. Data also suggest that using the quasi-dynamic estimates instead of the simultaneous estimates as historical o–d flows improves significantly the performances of the Kalman filter, which strongly depends of the quality of the seed o–d flows. In addition, it is shown that the aggregation of quasi-dynamic o–d estimates across subsequent time slices represents also the most effective way to obtain o–d estimates for larger time horizons (e.g. hourly estimates). Finally, a validation based on an hold-out sample of link flows (i.e. counts not used as inputs in the o–d estimation/updating process) revealed the quasi-dynamic estimator to be overall more robust and effective with respect to the other tested estimators.     

Improving maritime inventory routing: application to a Brazilian petroleum case

The crude oil offloading and supply problem (COSP) is a type of operation maritime inventory routing (MIR) problem encountered by petroleum companies. In COSP, the company not only is responsible for the ship scheduling to carry the crude oil from production sites to discharge ports but also must maintain inventory levels at both ports (production and consumption) between safety operational bounds to avoid disruptions in its crude oil production and/or refining processes. We show how to improve significantly the decision-making process in a Brazilian petroleum company using a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model to represent COSP. Comparison tests with a current ship-scheduling method adopted in the company indicated that the use of the MILP model increased the transportation efficiency and reduced costs by 20% on average. In addition to the quantitative gains, the use of a MILP model to solve COSP has succeeded when encountering real-life events, such as variation in production or consumption rates, berth unavailability, and changes in the storage capacities at ports.     

Experimental and finite element analysis of fatigue strength for 300 mm2 copper power conductor

The fatigue strength of a 300 mm² stranded copper conductor was investigated experimentally and by finite element (FE) analysis. An analytical model was also developed and validated. Wires taken from the outer layer of the conductor were fatigue tested in tension–tension loading and compared with similar data for wires taken from a 95 mm² conductor. The wire cross section was deformed due to the compacting process that was applied during fabrication. When corrected for stress concentrations due to the deformation the data for the two sets of wire fell within the same scatter-band. Full scale testing was carried out in a specially designed rig with constant tensile load and reversed displacement controlled bending with a fixed curvature variation. The loading is a simulation of the loading of a power cable hanging from a floating vessel through a bellmouth. Conductors were tested in two states; dry and lubricated. A finite element model was established for the copper conductor. The model was formulated by a combination of elastic beam and beam-contact elements that included the effects of friction. The effect of local bending due to contact forces was included in the model. Two contact conditions were investigated; the point (trellis) contact between adjacent layers of wire and the inline contact within each layer and between the first layer (centre wire) and the second layer. The FE model was validated by a calibration test of a full scale conductor, and by sensitivity studies varying the size and the number of elements of the model. Fatigue analysis of the conductor was carried out, based on the S–N curve for individual wires. Taking into account the effects of friction and local bending, agreement was obtained between predicted and experimental fatigue strength of the conductor, for the FE model as well as the analytical model.     

Behavior-consistent information-based network traffic control for evacuation operations

The evacuation operations problem aims to avoid or mitigate the potential loss of life in a region threatened or affected by a disaster. It is shaped to a large extent by the evolution of evacuation traffic resulting from the demand–supply interactions of the associated transportation network. Information-based control is a strategic tool for evacuation traffic operations as it can enable greater access to the affected population and more effective response. However, comparatively few studies have focused on the implementation of information-based control in evacuation operations. This study develops a control module for evacuation operations centered on addressing the demand–supply interactions by using behavior-consistent information strategies. These strategies incorporate the likely responses of evacuees to the information provided in the determination of route guidance information. The control module works as an iterative computational process involving an evacuee route choice model and a control model of information strategies to determine the route guidance information to direct evacuation traffic so as to approach a desired network traffic flow pattern. The problem is formulated as a fuzzy logic based optimization framework to explicitly incorporate practical concerns related to information dissemination characteristics and social equity in evacuation operations. Numerical experiments highlight the importance of accounting for the demand–supply interactions, as the use of behavior-consistent information strategies can lead evacuee route choices to approach the operator-desired proportions corresponding to the desired traffic pattern. The results also indicate that while a behavior-consistent information strategy can be effective, gaps with the desired route proportions can exist due to the discrete nature of the linguistic messages and the real-world difficulty in accurately modeling evacuees’ actual route choice behavior.     

The “field of safe travel” revisited: interpreting driving behaviour performance through a holistic approach

The present paper proposes a conceptual framework for the driver’s visual–spatial perceptual processes. Based on a theoretical analysis of driving proposed by Gibson and Crooks [(1938). A theoretical field-analysis of automobile-driving. The American Journal of Psychology, 51, 453–471. doi:10.2307/1416145], the developed field of safe travel (FoST) framework suggests that at any moment the driver constructs a “field” by integrating two perceptual entities: (i) the possible available spatial fields for locomotion and (ii) the driver’s mental image of ego-vehicle outer-line and motion dynamics. This framework is used to reinterpret in a unified way a number of disparate research findings reported in the literature concerning specific driving sub-tasks (e.g. lane keeping and car following). It is argued that the FoST framework may be used to predict drivers’ behaviour in various traffic/situation environments based on their prioritisation between the above two perceptual entities. Implications of the proposed framework at a theoretical and practical level, in view of the future of driving with multiple levels of automation, are also discussed.     

Estimates of vertical mixing during a Lagrangian experiment off the Galician coast

An adjoint 1-D model was used to determine vertical diffusivity coefficients from temperature profiles collected within a filament escaping from the Galician coast following an upwelling event. The optimisation scheme ended with relatively high diffusivity values within the thermocline (9×10⁻⁵ m² s⁻¹). Such high values are relevant for biogeochemical exchanges between surface and deep waters in stratified areas.The optimised values were several orders of magnitude higher than the bulk of diffusivity measurements recorded with a free-falling device; however, the optimisation solution was consistent with the arithmetic mean of the measurements in the thermocline (7.7×10⁻⁵ m² s⁻¹), giving more weight to the few largest values. Below the thermocline, the data assimilation method failed because of the three-dimensional nature of the advective field of the upwelling system. Ignoring this advective forcing in the model led to estimates that were two orders of magnitude too high.The results suggest that turbulent mixing is a random process where a few intense events determine the average mixing that drives the long-term evolution of the water column structure. This statistical property is very important when one wants to use instantaneous diffusivity measurements for modelling purposes.     

高桥墩桩基础的优化设计及因素分析

在高桥墩桩基屈曲能量法分析的基础上,提出兼顾结构稳定、强度和经济性的优化模型,并应用优化算法中非线性序列二次规划法,进行优化设计探讨,同时给出优化设计算法流程图,编制了相应的优化计算程序;为了解桥墩高度、轴向荷载、地基比例系数和混凝土弹性模量对于高桥墩桩基屈曲的影响,结合优化设计模型进行了因素分析,探讨了参数变量对目标函数最优值的影响规律和程度,比较结果说明,在进行高桥墩桩基的屈曲受力分析时,高桥墩的大变形影响不容忽视;而一般在工程设计中,可考虑将桩周土体和混凝土弹性模量的增强作用作为设计的安全储备。     

大城市客运交通结构优化模型研究

城市客运交通结构是关系城市交通系统发展方向的核心问题。从城市交通可持续发展角度出发建立了大城市客运交通结构优化的线性规划模型,其中决策变量为城市客运交通系统中各种交通方式的周转量。该模型的目标为最大化城市客运交通效率,该交通效率不是简单的各种交通方式客运周转量的函数,而是由各种交通方式的客运周转量和各种交通方式对城市客运交通效率贡献率共同决定。同时考虑客运交通结构优化过程中应满足的出行需求总量约束、可达性约束、占地约束、能耗约束、环境容量约束和各种交通方式发展规模约束等。该模型在实际应用中取得了良好的效果。     

多模式拥挤交通网络中的路径分配与收费定价模型

根据城市混合交通拥挤的特点,提出了在收费路段对不同的交通方式收取不同费用,以此控制各种交通方式的分担量,鼓励人们更多地选用公共的交通工具,从而达到缓解交通拥挤的目的,并以此为出发点建立了一个关于多模式收费定价的双层规划模型.