Min cost flow on unit capacity networks and convex cost K-flow are as easy as the assignment problem with All-Min-Cuts algorithm

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Author: Hochbaum, Dorit S.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2016
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author Hochbaum, Dorit S.
author_facet Hochbaum, Dorit S.
contents We explore here surprising links between the time-cost-tradeoff problem and the minimum cost flow problem that lead to fast, strongly polynomial, algorithms for both problems. One of the main results is a new algorithm for the unit capacity min cost flow that matches the complexity of the fastest strongly polynomial algorithm known for the assignment problem. The time cost tradeoff (TCT) problem in project management is to expedite the durations of activities, subject to precedence constraints, in order to achieve a target project completion time at minimum expediting costs, or, to maximize the net benefit from a reward associated with project completion time reduction. Each activity is associated with integer normal duration, minimum duration, and expediting cost per unit reduction in duration. We devise here the {\em all-min-cuts} procedure, which for a given maximum flow, is capable of generating all minimum cuts (equivalent to minimum cost expediting) of equal value very efficiently. Equivalently, the procedure identifies all solutions that reside on the TCT curve between consecutive breakpoints in average $O(m+n \log n)$ time, where $m$ and $n$ are the numbers of arcs and nodes in the network. The all-min-cuts procedure implies faster algorithms for certain TCT problems and for certain min cost flow problem with a significantly different approach from the ones known.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_1610_04012
institution arXiv
publishDate 2016
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Min cost flow on unit capacity networks and convex cost K-flow are as easy as the assignment problem with All-Min-Cuts algorithm
Hochbaum, Dorit S.
Data Structures and Algorithms
Operations research, mathematical programming
F.2.0; F.2.2; G.2.1; G.2.2
We explore here surprising links between the time-cost-tradeoff problem and the minimum cost flow problem that lead to fast, strongly polynomial, algorithms for both problems. One of the main results is a new algorithm for the unit capacity min cost flow that matches the complexity of the fastest strongly polynomial algorithm known for the assignment problem. The time cost tradeoff (TCT) problem in project management is to expedite the durations of activities, subject to precedence constraints, in order to achieve a target project completion time at minimum expediting costs, or, to maximize the net benefit from a reward associated with project completion time reduction. Each activity is associated with integer normal duration, minimum duration, and expediting cost per unit reduction in duration. We devise here the {\em all-min-cuts} procedure, which for a given maximum flow, is capable of generating all minimum cuts (equivalent to minimum cost expediting) of equal value very efficiently. Equivalently, the procedure identifies all solutions that reside on the TCT curve between consecutive breakpoints in average $O(m+n \log n)$ time, where $m$ and $n$ are the numbers of arcs and nodes in the network. The all-min-cuts procedure implies faster algorithms for certain TCT problems and for certain min cost flow problem with a significantly different approach from the ones known.
title Min cost flow on unit capacity networks and convex cost K-flow are as easy as the assignment problem with All-Min-Cuts algorithm
topic Data Structures and Algorithms
Operations research, mathematical programming
F.2.0; F.2.2; G.2.1; G.2.2
url https://arxiv.org/abs/1610.04012