Algorithms for Smooth, Safe and Quick Routing on Sensor-Equipped Grid Networks.

Area of Science:

• Operations Research
• Computer Science
• Transportation Engineering

Background:

• Automation is crucial in modern transportation and handling systems, enhancing efficiency and safety.
• Information technology, including sensors and routing logic, underpins safe automated operations.
• Collision avoidance and efficient routing are key challenges in automated systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design efficient, collision-free routes in a minimum-size routing network for automated vehicles.
• To determine the minimum number of horizontal lanes required for smooth, nonstop, shortest paths.
• To address the fleet quickest routing problem on grids.

Main Methods:

• Mathematical formulation for small-scale instances, solved using standard solvers.
• Development of heuristic algorithms for larger instances, utilizing combinatorial properties and priority-based routing.
• Experimental evaluation on random instances to assess solution quality and speed.

Main Results:

• The proposed mathematical formulation effectively solves small instances of the fleet quickest routing problem.
• Heuristic algorithms provide good quality collision-free routes for larger, more complex scenarios.
• The methods demonstrate the ability to quickly generate efficient solutions for automated vehicle routing.

Conclusions:

• Efficient collision-free routing is achievable through mathematical modeling and heuristic approaches.
• The study contributes to optimizing automated transportation networks by minimizing routing infrastructure.
• The developed algorithms offer practical solutions for enhancing safety and performance in automated logistics and transport.