A Generic Approach on How to Formally Specify and Model Check Path Finding Algorithms: Dijkstra, A* and LPA*

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (10) ◽  
pp. 1481-1523
Author(s):  
Kazuhiro Ogata
Keyword(s):  
Model Checking ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Formal Specification ◽  
Model Check ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Path Finding ◽  
Property A ◽  
Goal Node ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Start Node

The paper describes how to formally specify three path finding algorithms in Maude, a rewriting logic-based programming/specification language, and how to model check if they enjoy desired properties with the Maude LTL model checker. The three algorithms are Dijkstra Shortest Path Finding Algorithm (DA), A* Algorithm and LPA* Algorithm. One desired property is that the algorithms always find the shortest path. To this end, we use a path finding algorithm (BFS) based on breadth-first search. BFS finds all paths from a start node to a goal node and the set of all shortest paths is extracted. We check if the path found by each algorithm is included in the set of all shortest paths for the property. A* is an extension of DA in that for each node [Formula: see text] an estimation [Formula: see text] of the distance to the goal node from [Formula: see text] is used and LPA* is an incremental version of A*. It is known that if [Formula: see text] is admissible, A* always finds the shortest path. We have found a possible relaxed sufficient condition. The relaxed condition is that there exists the shortest path such that for each node [Formula: see text] except for the start node on the path [Formula: see text] plus the cost to [Formula: see text] from the start node is less than the cost of any non-shortest path to the goal from the start. We informally justify the relaxed condition. For LPA*, if the relaxed condition holds in each updated version of a graph concerned including the initial graph, the shortest path is constructed. Based on the three case studies for DA, A* and LPA*, we summarize the formal specification and model checking techniques used as a generic approach to formal specification and model checking of path finding algorithms.

scholarly journals A MODIFIED GENETIC ALGORITHM FOR FINDING FUZZY SHORTEST PATHS IN UNCERTAIN NETWORKS

2016 ◽  
Vol XLI-B2 ◽  
pp. 299-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Heidari ◽  
M. R. Delavar
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Algorithm ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
The Body ◽  
Shortest Path Problems ◽  
Conventional Procedure ◽  
Path Lengths ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Uncertain Networks ◽  
Exploration Exploitation

In realistic network analysis, there are several uncertainties in the measurements and computation of the arcs and vertices. These uncertainties should also be considered in realizing the shortest path problem (SPP) due to the inherent fuzziness in the body of expert's knowledge. In this paper, we investigated the SPP under uncertainty to evaluate our modified genetic strategy. We improved the performance of genetic algorithm (GA) to investigate a class of shortest path problems on networks with vague arc weights. The solutions of the uncertain SPP with considering fuzzy path lengths are examined and compared in detail. As a robust metaheuristic, GA algorithm is modified and evaluated to tackle the fuzzy SPP (FSPP) with uncertain arcs. For this purpose, first, a dynamic operation is implemented to enrich the exploration/exploitation patterns of the conventional procedure and mitigate the premature convergence of GA technique. Then, the modified GA (MGA) strategy is used to resolve the FSPP. The attained results of the proposed strategy are compared to those of GA with regard to the cost, quality of paths and CPU times. Numerical instances are provided to demonstrate the success of the proposed MGA-FSPP strategy in comparison with GA. The simulations affirm that not only the proposed technique can outperform GA, but also the qualities of the paths are effectively improved. The results clarify that the competence of the proposed GA is preferred in view of quality quantities. The results also demonstrate that the proposed method can efficiently be utilized to handle FSPP in uncertain networks.

scholarly journals A symbolic shortest path algorithm for computing subgame-perfect Nash equilibria

2015 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 577-596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro A. Góngora ◽  
David A. Rosenblueth
Keyword(s):  
Nash Equilibrium ◽  
Model Checking ◽  
Critical Path ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Subgame Perfect Nash Equilibrium ◽  
Graph Games ◽  
Optimal Paths ◽  
Minimum Number ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Extensive Games

AbstractConsider games where players wish to minimize the cost to reach some state. A subgame-perfect Nash equilibrium can be regarded as a collection of optimal paths on such games. Similarly, the well-known state-labeling algorithm used in model checking can be viewed as computing optimal paths on a Kripke structure, where each path has a minimum number of transitions. We exploit these similarities in a common generalization of extensive games and Kripke structures that we name “graph games”. By extending the Bellman-Ford algorithm for computing shortest paths, we obtain a model-checking algorithm for graph games with respect to formulas in an appropriate logic. Hence, when given a certain formula, our model-checking algorithm computes the subgame-perfect Nash equilibrium (as opposed to simply determining whether or not a given collection of paths is a Nash equilibrium). Next, we develop a symbolic version of our model checker allowing us to handle larger graph games. We illustrate our formalism on the critical-path method as well as games with perfect information. Finally, we report on the execution time of benchmarks of an implementation of our algorithms

scholarly journals Finding Your Way: Shortest Paths on Networks

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Rexin ◽  
Mason A. Porter
Keyword(s):  
Travel Time ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Real World ◽  
Major Part ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Travel Distance ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Total Cost ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Cost

Traveling to different destinations is a major part of our lives. We visit a variety of locations both during our daily lives and when we are on vacation. How can we find the best way to navigate from one place to another? Perhaps we can test all of the different ways of traveling between two places, but another method is to use mathematics and computation to find a shortest path between them. In this article, we discuss how to construct shortest paths and introduce Dijkstra’s algorithm to minimize the total cost of a path, where the cost may be the travel distance, the travel time, or some other quantity. We also discuss how to use shortest paths in the real world to save time and increase traveling efficiency.

scholarly journals Finding Your Way: Shortest Paths on Networks

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Rexin ◽  
Mason A. Porter
Keyword(s):  
Travel Time ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Real World ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Travel Distance ◽  
Dijkstra’S Algorithm ◽  
Total Cost ◽  
The Real ◽  
Dijkstra's Algorithm ◽  
The Cost

Traveling to different destinations is a big part of our lives. How do we know the best way to navigate from one place to another? Perhaps we could test all of the different ways of traveling between two places, but another method is using mathematics and computation to find a shortest path. We discuss how to find a shortest path and introduce Dijkstra’s algorithm to minimize the total cost of a path, where the cost may be the travel distance or travel time. We also discuss how shortest paths can be used in the real world to save time and increase traveling efficiency.

scholarly journals A MODIFIED GENETIC ALGORITHM FOR FINDING FUZZY SHORTEST PATHS IN UNCERTAIN NETWORKS

2016 ◽  
Vol XLI-B2 ◽  
pp. 299-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Heidari ◽  
M. R. Delavar
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Algorithm ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
The Body ◽  
Shortest Path Problems ◽  
Conventional Procedure ◽  
Path Lengths ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Uncertain Networks ◽  
Exploration Exploitation

In realistic network analysis, there are several uncertainties in the measurements and computation of the arcs and vertices. These uncertainties should also be considered in realizing the shortest path problem (SPP) due to the inherent fuzziness in the body of expert's knowledge. In this paper, we investigated the SPP under uncertainty to evaluate our modified genetic strategy. We improved the performance of genetic algorithm (GA) to investigate a class of shortest path problems on networks with vague arc weights. The solutions of the uncertain SPP with considering fuzzy path lengths are examined and compared in detail. As a robust metaheuristic, GA algorithm is modified and evaluated to tackle the fuzzy SPP (FSPP) with uncertain arcs. For this purpose, first, a dynamic operation is implemented to enrich the exploration/exploitation patterns of the conventional procedure and mitigate the premature convergence of GA technique. Then, the modified GA (MGA) strategy is used to resolve the FSPP. The attained results of the proposed strategy are compared to those of GA with regard to the cost, quality of paths and CPU times. Numerical instances are provided to demonstrate the success of the proposed MGA-FSPP strategy in comparison with GA. The simulations affirm that not only the proposed technique can outperform GA, but also the qualities of the paths are effectively improved. The results clarify that the competence of the proposed GA is preferred in view of quality quantities. The results also demonstrate that the proposed method can efficiently be utilized to handle FSPP in uncertain networks.

scholarly journals Computing nearest neighbour interchange distances between ranked phylogenetic trees

2021 ◽  
Vol 82 (1-2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lena Collienne ◽  
Alex Gavryushkin
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Research ◽  
Computational Complexity ◽  
Phylogenetic Tree ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Nearest Neighbour ◽  
Tree Inference ◽  
Subtree Prune And Regraft ◽  
Comparison Algorithms

AbstractMany popular algorithms for searching the space of leaf-labelled (phylogenetic) trees are based on tree rearrangement operations. Under any such operation, the problem is reduced to searching a graph where vertices are trees and (undirected) edges are given by pairs of trees connected by one rearrangement operation (sometimes called a move). Most popular are the classical nearest neighbour interchange, subtree prune and regraft, and tree bisection and reconnection moves. The problem of computing distances, however, is $${\mathbf {N}}{\mathbf {P}}$$ N P -hard in each of these graphs, making tree inference and comparison algorithms challenging to design in practice. Although anked phylogenetic trees are one of the central objects of interest in applications such as cancer research, immunology, and epidemiology, the computational complexity of the shortest path problem for these trees remained unsolved for decades. In this paper, we settle this problem for the ranked nearest neighbour interchange operation by establishing that the complexity depends on the weight difference between the two types of tree rearrangements (rank moves and edge moves), and varies from quadratic, which is the lowest possible complexity for this problem, to $${\mathbf {N}}{\mathbf {P}}$$ N P -hard, which is the highest. In particular, our result provides the first example of a phylogenetic tree rearrangement operation for which shortest paths, and hence the distance, can be computed efficiently. Specifically, our algorithm scales to trees with tens of thousands of leaves (and likely hundreds of thousands if implemented efficiently).

scholarly journals Dynamic Shortest Paths Methods for the Time-Dependent TSP

Algorithms ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Christoph Hansknecht ◽  
Imke Joormann ◽  
Sebastian Stiller
Keyword(s):  
Column Generation ◽  
Traveling Salesman Problem ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Valid Inequalities ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Traveling Salesman ◽  
Time Dependent ◽  
Full Generality ◽  
Branching Rule ◽  
The Traveling Salesman Problem

The time-dependent traveling salesman problem (TDTSP) asks for a shortest Hamiltonian tour in a directed graph where (asymmetric) arc-costs depend on the time the arc is entered. With traffic data abundantly available, methods to optimize routes with respect to time-dependent travel times are widely desired. This holds in particular for the traveling salesman problem, which is a corner stone of logistic planning. In this paper, we devise column-generation-based IP methods to solve the TDTSP in full generality, both for arc- and path-based formulations. The algorithmic key is a time-dependent shortest path problem, which arises from the pricing problem of the column generation and is of independent interest—namely, to find paths in a time-expanded graph that are acyclic in the underlying (non-expanded) graph. As this problem is computationally too costly, we price over the set of paths that contain no cycles of length k. In addition, we devise—tailored for the TDTSP—several families of valid inequalities, primal heuristics, a propagation method, and a branching rule. Combining these with the time-dependent shortest path pricing we provide—to our knowledge—the first elaborate method to solve the TDTSP in general and with fully general time-dependence. We also provide for results on complexity and approximability of the TDTSP. In computational experiments on randomly generated instances, we are able to solve the large majority of small instances (20 nodes) to optimality, while closing about two thirds of the remaining gap of the large instances (40 nodes) after one hour of computation.

Indoor landmark-based path-finding utilising the expanded connectivity of an endpoint partition

2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-252
Author(s):  
Pepijn Viaene ◽  
Alain De Wulf ◽  
Philippe De Maeyer
Keyword(s):  
Visual Information ◽  
Spatial Configuration ◽  
Shortest Paths ◽  
Minimal Amount ◽  
Path Finding ◽  
Breadth First Search ◽  
Length Increase ◽  
Efficient Communication ◽  
Indoor Wayfinding

Landmarks are ideal wayfinding tools to guide a person from A to B as they allow fast reasoning and efficient communication. However, very few path-finding algorithms start from the availability of landmarks to generate a path. In this paper, which focuses on indoor wayfinding, a landmark-based path-finding algorithm is presented in which the endpoint partition is proposed as spatial model of the environment. In this model, the indoor environment is divided into convex sub-shapes, called e-spaces, that are stable with respect to the visual information provided by a person’s surroundings (e.g. walls, landmarks). The algorithm itself implements a breadth-first search on a graph in which mutually visible e-spaces suited for wayfinding are connected. The results of a case study, in which the calculated paths were compared with their corresponding shortest paths, show that the proposed algorithm is a valuable alternative for Dijkstra’s shortest path algorithm. It is able to calculate a path with a minimal amount of actions that are linked to landmarks, while the path length increase is comparable to the increase observed when applying other path algorithms that adhere to natural wayfinding behaviour. However, the practicability of the proposed algorithm is highly dependent on the availability of landmarks and on the spatial configuration of the building.

scholarly journals A Relation of Dominance for the Bicriterion Bus Routing Problem

2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 133-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacek Widuch
Keyword(s):  
Graph Theory ◽  
Shortest Path ◽  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Partial Solution ◽  
Estimation Methods ◽  
Final Solution ◽  
Routing Problem ◽  
Variable Weights ◽  
Bus Routing ◽  
The Cost

Abstract A bicriterion bus routing (BBR) problem is described and analysed. The objective is to find a route from the start stop to the final stop minimizing the time and the cost of travel simultaneously. Additionally, the time of starting travel at the start stop is given. The BBR problem can be resolved using methods of graph theory. It comes down to resolving a bicriterion shortest path (BSP) problem in a multigraph with variable weights. In the paper, differences between the problem with constant weights and that with variable weights are described and analysed, with particular emphasis on properties satisfied only for the problem with variable weights and the description of the influence of dominated partial solutions on non-dominated final solutions. This paper proposes methods of estimation a dominated partial solution for the possibility of obtaining a non-dominated final solution from it. An algorithm for solving the BBR problem implementing these estimation methods is proposed and the results of experimental tests are presented.

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