scholarly journals A simulation approach for aircraft cargo loading considering weight and balance constraints

Author(s):  
Erdem Agbas ◽  
Ali Osman Kusakci

Air cargo transport is a growing industry in parallel with the growth in world trade and e-commerce. The global air cargo transport traffic getting busier, the importance of timely loading with minimum error is increasing. Therefore, digitalization of the air cargo loading process is needed. Assignment of Unit Load Devices (ULDs) to the specific positions on the freighter is performed by loadmasters by manual or semi-manual methods. This study aims to design a simulation model, which performs the ULD assignment automatically by simulating the loading process performed by the experienced loadmasters under the weight and balance constraints. The SEMMA (sample, explore, modify, model, assess) model is used while generating the simulation model. Fifty real-world loading orders were used to assess the performance of the model. The ULD assignment process by the simulation model and the loadmasters using semi-manual loading were compared with regard to time and center of gravity performance indicators. The results demonstrated that the simulation model can load all the given sets of ULDs, as efficiently as a loadmaster with a similar center of gravity in a shorter period of time. In conclusion, the proposed simulation model provides an efficient solution to the ULD assignment problem. However, the base model generated may be improved to address various real-world scenarios

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 2833
Author(s):  
Paolo Civiero ◽  
Jordi Pascual ◽  
Joaquim Arcas Abella ◽  
Ander Bilbao Figuero ◽  
Jaume Salom

In this paper, we provide a view of the ongoing PEDRERA project, whose main scope is to design a district simulation model able to set and analyze a reliable prediction of potential business scenarios on large scale retrofitting actions, and to evaluate the overall co-benefits resulting from the renovation process of a cluster of buildings. According to this purpose and to a Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) approach, the model combines systemized data—at both building and district scale—from multiple sources and domains. A sensitive analysis of 200 scenarios provided a quick perception on how results will change once inputs are defined, and how attended results will answer to stakeholders’ requirements. In order to enable a clever input analysis and to appraise wide-ranging ranks of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) suited to each stakeholder and design phase targets, the model is currently under the implementation in the urbanZEB tool’s web platform.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Shehab ◽  
Laith Abualigah

Abstract Multi-Verse Optimizer (MVO) algorithm is one of the recent metaheuristic algorithms used to solve various problems in different fields. However, MVO suffers from a lack of diversity which may trapping of local minima, and premature convergence. This paper introduces two steps of improving the basic MVO algorithm. The first step using Opposition-based learning (OBL) in MVO, called OMVO. The OBL aids to speed up the searching and improving the learning technique for selecting a better generation of candidate solutions of basic MVO. The second stage, called OMVOD, combines the disturbance operator (DO) and OMVO to improve the consistency of the chosen solution by providing a chance to solve the given problem with a high fitness value and increase diversity. To test the performance of the proposed models, fifteen CEC 2015 benchmark functions problems, thirty CEC 2017 benchmark functions problems, and seven CEC 2011 real-world problems were used in both phases of the enhancement. The second step, known as OMVOD, incorporates the disruption operator (DO) and OMVO to improve the accuracy of the chosen solution by giving a chance to solve the given problem with a high fitness value while also increasing variety. Fifteen CEC 2015 benchmark functions problems, thirty CEC 2017 benchmark functions problems and seven CEC 2011 real-world problems were used in both phases of the upgrade to assess the accuracy of the proposed models.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. e00188
Author(s):  
Paloma Oliver ◽  
Pilar Fernandez-Calle ◽  
Roberto Mora ◽  
Jorge Diaz-Garzon ◽  
Daniel Prieto ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Oleksandr Romanov ◽  
Ivan Saychenko ◽  
Anton Marinov ◽  
Serhii Skolets

Background. The implementation of the new modern services on existing networks requires replacement or modernization of the old equipment. This negatively affects the efficiency of providing users with new types of services and their cost. Therefore, the issues/tasks of implementing SDN technology in the construction of networks are in the center of attention of representatives of science-research organizations and telecom operators. SDN networks have the advantages of flexible scaling of the system without replacing existing server and network equipment, eliminating operator dependence on specific vendor solutions, and rapid implementation of the new network technologies and services. To determine the numerical values of indicators of the functioning of SDN networks and check their compliance with the requirements, it is proposed to use in working process simulation modelling. For these goals, the Open Networking Foundation consortium developed the Mininet network emulator, the elements of that are published publicly. The formation of the simulation model and the procedure for determining the performance indicators of the SDN network that uses Mininet has a number of features that are considered in the work. Objective. The purpose of the article is to build a simulation model based on the Mininet network emulator and to determine the performance indicators of SDN networks of various structures/topologies. Methods. Creation of a SDN network segment for testing process of its functioning in the overload mode of various communication routes. Results. The Mininet network emulator allows simulating SDN networks of a rather complex structure, change the performance of network branches and the amount of load in communication routes, to create a network-wide overload mode. During the simulation, it is possible to determine a number of indicators of network performance, such as the RTT (Round Trip Time) parameter for each route of communication, the bandwidth of branches and routes of communication, the amount of delay on network elements, loading of OpenFlow Switch ports/interfaces, network elements with the highest delay, the number of served and lost packets. Conclusions. Use of the Mininet network emulator is a fairly convenient tool for determining the performance indicators of SDN networks. However, there are also some problems. First of all, setting up the system's operability requires writing programs to ensure the interaction among standard elements from the Mininet library. Secondone, is when congestion occurs in the communication routes, the Floodlight Controller does not automatically balance traffic along the work-around route. This task has to be solved manually by making changes to the OpenFlow Switch routing tables. Keywords: Software Defined Networking; SDN; Mininet; OpenFlow; Floodlight Controller; OpenFlowSwitch; NFV; virtualization.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhaoxing Li ◽  
Qionghai Liu ◽  
Li Chen

A complex network can crash down due to disturbances which significantly reduce the network’s robustness. It is of great significance to study on how to improve the robustness of complex networks. In the literature, the network rewire mechanism is one of the most widely adopted methods to improve the robustness of a given network. Existing network rewire mechanism improves the robustness of a given network by re-connecting its nodes but keeping the total number of edges or by adding more edges to the given network. In this work we propose a novel yet efficient network rewire mechanism which is based on multiobjective optimization. The proposed rewire mechanism simultaneously optimizes two objective functions, i.e., maximizing network robustness and minimizing edge rewire operations. We further develop a multiobjective discrete partite swarm optimization algorithm to solve the proposed mechanism. Compared to existing network rewire mechanisms, the developed mechanism has two advantages. First, the proposed mechanism does not require specific constraints on the rewire mechanism to the studied network, which makes it more feasible for applications. Second, the proposed mechanism can suggest a set of network rewire choices each of which can improve the robustness of a given network, which makes it be more helpful for decision makings. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed mechanism, we carry out experiments on computer-generated Erdős–Rényi and scale-free networks, as well as real-world complex networks. The results demonstrate that for each tested network, the proposed multiobjective optimization based edge rewire mechanism can recommend a set of edge rewire solutions to improve its robustness.


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