The routing bottlenecks problem (optimization within zones)

A minimax routing problem with decomposition elements is considered. In the simplest case, it is supposed that the whole set of tasks is divided into a sum of two subsets (clusters), and execution of tasks from the second subset can be started only after the completion of all tasks from the first subset. For above-mentioned two-cluster problem, an algorithm has been constructed for finding the optimal compositional solution, including a route (permutation of task indices) and a starting point, which is based on the use of a broadly understood dynamic programming. Based on this approach, an algorithm was also constructed to solve the routing problem in the case of an arbitrary ordered finite set of clusters. The algorithm was implemented on a PC, and a computational experiment was carried out. Possible applications may be associated with some logistics tasks in small aviation, when it is necessary to ensure visits to many points by one vehicle (airplane, helicopter) with a limited non-stop flight range.