A Grid-enabled Branch and Bound Algorithm for Solving Challenging Combinatorial Optimization Problems

Solving optimally large instances of combinatorial optimization problems requires a huge amount of computational resources. In this paper, we propose an adaptation of the parallel Branch and Bound algorithm for computational grids. Such gridification is based on new ways to efficiently deal with some crucial issues, mainly dynamic adaptive load balancing, fault tolerance, global information sharing and termination detection of the algorithm. A new efficient coding of the work units (search sub-trees) distributed during the exploration of the search tree is proposed to optimize the involved communications. The algorithm has been implemented following a large scale idle time stealing paradigm (Farmer-Worker). It has been experimented on a Flow-Shop problem instance ( ) that has never been optimally solved. The new algorithm allowed to realize a success story as the optimal solution has been found with proof of optimality, within days using about processors belonging to Nation-wide di...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2007
• Where: IPPS
• Authors: Mohand-Said Mezmaz, Nouredine Melab, El-Ghazali Talbi
• Keywords: Algorithm, Combinatorial Optimization Problems, Distributed And Parallel Computing, Dynamic Adaptive Load, IPPS 2007