Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-03T15:47:46Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 LeonardoCTB_DISSERT.pdf: 2119704 bytes, checksum: 5bdd21de8bfa668bba821593cdd5289f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-02-07 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / Multi-objective combinatorial optimization problems have peculiar characteristics that require optimization methods to adapt for this context. Since many of these problems are NP-Hard, the use of metaheuristics has grown over the last years. Particularly, many different approaches using Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) have been proposed. In this work, an ACO is proposed for the Multi-objective Shortest Path Problem, and is compared to two other optimizers found in the literature. A set of 18 instances from two distinct types of graphs are used, as well as a specific multiobjective performance assessment methodology. Initial experiments showed that the proposed algorithm is able to generate better approximation sets than the other optimizers for all instances. In the second part of this work, an experimental analysis is conducted, using several different multiobjective ACO proposals recently published and the same instances used in the first part. Results show each type of instance benefits a particular type of instance benefits a particular algorithmic approach. A new metaphor for the development of multiobjective ACOs is, then, proposed. Usually, ants share the same characteristics and only few works address multi-species approaches. This works proposes an approach where multi-species ants compete for food resources. Each specie has its own search strategy and different species do not access pheromone information of each other. As in nature, the successful ant populations are allowed to grow, whereas unsuccessful ones shrink. The approach introduced here shows to be able to inherit the behavior of strategies that are successful for different types of problems. Results of computational experiments are reported and show that the proposed approach is able to produce significantly better approximation sets than other methods / Problemas de otimiza??o combinat?ria multiobjetivo apresentam caracter?sticas peculiares que exigem que t?cnicas de otimiza??o se adaptem a esse contexto. Como muitos desses problemas s?o NP-?rduos, o uso de metaheur?sticas tem crescido nos ?ltimos anos. Particularmente, muitas abordagens que utilizam a Otimiza??o por Col?nias de Formigas t?m sido propostas. Neste trabalho, prop?e-se um algoritmo baseado em col?nias de formigas para o Problema do Caminho mais Curto Multiobjetivo, e compara-se o algoritmo proposto com dois otimizadores encontrados na literatura. Um conjunto de 18 inst?ncias oriundas de dois tipos de grafos ? utilizado, al?m de uma metodologia espec?fica para a avalia??o de otimizadores multiobjetivo. Os experimentos iniciais mostram que o algoritmo proposto consegue gerar conjuntos de aproxima??o melhores que os demais otimizadores para todas as inst?ncias. Na segunda parte do trabalho, uma an?lise experimental de diferentes abordagens publicadas para col?nias de formigas multiobjetivo ? realizada, usando as mesmas inst?ncias. Os experimentos mostram que cada tipo de inst?ncia privilegia uma abordagem algor?tmica diferente. Uma nova met?fora para o desenvolvimento deste tipo de metaheur?stica ? ent?o proposta. Geralmente, formigas possuem caracter?sticas comuns e poucos artigos abordam o uso de m?ltiplas esp?cies. Neste trabalho, uma abordagem com m?ltiplas esp?cies competindo por fontes de comida ? proposta. Cada esp?cie possui sua pr?pria estrat?gia de busca e diferentes esp?cies n?o tem acesso ? informa??o dada pelo ferom?nio das outras. Como na natureza, as popula??es de formigas bem sucedidas tem a chance de crescer, enquanto as demais se reduzem. A abordagem apresentada aqui mostra-se capaz de herdar o comportamento de estrat?gias bem-sucedidas em diferentes tipos de inst?ncias. Resultados de experimentos computacionais s?o relatados e mostram que a abordagem proposta produz conjuntos de aproxima??o significativamente melhores que os outros m?todos

Atualmente existem diferentes ferramentas computacionais para auxílio nos estudos de coordenação da proteção, que permitem traçar as curvas dos relés, de acordo com os parâmetros escolhidos pelos projetistas. Entretanto, o processo de escolha das curvas consideradas aceitáveis, com um elevado número de possibilidades e variáveis envolvidas, além de complexo, requer simplificações e iterações do tipo tentativa e erro. Neste processo, são fatores fundamentais tanto a experiência e o conhecimento do especialista, quanto um árduo trabalho, sendo que a coordenação da proteção é qualificada pela IEEE Std. 242 como sendo mais uma arte do que uma ciência. Este trabalho apresenta o desenvolvimento de um algoritmo genético e de um algoritmo inspirado em otimização por colônia de formigas, para automatizar e otimizar a coordenação da função de sobrecorrente de fase de relés digitais microprocessados (IEDs), em subestações industriais. Seis estudos de caso, obtidos a partir de um modelo de banco de dados, baseado em um sistema elétrico industrial real, são avaliados. Os algoritmos desenvolvidos geraram, em todos os estudos de caso, curvas coordenadas, atendendo a todas as restrições previamente estabelecidas e as diferenças temporais de atuação dos relés, no valor de corrente de curto circuito trifásica, apresentaram-se muito próximas do estabelecido como ótimo. As ferramentas desenvolvidas demonstraram potencialidade quando aplicadas nos estudos de coordenação da proteção, tendo resultados positivos na melhoria da segurança das instalações, das pessoas, da continuidade do processo e do impedimento de emissões prejudiciais ao meio ambiente. / Nowadays there are several computational tools applied to the protection coordination studies, which allow observe the curves of the relays, according to the parameters chosen by the designers. However, the process of choosing the curves considered acceptable, with a great number of possibilities and variables involved, is difficult and, moreover, requires simplifications and some trial and error iterations. In this process, the key factors are the expert experience and knowledge as well as a hard work. The protection coordination is described by IEEE Std. 242 as more of an art than a science. This paper presents the development of a genetic algorithm and an algorithm based on an ant colony optimization to automate and optimize the coordination of overcurrent curves using intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) in industrial substations. Six case studies, obtained from a database model based on an actual industrial electrical system, were evaluated. The developed algorithms generated, in all case studies, coordinated curves, complying with all previous established restrictions. The temporal differences of the curves, at three-phase short circuit current values, were very close to the set as optimal. The developed tools are a valuable contribution to the protection coordination studies, improving the safety of the equipment and the people, the process reliability and the prevention of harmful emissions to the environment.

Avec l’avènement du traitement distribué et l’utilisation accrue des services web inter et intra organisationnels alimentée par la disponibilité des connexions réseaux à faibles coûts, les données multisources partagées ont de plus en plus envahi les systèmes d’informations. Ceci a induit, dans un premier temps, le changement de leurs architectures du centralisé au distribué en passant par le coopératif et le fédéré ; et dans un deuxième temps, une panoplie de problèmes d’exploitation allant du traitement des incohérences des données doubles à la synchronisation des données distribuées. C’est le cas des bases de prospection marketing où les données sont enrichies par des fichiers provenant de différents fournisseurs.Nous nous intéressons au cadre particulier de construction de fichiers de prospection pour la réalisation de campagnes marketing B-to-B, tâche traitée manuellement par les experts métier. Nous visons alors à modéliser le raisonnement de brokers humains, afin d’optimiser et d’automatiser la sélection du « plan fichier » à partir d’un ensemble de données d’enrichissement multisources. L’optimisation en question s’exprimera en termes de gain (coût, qualité) des données sélectionnées, le coût se limitant à l’unique considération du prix d’utilisation de ces données.Ce mémoire présente une triple contribution quant à la gestion des bases de données multisources. La première contribution concerne l’évaluation rigoureuse de la qualité des données multisources. La deuxième contribution porte sur la modélisation et l’agrégation préférentielle des critères d’évaluation qualité par l’intégrale de Choquet. La troisième contribution concerne BrokerACO, un prototype d’automatisation et d’optimisation du brokering multisources basé sur l’algorithme heuristique d’optimisation par les colonies de fourmis (ACO) et dont la Pareto-optimalité de la solution est assurée par l’utilisation de la fonction d’agrégation des préférences des utilisateurs définie dans la deuxième contribution. L’efficacité du prototype est montrée par l’analyse de campagnes marketing tests effectuées sur des données réelles de prospection. / In Business-to-Business (B-to-B) marketing campaigns, manufacturing “the highest volume of sales at the lowest cost” and achieving the best return on investment (ROI) score is a significant challenge. ROI performance depends on a set of subjective and objective factors such as dialogue strategy, invested budget, marketing technology and organisation, and above all data and, particularly, data quality. However, data issues in marketing databases are overwhelming, leading to insufficient target knowledge that handicaps B-to-B salespersons when interacting with prospects. B-to-B prospection data is indeed mainly structured through a set of independent, heterogeneous, separate and sometimes overlapping files that form a messy multisource prospect selection environment. Data quality thus appears as a crucial issue when dealing with prospection databases. Moreover, beyond data quality, the ROI metric mainly depends on campaigns costs. Given the vagueness of (direct and indirect) cost definition, we limit our focus to price considerations.Price and quality thus define the fundamental constraints data marketers consider when designing a marketing campaign file, as they typically look for the "best-qualified selection at the lowest price". However, this goal is not always reachable and compromises often have to be defined. Compromise must first be modelled and formalized, and then deployed for multisource selection issues. In this thesis, we propose a preference-driven selection approach for multisource environments that aims at: 1) modelling and quantifying decision makers’ preferences, and 2) defining and optimizing a selection routine based on these preferences. Concretely, we first deal with the data marketer’s quality preference modelling by appraising multisource data using robust evaluation criteria (quality dimensions) that are rigorously summarized into a global quality score. Based on this global quality score and data price, we exploit in a second step a preference-based selection algorithm to return "the best qualified records bearing the lowest possible price". An optimisation algorithm, BrokerACO, is finally run to generate the best selection result.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-29T15:08:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Adson.pdf: 1251737 bytes, checksum: 08b3122009f15a40cec4f32fda3231e9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-11-07 / The present work deals with the problem of planning the distribution system of electricity and is divided into three parts: Problem Definition, Resolution Approaches and Results and Conclusions. The energy distribution networks are of great economic importance in countries like Brazil. On one hand, there are fixed costs of physical installation and operation of the network, mainly due to the costs of energy losses and, secondly, the natural obstacles along the possible passages of network s links. The large amount of these costs, together with lack of efficient methods when it comes to real applications in the matter, justify the development of this research. The study of such aspects, the precise definition of the problem and the reasons that motivated this work can be found on the first part of this work. The second part shows the approaches for resolution. Three proposals methods were adopted: the first uses the algorithm Prim associated with the method Nelder-Mead Simplex. In the second proposal uses Dynamic Programming and, finally, we take the metaphor of Ant Colony also associated with the Nelder-Mead Simplex. The results, presented at the third part of this work, demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed methods, especially the good compromise between performance and applicability obtained by the third proposal. / O presente trabalho lida com o problema de planejamento da rede de distribuição de energia elétrica, estando dividido em três partes: Definição do Problema, Abordagens de Resolução e Resultados e Conclusões. As redes de distribuição de energia têm uma grande importância econômica em países como o Brasil. Por um lado, há os custos físicos fixos de instalação e de operação da rede, sobretudo os custos devido às perdas de energia e, por outro, os obstáculos naturais impostos ao longo das possíveis passagens para as ligações da rede. O montante elevado destes custos, unidos à escassez de métodos eficientes quando se trata de aplicações reais no assunto, justificam o desenvolvimento desta pesquisa. O estudo de tais aspectos, a definição precisa do problema e as justificativas podem ser encontradas na primeira parte deste trabalho. Na segunda parte, apresentam-se as abordagens de resolução. Três propostas foram adotadas: na primeira usa-se o algoritmo Prim associado ao método Nelder-Mead Simplex. Na segunda proposta utiliza-se a Programação Dinâmica e, por fim, tomamos a metáfora de colônia de formigas também associada ao Nelder-Mead Simplex. Os resultados, apresentados na terceira parte deste trabalho, mostram a eficácia dos métodos propostos, em especial o bom compromisso entre performance e aplicabilidade obtido pela terceira proposta.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2016-09-21T17:53:15Z No. of bitstreams: 1 cristianogomescasagrande.pdf: 637689 bytes, checksum: 8110c0aa199d98fa3f68855ccb257b82 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Diamantino Mayra (mayra.diamantino@ufjf.edu.br) on 2016-09-26T20:27:35Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 cristianogomescasagrande.pdf: 637689 bytes, checksum: 8110c0aa199d98fa3f68855ccb257b82 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-09-26T20:27:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 cristianogomescasagrande.pdf: 637689 bytes, checksum: 8110c0aa199d98fa3f68855ccb257b82 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-08-13 / A necessidade de redução do custo associado à operação dos sistemas de distribuição de energia elétrica tem se tornado cada vez mais imperativa no cenário do setor energético. Uma das principais alternativas para resolver este problema é a minimização de perdas de potência ativa nos alimentadores de distribuição. A fim de reduzir as perdas, algumas práticas têm sido adotadas, como a alocação de capacitores em pontos estratégicos do sistema, bem como o ajuste de tapes de transformadores e reconfiguração de redes de distribuição. A solução de problemas desse tipo envolve complexos algoritmos de otimização não linear inteira mista. Nesse contexto, este trabalho apresenta uma técnica especializada baseada na meta-heurística colônia de formigas para solucionar o problema de minimização de perdas nos sistemas de distribuição de energia elétrica através da alocação ótima de capacitores combinada ao ajuste de tapes, além de considerar restrições de violação de tensão. O algoritmo desenvolvido propõe modificações na estrutura básica do problema, a fim de obter resultados melhores. A metodologia proposta é aplicada a sistemas encontrados na literatura e resultados são comparados com outros métodos. / The reduce the cost associated with the operation of electric power distribution systems has become increasingly imperative in the setting of the energy sector. One of the main alternatives to solve this problem is to minimize power losses in distribution feeders. In order to reduce losses, some practices have been adopted, such as the allocation of capacitors at strategic points in the system as well as LTC adjustment and reconfiguration of distribution networks. The solution of such problems involves complex algorithms for nonlinear mixed integer optimization. Therefore, this paper presents a specialized technique based on meta-heuristic ant colony optimization to solve the problem of minimizing losses in electric power distribution systems through the optimal capacitor placement combined with the LTC adjustment, and consider constraints voltage violation. This algorithm proposes changes to the basic structure of the problem in order to obtain better results. The proposed methodology is applied to systems found in the literature and results are compared with other methods.

In this work, we present a way to extend Ant Colony Optimization (ACO), so that it can be applied to both continuous and mixed-variable optimization problems. We demonstrate, first, how ACO may be extended to continuous domains. We describe the algorithm proposed, discuss the different design decisions made, and we position it among other metaheuristics.<p>Following this, we present the results of numerous simulations and testing. We compare the results obtained by the proposed algorithm on typical benchmark problems with those obtained by other methods used for tackling continuous optimization problems in the literature. Finally, we investigate how our algorithm performs on a real-world problem coming from the medical field—we use our algorithm for training neural network used for pattern classification in disease recognition.<p>Following an extensive analysis of the performance of ACO extended to continuous domains, we present how it may be further adapted to handle both continuous and discrete variables simultaneously. We thus introduce the first native mixed-variable version of an ACO algorithm. Then, we analyze and compare the performance of both continuous and mixed-variable<p>ACO algorithms on different benchmark problems from the literature. Through the research performed, we gain some insight into the relationship between the formulation of mixed-variable problems, and the best methods to tackle them. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the performance of ACO on various real-world mixed-variable optimization problems coming from the mechanical engineering field is comparable to the state of the art. / Doctorat en Sciences de l'ingénieur / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Combinatorial optimization problems are of high academical as well as practical importance. Many instances of relevant combinatorial optimization problems are, due to their dimensions, intractable for complete methods such as branch and bound. Therefore, approximate algorithms such as metaheuristics received much attention in the past 20 years. Examples of metaheuristics are simulated annealing, tabu search, and evolutionary computation. One of the most recent metaheuristics is ant colony optimization (ACO), which was developed by Prof. M. Dorigo (who is the supervisor of this thesis) and colleagues. This thesis deals with theoretical as well as practical aspects of ant colony optimization.<p><p>* A survey of metaheuristics. Chapter 1 gives an extensive overview on the nowadays most important metaheuristics. This overview points out the importance of two important concepts in metaheuristics: intensification and diversification. <p><p>* The hyper-cube framework. Chapter 2 introduces a new framework for implementing ACO algorithms. This framework brings two main benefits to ACO researchers. First, from the point of view of the theoretician: we prove that Ant System (the first ACO algorithm to be proposed in the literature) in the hyper-cube framework generates solutions whose expected quality monotonically increases with the number of algorithm iterations when applied to unconstrained problems. Second, from the point of view of the experimental researcher, we show through examples that the implementation of ACO algorithms in the hyper-cube framework increases their robustness and makes the handling of the pheromone values easier.<p><p>* Deception. In the first part of Chapter 3 we formally define the notions of first and second order deception in ant colony optimization. Hereby, first order deception corresponds to deception as defined in the field of evolutionary computation and is therefore a bias introduced by the problem (instance) to be solved. Second order deception is an ACO-specific phenomenon. It describes the observation that the quality of the solutions generated by ACO algorithms may decrease over time in certain settings. In the second part of Chapter 3 we propose different ways of avoiding second order deception.<p><p>* ACO for the KCT problem. In Chapter 4 we outline an ACO algorithm for the edge-weighted k-cardinality tree (KCT) problem. This algorithm is implemented in the hyper-cube framework and uses a pheromone model that was determined to be well-working in Chapter 3. Together with the evolutionary computation and the tabu search approaches that we develop in Chapter 4, this ACO algorithm belongs to the current state-of-the-art algorithms for the KCT problem.<p><p>* ACO for the GSS problem. Chapter 5 describes a new ACO algorithm for the group shop scheduling (GSS) problem, which is a general shop scheduling problem that includes among others the well-known job shop scheduling (JSS) and the open shop scheduling (OSS) problems. This ACO algorithm, which is implemented in the hyper-cube framework and which uses a new pheromone model that was experimentally tested in Chapter 3, is currently the best ACO algorithm for the JSS as well as the OSS problem. In particular when applied to OSS problem instances, this algorithm obtains excellent results, improving the best known solution for several OSS benchmark instances. A final contribution of this thesis is the development of a general method for the solution of combinatorial optimization problems which we refer to as Beam-ACO. This method is a hybrid between ACO and a tree search technique known as beam search. We show that Beam-ACO is currently a state-of-the-art method for the application to the existing open shop scheduling (OSS) problem instances.<p><p> / Doctorat en sciences appliquées / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

This master's thesis is focused on modern methods and tools to support managerial decision-making. The first part of this thesis introduces the basic characteristics related to the management and managerial decision-making that are subsequently extended to the area of modeling, simulation, optimization and multi-criteria decision making. It also outlines the relationship between the managerial decision-making tasks. The second part introduces practical examples which show the connection of these areas. Specifically, they are a colony of ants, traveling salesman problem, a tool AnyLogic, analytic hierarchy process and simulation HealthBound. The thesis is further supplemented by an appropriate software tools to support multi-criteria decision making.

This diploma thesis focuses on meta-heuristic algorithms and their ability to solve difficult optimization problems in polynomial time. The thesis describes different kinds of meta-heuristic algorithms such as genetic algorithm, particle swarm optimization or ant colony optimization. The implemented application was written in Java and contains ant colony optimization for capacitated vehicle routing problem and particle swarm optimization which finds the best possible parameters for ant colonies.

First part of the thesis is about literature research of optimization algorithms. Three of the algorithms were implemented and tested, concretely the ant colony algorithm, tabu search and simulated annealing. All three algorithms were implemented to solve the traveling salesman problem. In second part of the thesis the algorithms were tested and compared. In last part the influence of the ant colony parameters was evaluated.