Editorial Optimization Theory, Methods, and Applications

EditorialOptimization Theory, Methods, and Applications inEngineering 2013

Jung-Fa Tsai,1 John Gunnar Carlsson,2 Dongdong Ge,3 Yi-Chung Hu,4 and Jianming Shi5

1 Department of Business Management, National Taipei University of Technology, No. 1, Sec. 3, Chung-Hsiao East Road,Taipei 10608, Taiwan

2 Program in Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Minnesota, 111 Church St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA3 Reseach Center for Management Science and Information Engineering, School of Information Management and Engineering,Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Shanghai 200433, China

4Department of Business Administration, Chung Yuan Christian University, Chung-Li 320, Taiwan5 School of Management, Tokyo University of Science, 500 Shimokiyoku, Kuki City, Saitama 346-8512, Japan

Correspondence should be addressed to Jung-Fa Tsai; [email protected]

Received 3 March 2014; Accepted 3 March 2014; Published 15 May 2014

Copyright © 2014 Jung-Fa Tsai et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

1. Introduction

Optimization theory and methods have been applied inmany fields to handle various practical problems. In lightof advances in computing systems, optimization techniqueshave become increasingly important and popular in differentengineering applications. The aim of this special issue is topresent some recent developments in the area of optimizationtheory,methods, and applications in engineering.This specialissue involves 44 original papers, selected by the editors andrelated to the various researches themes on optimizationtheory, methods, and applications in engineering. Accordingto the characteristics of the accepted papers, the specialissue is organized in the following six parts and each part iscomposed of several important papers to the part’s scope.

2. Optimization Methods

Y. Gao et al. present a branch and bound reduced algorithmfor quadratic programming problems with quadratic con-straints. The algorithm determines the lower bound of theoptimal value of original problem by constructing a linearrelaxation programming problem. To improve the degree ofapproximation and the convergence rate of acceleration, arectangular reduction strategy is also used in the algorithm.

Y. C. Zhang et al. propose an improved self-adaptive par-ticle swarm optimization (IDPSO) algorithm with detectionfunction to solve multimodal function optimization prob-lems. The evolution direction of each particle is redirecteddynamically by tuning the three parameters of IDPSO in theevolution process to overcome the premature convergence ofPSO in a short time. Numerical results on several benchmarkfunctions indicate that the IDPSO strategy outperforms othervariants of PSO.

“A review of piecewise linearizationmethods” byM.-H. Linet al. introduces recent advances in piecewise linearizationmethods and analyzes the computational efficiency of variouspiecewise linearization methods.

“Sensitivity analysis of the proximal-based parallel decom-position methods” by F. Ma et al. shows that the range of theinvolved parameters can be enlarged, while the convergencecan be still established.

X. Wang studies a new class of optimization problemsand develops a strong duality theory for stochastic separatedcontinuous conic programming. A polynomial-time approx-imation algorithm is also presented to solve the stochasticseparated continuous conic programming problem with anypredefined accuracy.

The paper “Tightness of semidefinite programming relax-ation to robust transmit beamforming with SINR constraints”

Hindawi Publishing CorporationMathematical Problems in EngineeringVolume 2014, Article ID 319418, 5 pageshttp://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/319418

2 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

by Y. Wang and R. Shi considers a multiuser transmit beam-forming problem under uncertain channel state informationsubject to SINR constraints in a downlink multiuser MISOsystem. A natural semidefinite programming (SDP) relax-ation problem is proposed to solve the robust beamformingproblem. The main contribution of this paper is to establishthe tightness of the SDP relaxation problem under properassumption, which means that the SDP relaxation problemdefinitely yields rank-one solutions under the assumption.

3. Information System

“An analytical framework of a deployment strategy for cloudcomputing services: a case study of academic websites” byC.-H.Chen et al. analyzes network behavior to assess and comparethe costs and risks associated with traditional local serversversus those associated with cloud computing to determinethe appropriate deployment strategy. An analytic frameworkof a deployment strategy that consists of two mathematicalmodels and the analytical hierarchy process is proposed toanalyze the costs and service level agreements of servicesinvolving using the traditional local servers and platform asservice platforms in the cloud.

The paper “The reputation evaluation based on optimizedhidden Markov model in e-commerce” by L. Chang et al.presents a reputation evaluation mechanism based on theoptimized hiddenMarkov model, which is called PSOHMM.The algorithm takes full advantage of the search mecha-nism in particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm tostrengthen the learning ability of HMM and PSO has beenmodified to guarantee interval and normalization constraintsin HMM. Compared to average and beta reputation evalua-tion mechanism, PSOHMM reflects the behavior changes ofsellers more quickly in e-commerce systems.

“An efficient approximate algorithm for disjoint QoS rout-ing” by Z. Yu et al. formulates the disjoint QoS routing prob-lem as a 0-1 integer linear programming with the objectivefunction using an adaptive penalty function. An efficientalgorithm is designed to solve the formulatedmodel to obtainthe optimal solution efficiently. The simulation experimentsvalidate the effectiveness of the proposed heuristic algorithm.

The paper “Enterprise information security managementbased on context-aware RBAC and communicationmonitoringtechnology” byM.-Y.Wu andM.-H. Yu proposes an informa-tion security management approach that is based on context-aware role-based access control (RBAC) and communicationmonitoring technology to achieve enterprise informationsecurity management. The main contribution of this work isthe potential it provides to both reduce information securityincidents, such as internal information leakage, and allow foreffective cost control of information systems.

“Building a smart e-portfolio platform for optimal e-learning objects acquisition” by C.-K. Ke et al. proposesan optimal selection approach determining a reasonable e-learning object from various candidate e-learning objects toassist student learning in a modern e-portfolio platform.Themain contribution of this work is the demonstration of aneffective e-learning object selection method which is easy to

implement within an e-portfolio platform and which makesit smarter.

The paper “Ant colony optimization for social utilitymaximization in a multiuser communication system” by M.-H. Lin et al. presents an efficient ant colony optimizationalgorithm to allocate each user’s limited power on differentchannels for maximizing social utility (i.e., the sum of allindividual utilities).The proposed algorithm adopts an initialsolution that allocates more power on the channel with alower background noise level. Besides, the cooling concept ofsimulated annealing is integrated into the proposed methodto improve the convergence rate during the local search of theant colony optimization algorithm. A number of experimentsare conducted to validate the effectiveness of the proposedalgorithm.

“Heuristics for synthesizing robust networks with a diame-ter constraint” byH. Nagarajan et al. addresses the problem offinding a network that maximizes the algebraic connectivityof the network while ensuring that the length of the shortestpath joining any two nodes in the network is within agiven bound. This article presents k-opt and tabu searchheuristics for finding feasible solutions for this networksynthesis problem. Computational results are also presentedto corroborate the performance of the proposed algorithms.

J. Lai et al. propose a fairness-based admission control(FAC) scheme for the original I-frame acceleration mecha-nism to enhance its scalability by decreasing the bandwidthdemands. Based on the channel changing history of everyclient, the FAC scheme can intelligently decide whetheror not to conduct the I-frame acceleration for each chan-nel change request. Comprehensive simulation experimentsdemonstrate the potential of their proposed FAC scheme toeffectively optimize the scalability of the I-frame accelerationmechanism, particularly in commercial breaks.

Y. Xing et al. introduce two techniques (state space searchand branch and bound) in artificial intelligence to tackle theproblem of path-wise test data generation. An optimizationmethod is also proposed to reduce the search space. Theresults of empirical experiments show that the search isconducted in a basically backtrack-free manner to ensureboth test data generation with promising performance and itsexcellence over some currently existing static and dynamicmethods in terms of coverage. The results also demonstratethat their proposed method is applicable in engineering.

4. Industrial Engineering andManufacturing Systems

L. Cui et al. propose a new improved quantum evolutionalgorithm with a mixed local search procedure for solvingcapacitated vehicle routing problems (CVRPs). The obtainedresults from the testing of CVRP benchmarks demonstratethe superiorities of the proposed algorithm over the PSO, SR-1, and SR-2. The authors also provide a profound analysis onthe experimental results.

“Analysis of positioning error for two-dimensional locationsystem” by Y. Jiang et al. investigates the positioning errorusing different positioning techniques for two-dimensional

Mathematical Problems in Engineering 3

location system. The simulation results illustrate that theperformance of TDOA is always superior to TOAwithout thetime synchronization using the same reference nodes.

The paper “A new model for the regulation width ofwaterway based on hydraulic geometry relation” by N. Zhi-huiet al. proposes a newmodel of thewidth of channel regulationon hydraulic geometry relation. The numerical results showthat the proposed calculation method is feasible and it couldbe a useful reference for the design of waterway regulation.

“Forecasting electrical energy consumption of equipmentmaintenance using neural network and particle swarm opti-mization” by X. Jiang presents an approach for forecastingelectrical energy consumption of equipment maintenancebased on artificial neural network (ANN) and particle swarmoptimization (PSO). Experimental results demonstrate thatthe approach provides much better accuracies than someother competitive methods on the test data.

K.-C. Yang et al. adopt backpropagation neural networkmodel and gray relation analysis as tools to analyze thefault detection and classification (FDC) data for detectingthe semiconductor machine outliers. The findings indicatethat machine deteriorates quickly after continuous use for 6months.

In “2D Dubins path in environments with obstacle” by D.Yang et al., an effective algorithm is presented to obtain theshortest path in environmentswith an obstaclewhich consistsof no more than five segments. The paper recapitulates theachievement about the Dubins path as well as some preciseproofs which are important but omitted by Dubins.

D.-Y. Cheng et al. propose two analytical models to ana-lyze the optimal sampling period based on communicationbehaviors, traffic conditions, and two consecutive fingerprintpositioning locations from the same call and estimatingvehicle speed.The experimental results show that the optimalsampling period is 41.589 seconds when the average callholding time was 60 s, and the average speed error rate wasonly 2.87%.

H. Li et al. deal with the tractor and semitrailer routingproblem with full truckload between any two depots ofthe network and propose an integer programming modelwith the objective of minimizing CO

2emissions per ton-

kilometer. A two-stage approach with the same core stepsof the simulated annealing in both stages is designed tosolve the problem.Computational experiments on small scalerandomly generated instances support the feasibility andvalidity of the heuristic algorithm.

“Classification of hospital web security efficiency using dataenvelopment analysis and support vector machine” by H.-Y.Kao et al. proposes the hybrid data envelopment analysis(DEA) and support vector machine (SVM) approaches forefficiency estimation and classification in web security. In theproposed framework, the factors and efficiency scores fromDEA models are integrated with SVM for learning patternsof web security performance and provide further decisionsupport. The numerical case study of hospital web securityefficiency is demonstrated to support the feasibility of thisdesign.

The paper “A robust optimization approach to emergencyvehicle scheduling” by X. X. Rong et al. studies the emergency

vehicle scheduling problem under the objective function tominimize the total transportation time with uncertain roadtravel time. A numerical example is implemented to comparethe results of robust optimization method and that of theparticle swarm optimization algorithm.The case study showsthat the proposed method achieves better performance oncomputational complexity and stability.

“A slicing tree representation and QCP-model-basedheuristic algorithm for the unequal-area block facility layoutproblem” by M. S. Chang and T. C. Ku combines a slicingtree representation and a quadratically constrained programmodel with harmony search to develop a heuristicmethod forsolving the unequal-area block layout problem.The proposedharmony search-based heuristic is tested on 10 well-knownunequal-area facility layout problems from the literature.The results are compared with the previously best knownsolutions obtained by genetic algorithm, tabu search, and antsystem as well as exactmethods. New best solutions are foundfor some problems.

The paper “A collaborative optimization model for groundtaxi based on aircraft priority” by Y. Jiang et al. establishesa scheduling optimization model by introducing priorityof aircraft under collaborative decision-making mechanism,and a genetic algorithm is designed to verify the schedulingmodel by simulating. Optimization results show that thereliability of themodel and the adjusted genetic algorithmhasa high efficiency.

J.-F Camacho-Vallejo et al. highlight the use of gametheory to solve the classical problem of the uncapacitatedfacility location optimization model with customer orderpreferences through a bilevel approach. An evolutionaryalgorithm based on the equilibrium in a Stackelberg’s game isproposed to solve the bilevel model. Numerical experimenta-tion is performed in this study and the results are comparedto benchmarks from the existing literature in the subject inorder to emphasize the benefits of the proposed approach interms of solution quality and estimation time.

J. Zhang et al. present a multilevel thresholding algo-rithm for histogram-based image segmentation. The algo-rithm introduces an adaptive adjustment strategy of therotation angle and a cooperative learning strategy intoquantum genetic algorithm (IQGA). An adaptive adjustmentstrategy of the quantum rotation introduced in this studyhelps improving the search ability. The experimental resultsdemonstrate good performance of the IQGA in solving mul-tilevel thresholding segmentation problems by comparingwith QGA and GA.

5. Engineering Design

The paper “Engineering design by geometric programming” byC.-H. Huang proposes an optimization approach for solvinggeometric programming (GP) problems.The approach is firstto convert all signomial terms in GP into convex and concaveterms. Then the concave terms are further treated with theproposed piecewise linearization method. The engineeringdesign problems are also illustrated to evaluate the usefulnessof the proposed methods.

4 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

“A comparative analysis of nature-inspired optimizationapproaches to 2D geometric modelling for turbomachineryapplications” by A. Safari et al. addresses a comparativeperformance analysis on some of the most important nature-inspired optimization algorithms with different basis for thecomplex high-dimensional curve/surface fitting problems.Results illuminate a number of advantages as well as disad-vantages of each developed optimization method for suchcomplex geometries’ parameterization from several differentpoints of view. In terms of application, the final appropriateparametric representation of geometries in turbomachineryincluding airfoil curves and/or blade surfaces is an essential,significant component of both aerodynamic profile optimiza-tion processes and reverse engineering purposes.

C. Wang et al. propose an accurate calculation formulawhere the whole flow fields of multistage pumps withthree different ring clearances were calculated by usingcomputational fluid dynamics. This research works out thereason why the error of traditional axial force calculationis large when the amount of leakage is relatively large. Anaccurate calculation formula of axial force on pump is alsoobtained through the verification of numerical simulationand experiments.

The paper “Design optimization of a speed reducer usingdeterministic techniques” by M.-H. Lin et al. applies an effi-cient deterministic approach to globally solve speed reducerdesign problems which is formulated as a generalized geo-metric programming problem. The study reformulates theoriginal problem into a convex mixed-integer nonlinear pro-gramming problem solvable to reach an approximate globalsolution within an acceptable error. Experiment results fromsolving a practical speed reducer design problem indicatethat this study obtains a better solution compared with otherexisting methods.

6. Multicriteria Decision Making

“A hybrid multiple criteria decision making model for supplierselection” by C.-M.Wu et al. applies a hybrid multiple criteriadecision making model which is a combination of fuzzyDelphi method, ANP, and TOPSIS to select the optimalsupplier. A real case is presented to illustrate the usefulnessof the proposed model.

The paper “A novel nonadditive collaborative-filteringapproach using multicriteria ratings” by Y.-C. Hu presentsa new collaborative-filtering approach using multicriteriaratings, in which a nonadditive technique in multicriteriadecision making, namely, the Choquet integral, is usedto aggregate multicriteria ratings for unrated items. Theapplicability of the proposed approach to the recommenda-tion of the initiators on a group-buying website is exam-ined. Experimental results demonstrate that the general-ization ability of the proposed approach performs wellcompared with other similarity-based collaborative-filteringapproaches using multicriteria ratings.

“Bargaining in patent licensing negotiations under stochas-tic environments: an experimental study” byY.-N. Yang andY.-J. Chiu conducts experiments of a bargaining game between

licensors and licensees by introducing a “second-chance”negotiation for licensors in a context of ultimatum game.The experimental results reveal that the introduction ofthe “second-chance” negotiation for licensors has significantimpacts on behaviors of the licensors and licensees.

X. Han et al. use an input-oriented model to measure theenergy consumption productivity change from 1999 to 2008of fourteen industry sectors in China as decision-makingunits. The results show that only four sectors experiencedeffective energy consumption throughout thewhole referenceperiod. It also shows that these sectors always lie on theefficiency frontier of energy consumption as benchmarks.The other ten sectors experienced inefficiency in some two-year time periods and the productivity changes were notsteady.

7. Operations and Supply Chain Management

The paper “Coordination scheme for restructuring businessoperation of the single period newsvendor problem” by C.-C. Chyu and I.-P. Huang presents a coordination schemefor a single period newsvendor problem when both supplierand retailer of the supply chain agree to change the businessoperation from a market decision power sharing system toa unique decision-maker system. An example is providedto illustrate the two models and the proposed coordinationscheme, along with managerial insights on the models’benefits.

“Determining the optimum ordering policy in multi-itemjoint replenishment problemusing a novelmethod” byW.-T.Hoinvestigates the joint replenishment problem (JRP) involvingmultiple itemswhere economies exist for replenishing severalitems simultaneously. Cycle time division and recursivetightening methods are developed to calculate an efficientand optimal replenishment policy for JRP in this paper. Thecomplexity of cycle time division and recursive tighteningmethods is 𝑂(𝑁 log𝑁), where 𝑁 represents the number ofitems involved in the problem.

M. Narenji et al. address the competition between twosupply chains and their corresponding elements are modeledfollowing the evolutionary games approach. Mathematicalmodels for analyzing internal and external competition issuesare developed under four different scenarios. The best priceand delivery time policy of chains are illustrated by numericalexamples.

S. Yang et al. consider an inventory model for perishableproducts with stock-dependent demand under inflation.Theobjective is tominimize the retailer’s net present value of cost.Numerical experiments show that there is an optimal cyclelength to minimize the present value of cost and a solutionprocedure is given to find the optimal solution.

The paper “Optimal ordering policy of a risk-averse retailersubject to inventory inaccuracy” by L. Zhu et al. investigates arisk-averse retailer within a newsvendor framework consid-ering inventory inaccuracy stemming both from permanentshrinkage and temporary shrinkage. The study shows mono-tonicity between the retailer’s ordering policy and his riskaversion degree. A numerical analysis provides managerial

Mathematical Problems in Engineering 5

insights for risk-averse retailers consideringRFID technologyinvestment.

“Mediating dynamic supply chain formation by collabora-tive single machine earliness/tardiness agents in supply mesh”by H. Yang et al. investigates the possibilities of applyingthe collaborative single machine earliness/tardiness (CSET)in a supply mesh, and the corresponding allocation schemesare experimentally studied in simulations. The results basedon samples from the US textile industry show that by usingintelligent agents under the CSET model it is possible toautomatically find an ideal group of trading partners from asupply mesh out of many possibilities.

The paper “On the transformation mechanism for for-mulating a multiproduct two-layer supply chain networkdesign problem as a network flow model” by M. Gan et al.explores a novel modeling method and develops a networkflow model (NFP) for solving manufacturer-center two-layersupply chain design problem. To verify the effectivenessand efficiency of the model and algorithms, the perfor-mance measurement experiments have been conducted. Theexperimental results show that compared with MIP modelsolved by genetic algorithm (GA) andbenders decompositionalgorithm (BD), the novel NFP model and the improvednetwork simplex algorithm are effective and more efficient.

Acknowledgments

The guest editors would like to thank the authors for theircontributions and the referees for their time and energyin reviewing the manuscripts. Without their cooperation, itwould have not been possible to edit this special issue.

Jung-Fa TsaiJohn Gunnar Carlsson

Dongdong GeYi-Chung HuJianming Shi

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Editorial Optimization Theory, Methods, and Applications