Hybrid Interactive Planning Under Many Objectives: An Application to the Vehicle Routing Problem

The article presents an adaptive hybrid planning system or the interactive solution of multi-objective vehicle routing problems. A general framework was built, being able to handle various components of general vehicle routing problems, e.g. the simultaneous consideration of six optimization criteria. Solutions are constructed and improved in real time allowing the user to adapt his articulated preference information interactively. Results simulating different types of decision makers are reported, focusing on the adaptability of the system and the quality of the obtained solutions. In brief, we are able to observe and demonstrate the suitability of the system to different types of decision makers, focussing on cost- or service-oriented criteria, or maintaining a balanced view on the two areas.