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An approximation algorithm for the stack-up problem

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Abstract.

We consider the combinatorial stack-up problem motivated by stacking up bins from a conveyor onto pallets. The stack-up problem is to decide whether a given list q of labeled objects can be processed by removing step by step one of the first s objects of q so that the following holds. After each removal there are at most p labels for which the first object is already removed from q and the last object is still contained in q. We give some NP-completeness results and we introduce and analyze a polynomial time approximation algorithm for the stack-up problem.

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Manuscript received: January 1999/final version received: August 1999

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Rethmann, J., Wanke, E. An approximation algorithm for the stack-up problem. Mathematical Methods of OR 51, 203–233 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s001860050085

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s001860050085

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