Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

LocalSolver 1.x: a black-box local-search solver for 0-1 programming

  • Industry
  • Published:
4OR Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper introduces LocalSolver 1.x, a black-box local-search solver for general 0-1 programming. This software allows OR practitioners to focus on the modeling of the problem using a simple formalism, and then to defer its actual resolution to a solver based on efficient and reliable local-search techniques. Started in 2007, the goal of the LocalSolver project is to offer a model-and-run approach to combinatorial optimization problems which are out of reach of existing black-box tree-search solvers (integer or constraint programming). Having outlined the modeling formalism and the main technical features behind LocalSolver, its effectiveness is demonstrated through an extensive computational study. The version 1.1 of LocalSolver can be freely downloaded at http://www.localsolver.com and used for educational, research, or commercial purposes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aarts E, Lenstra J (1997) Local search in combinatorial optimization. In: Aarts E, Lenstra J (eds) Local search in combinatorial optimization, wiley-interscience series in discrete mathematics and optimization. Wiley, Chichester

    Google Scholar 

  • Benoist T, Bourreau E (2008) Fast global filtering for eternity II. Constraint Program Lett 3: 35–50

    Google Scholar 

  • Benoist T, Estellon B, Gardi F, Jeanjean A (2009a) High-performance local search for solving inventory routing problems. In: Stützle T, Birattari M, Hoos H (eds) Proceedings of SLS 2009, the 2nd international workshop on engineering stochastic local search algorithms, Springer, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 5752, pp 105–109

  • Benoist T, Jeanjean A, Molin P (2009b) Minimum formwork stock problem on residential buildings construction sites. 4OR-Q J Oper Res 7: 275–288

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahon S, Melab N, Talbi EG (2004) ParadisEO: a framework for the reusable design of parallel and distributed metaheuristics. J Heuristics 10(3): 357–380

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caseau Y, Laburthe F, Silverstein G (1999) A meta-heuristic factory for vehicle routing problems. In: Proceedings of CP 1999, Springer, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 1713, pp 144–158

  • Comet Tutorial (2010) Comet 2.1 Tutorial. Dynadec Decision Technologies Inc., Providence, RI, 581 pages, http://www.dynadec.com

  • Di Gaspero L, Schaerf A (2003) EasyLocal++: an object-oriented framework for flexible design of local search algorithms. Softw Pract Exp 33(8): 733–765

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dotú I, Van Hentenryck P (1999) Scheduling social golfers locally. In: Proceedings of CPAIOR 2005, Springer, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 3524, pp 155–167

  • Estellon B, Gardi F, Nouioua K (2006) Large neighborhood improvements for solving car sequencing problems. RAIRO Oper Res 40(4): 355–379

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Estellon B, Gardi F, Nouioua K (2008) Two local search approaches for solving real-life car sequencing problems. Eur J Oper Res 191(3): 928–944

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Estellon B, Gardi F, Nouioua K (2009) High-performance local search for task scheduling with human resource allocation. In: Proceedings of SLS 2009, Springer, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 5752, pp 1–15

  • Hnich B, Miguel I, Gent I, Walsh T (2009) CSPLib: a problem library for constraints. http://www.csplib.org

  • Michel L, Van Hentenryck P (2000) Localizer. Constraints 5(1/2): 43–84

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perron L, Shaw P (2004) Combining forces to solve the car sequencing problem. In: Proceedings of CPAIOR 2004, Springer, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 3011, pp 225–239

  • Perron L, Shaw P, Furnon V (2004) Propagation guided large neighborhood search. In: Proceedings of CP 2004, Springer, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 3258, pp 468–481

  • Prandtstetter M, Raidl G (2008) An integer linear programming approach and a hybrid variable neighborhood search for the car sequencing problem. Eur J Oper Res 191(3): 1004–1022

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rego C, Glover F (2002) Local search and metaheuristics. In: Gutin G, Punnen A (eds) The traveling salesman problem and its variations. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, pp 105–109

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaus P, Deville Y (2008) Hybridation de la programmation par contraintes et d’un voisinage à très grande taille pour Eternity II. In: Proceedings of JFPC 2008, pp 115–122

  • Schaus P, Hentenryck PV, Monette JN, Coffrin C, Michel L, Deville Y (2011) Solving steel mill slab problems with constraint-based techniques: CP, LNS, CBLS, to appear in Constraints

  • Selman B, Kautz H, Cohen B (1996) Local search strategies for satisfiability testing. In: Johnson D, Trick M (eds) Cliques, coloring, and satisfiability: 2nd DIMACS implementation challenge, DIMACS series in discrete mathematics and theoretical computer science, vol 26. AMS, Providence

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Hentenryck P, Michel L (2005) Constraint-based local search. The MIT Press, Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Hentenryck P, Michel L (2007) Synthesis of constraint-based local search algorithms from high-level models. In: Proceedings of AAAI 2007, pp 273–279

  • Van Hentenryck P, Michel L (2008) The steel mill slab design problem revisited. In: Proceedings of CPAIOR 2008, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 5015, pp 377–381

  • Vasquez M, Hao JK (2001) A “logic-constrained” knapsack formulation and a tabu algorithm for the daily photograph scheduling of an earth observation satellite. Comput Optim Appl 20(2): 137–157

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Voudouris C, Dorne R, Lesaint D, Liret A (2001) iOpt: a software toolkit for heuristic search methods. In: Proceedings of CP 2001, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 2239, pp 716–730

  • Walser J, Iyer R, Venkatasubramanyan N (1998) An integer local search method with application to capacitated production planning. In: Proceedings of AAAI 1998, pp 373–379

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bouygues e-lab, Paris, France

    Thierry Benoist, Frédéric Gardi & Romain Megel

  2. Laboratoire d’Informatique Fondamentale, CNRS UMR 6166, Université Aix-Marseille II, Faculté des Sciences de Luminy, Marseille, France

    Bertrand Estellon & Karim Nouioua

Authors
  1. Thierry Benoist
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Bertrand Estellon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Frédéric Gardi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Romain Megel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Karim Nouioua
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Frédéric Gardi.

Additional information

The work of B. Estellon and K. Nouioua was supported in part by the ANR grant OPTICOMB (ANR BLAN06-1-138894). T. Benoist, F. Gardi, R. Megel extend special thanks to Dr. Etienne Gaudin, director of Bouygues e-lab, for his support and encouragements.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Benoist, T., Estellon, B., Gardi, F. et al. LocalSolver 1.x: a black-box local-search solver for 0-1 programming. 4OR-Q J Oper Res 9, 299–316 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10288-011-0165-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10288-011-0165-9

Keywords

MSC Classification (2000)

Search

Navigation