Abstract
This paper describes an approach to using evolutionary algorithms for reasoning about paths through network data. The paths investigated in the context of this research are functional paths wherein the characteristics (e.g., path length, morphology, location) of the path are integral to the objective purpose of the path. Using two datasets of combined surface and road networks, the research demonstrates how an evolutionary algorithm can be used to reason about functional paths. We present the algorithm approach, the parameters and fitness function that drive the functional aspects of the path, and an approach for using the algorithm to respond to dynamic changes in the search space. The results of the search process are presented in terms of the overall success based on the response of the search to variations in the environment and through the use of an occupancy grid characterizing the overall search process. The approach offers a great deal of flexibility over more conventional heuristic path finding approaches and offers additional perspective on dynamic network analysis.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adriaensen F, Chardon JP, De Blust G, Swinnen E, Villalba S, Gulinck H, Matthysen E (2003) The application of ‘least-cost’ modelling as a functional landscape model. Landsc Urban Plan 64(4):233–247
Beier P, Majka D, Newell S (2009) Uncertainty analysis of least-cost modeling for designing wildlife linkages. Ecol Appl 19(8):2067–2077
Bellman R (1958) On a routing problem. Q Appl Math 16:87–90
Bennett DA, Tang W (2006) Modelling adaptive, spatially aware, and mobile agents: Elk migration in yellowstone. Int J Geogr Inf Sci 20(9):1039–1066
Church RL, Loban SR, Lombard K (1992) An interface for exploring spatial alternatives for a corridor location problem. Comput Geosci 18(8):1095–1105
Colizza V, Barrat A, Barthelemy M, Vespignani A (2006) The role of the airline transportation network in the prediction and predictability of global epidemics. Proc Natl Acad Sci 103(7):2015–2020
Cova TJ, Johnson JP (2002) Microsimulation of neighborhood evacuations in the urban-wildland interface. Environ Plann A 34(12):2211–2230
Cova TJ, Johnson JP (2003) A network flow model for lane-based evacuation routing. Transp Res Part A Policy Pract 37(7):579
Pretolani D (2000) A directed hypergraph model for random time dependent shortest paths. Eur J Oper Res 123(2):315–324
Davies C, Lingras P (2003) Genetic algorithms for rerouting shortest paths in dynamic and stochastic networks. Eur J Oper Res 144(1):27–38
Demetrescu C (2006) DIMACS challenge benchmarks: Colorado, USA. http://www.dis.uniroma1.it/~challenge9/download.shtml
Dijkstra EW (1959) A note on two problems in connexion with graphs. Numer Math 1(1):269–271
Floyd RW (1962) Algorithm 97: shortest path. Commun ACM 5(6):345
Frank WC, Thill J-C, Batta R (2000) Spatial decision support system for hazardous material truck routing. Transp Res Part C Emerg Technol 8(1–6):337–359
Gen M, Cheng R, Wang D (1997) Genetic algorithms for solving shortest path problems. In: IEEE international conference on evolutionary computation, pp 401–406
Gen M, Lin L (2005) Multi-objective hybrid genetic algorithm for bicriteria network design problem. Complex Int 11:73–83
George B, Shekhar S (2008) Time-aggregated graphs for modeling spatio- temporal networks. In: Spaccapietra S, Pan J, Thiran P, Halpin T, Staab S, Svatek V, Shvaiko P, Roddick J (eds) Journal on Data Semantics XI. Lecture notes in computer science, vol 5383. Springer Berlin, Heidelberg, pp 191–212
Goodchild M (1977) An evaluation of lattice solutions to the problem of corridor location. Environ Plann A 9(7):727–738
Hägerstrand T (1970) What about people in regional science? Pap Reg Sci 24(1):6–21
Haklay MM, Weber P (2008) Openstreetmap: user-generated street maps. IEEE Pervasive Computing 7:12–18
Hargrove WW, Hoffman FM, Efroymson RA (2005) A practical map-analysis tool for detecting potential dispersal corridors. Landsc Ecol 20(4):361–373
Hart P, Nilsson N, Raphael B (1968) A formal basis for the heuristic determination of minimum cost paths. IEEE Trans Syst Sci Cybern 4(2):100–107
Huang B, Cheu RL, Liew YS (2004) GIS and genetic algorithms for HAZMAT route planning with security considerations. Int J Geogr Inf Sci 18(8):769–787
Lin S, Kernighan B (1973) An effective heuristic algorithm for the traveling-salesman problem. Oper Res 21(2):498–516
Loui RP (1983) Optimal paths in graphs with stochastic or multidimensional weights. Commun ACM 26:670–676
Lup L, Srinivasan D (2007) A hybrid evolutionary algorithm for dynamic route planning. In: IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation, 2007. CEC 2007, pp 4743–4749
McDonald DB (2007) Predicting fate from early connectivity in a social network. Proc Natl Acad Sci 104(26):10910–10914
Miller HJ, Wu Y-H (2000) Gis software for measuring space-time accessibility in transportation planning and analysis. Geoinformatica 4(2):141–159
Mooney P, Winstanley A (2006) An evolutionary algorithm for multicriteria path optimization problems. Int J Geogr Inf Sci 20(4):401–423
Okabe A, Okunuki K (2001) A computational method for estimating the demand of retail stores on a street network and its implementation in GIS. Trans GIS 5(3):209
Orda A, Rom R (1990) Shortest-path and minimum-delay algorithms in networks with time-dependent edge-length. J ACM 37:607–625
Osborn FV, Parker GE (2003) Linking two elephant refuges with a corridor in the communal lands of Zimbabwe. Afr J Ecol 41(1):68–74
O’Sullivan D, Morrison A, Shearer J (2000) Using desktop GIS for the investigation of accessibility by public transport: an isochrone approach. Int J Geogr Inf Sci 14(1):85–104
Pfoser D, Jensen C (2003) Indexing of network constrained moving objects. In: Proceedings of the 11th ACM international symposium on advances in geographic information systems. ACM, p 32
Prager SD, Spears WM (2009) A hybrid evolutionary-graph approach for finding functional network paths. In: GIS ’09: Proceedings of the 17th ACM SIGSPATIAL international conference on advances in geographic information systems. ACM, New York, pp 306–315
Shaw L, Spears WM, Billings L, Maxim P (2010) Effective vaccination policies. Inf Sci 180(19):3728–3744
Spears WM (2000) Evolutionary algorithms: the role of mutation and recombination. Natural computing series. Springer
Trajcevski G, Wolfson O, Hinrichs K, Chamberlain S (2004) Managing uncertainty in moving objects databases. ACM Trans Database Syst 29(3):463–507
Xie Z, Yan J (2008) Kernel density estimation of traffic accidents in a network space. Comput Environ Urban Syst 32(5):396–406
Yamada I, Thill J (2004) Comparison of planar and network K-functions in traffic accident analysis. J Transp Geogr 12(2):149–158
Yuan M, Hornsby K (eds) (2007) Computation and visualization for understanding dynamics in geographic domains: a research agenda. CRC
Zhan F, Noon C (1998) Shortest path algorithms: an evaluation using real road networks. Transp Sci 32(1):65–73
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Spears, W.M., Prager, S.D. Evolutionary search for understanding movement dynamics on mixed networks. Geoinformatica 17, 353–385 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10707-012-0155-x
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10707-012-0155-x