Multiple order and capacity constraints for VRP Network Analyst

MichailaMusman

Hi all, I am trying find a workaround for a VRP application.  I am routing a fleet of tree planting trucks.  Our general rule is that we have a maximum of 5 houses serviced, totaling 10 trees across all 5 stops.  But if we do 4 stops, we can plant 11 or 12 trees, 3 stops 13 trees, and so on.  Is there any way to communicate this to the network analyst?

HeatherMoe

One thought is you could have different "copies" of the routes with the various combinations of houses and trees to fit the scenarios you described above. The houses would be represented by the MaxOrderCount parameter on the route and the trees by the Capacity parameter. So if you have say 3 trucks available to you for the problem, you could set up three routes with a MaxOrderCount of 5 and Capacity of 10, another three routes with a MaxOrderCount of 4 and Capacity of 11, and three more with a MaxOrderCount of 3 and Capacity of 13. The solver will only use the number of routes needed for the problem so having extra routes shouldn't be a problem and it would allow the solver to decide what mix of MaxOrderCount and Capacity is best for the trucks. Having more then the actual number of trucks does make it possible that more routes will be used in the solution then you have vehicles. If you run into that for a problem you could experiment with the number of each route type that you present to the solver to see if it can find a solution with fewer routes going to more houses each.