An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes

With the rapid development of global trade, the cargo throughput of automated container terminals (ACTs) has increased significantly. To meet the demands of large-scale, high-intensity, and high-efficiency ACT operations, the seamless integration of various terminal facilities has become crucial, pa...

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Main Authors: Shuaishuai Gong, Ping Lou, Jianmin Hu, Yuhang Zeng, Chuannian Fan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Mathematics
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7390/13/3/340
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author Shuaishuai Gong
Ping Lou
Jianmin Hu
Yuhang Zeng
Chuannian Fan
author_facet Shuaishuai Gong
Ping Lou
Jianmin Hu
Yuhang Zeng
Chuannian Fan
author_sort Shuaishuai Gong
collection DOAJ
description With the rapid development of global trade, the cargo throughput of automated container terminals (ACTs) has increased significantly. To meet the demands of large-scale, high-intensity, and high-efficiency ACT operations, the seamless integration of various terminal facilities has become crucial, particularly the collaboration between yard cranes (YCs) and automated guided vehicles (AGVs). Therefore, an integrated scheduling problem for YCs and AGVs (YAAISP) is proposed and formulated in this paper, considering stacking containers and bidirectional transport of AGVs. As the YAAISP is an NP-hard problem, an Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm (IWOA) is proposed in which a reverse learning strategy is used for the population to enhance population diversity; a random difference variation strategy is employed to improve individual exploration capabilities; and a nonlinear convergence factor alongside an adaptive weighting mechanism to dynamically balance global exploration and local exploitation. For container tasks of size 100, the objective function value (OFV) of the IWOA was reduced by 9.25% compared to the standard Whale Optimization Algorithm. Comparisons with other algorithms, such as the Genetic Algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization, and Grey Wolf Optimizer, showed an OFV reduction of 9.61% to 11.75%. This validates the superiority of the proposed method.
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spelling doaj-art-a8dfbf0bdae54d27bf2dc5fd947753e82025-08-20T02:48:06ZengMDPI AGMathematics2227-73902025-01-0113334010.3390/math13030340An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard CranesShuaishuai Gong0Ping Lou1Jianmin Hu2Yuhang Zeng3Chuannian Fan4School of Information Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaSchool of Information Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaSchool of Information Engineering, Hubei University of Economics, Wuhan 430205, ChinaSchool of Information Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaSchool of Information Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, ChinaWith the rapid development of global trade, the cargo throughput of automated container terminals (ACTs) has increased significantly. To meet the demands of large-scale, high-intensity, and high-efficiency ACT operations, the seamless integration of various terminal facilities has become crucial, particularly the collaboration between yard cranes (YCs) and automated guided vehicles (AGVs). Therefore, an integrated scheduling problem for YCs and AGVs (YAAISP) is proposed and formulated in this paper, considering stacking containers and bidirectional transport of AGVs. As the YAAISP is an NP-hard problem, an Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm (IWOA) is proposed in which a reverse learning strategy is used for the population to enhance population diversity; a random difference variation strategy is employed to improve individual exploration capabilities; and a nonlinear convergence factor alongside an adaptive weighting mechanism to dynamically balance global exploration and local exploitation. For container tasks of size 100, the objective function value (OFV) of the IWOA was reduced by 9.25% compared to the standard Whale Optimization Algorithm. Comparisons with other algorithms, such as the Genetic Algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization, and Grey Wolf Optimizer, showed an OFV reduction of 9.61% to 11.75%. This validates the superiority of the proposed method.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7390/13/3/340automated container terminalsautomated guided vehiclesyard cranesintegrated schedulingimproved Whale Optimization Algorithm
spellingShingle Shuaishuai Gong
Ping Lou
Jianmin Hu
Yuhang Zeng
Chuannian Fan
An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes
Mathematics
automated container terminals
automated guided vehicles
yard cranes
integrated scheduling
improved Whale Optimization Algorithm
title An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes
title_full An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes
title_fullStr An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes
title_full_unstemmed An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes
title_short An Improved Whale Optimization Algorithm for the Integrated Scheduling of Automated Guided Vehicles and Yard Cranes
title_sort improved whale optimization algorithm for the integrated scheduling of automated guided vehicles and yard cranes
topic automated container terminals
automated guided vehicles
yard cranes
integrated scheduling
improved Whale Optimization Algorithm
url https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7390/13/3/340
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