A Physarum-inspired approach to supply chain network design  

作　　者：Xiaoge ZHANG Andrew ADAMATZKY Xin-She YANG Hai YANG Sankaran MAHADEVAN Yong DENG 

机构地区：[1]School of Computer and Information Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China [2]Unconventional Computing Center, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK [3]School of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK [4]Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China [5]School of Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, 37235, USA

出　　处：《Science China(Information Sciences)》2016年第5期187-200,共14页中国科学（信息科学）（英文版）

基　　金：supported by Chongqing Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. CSCT, 2010BA2003);National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61174022, 61573290, 61503237);National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Program) (Grant No. 2013AA013801);Doctor Funding of Southwest University (Grant No. SWU110021);Research Assistantship at Vanderbilt University

摘　　要：A supply chain is a system which moves products from a supplier to customers, which plays a very important role in all economic activities. This paper proposes a novel algorithm for a supply chain network design inspired by biological principles of nutrients＇ distribution in protoplasmic networks of slime mould Physarum polycephalum. The algorithm handles supply networks where capacity investments and product flows are decision variables, and the networks are required to satisfy product demands. Two features of the slime mould are adopted in our algorithm. The first is the continuity of flux during the iterative process, which is used in real-time updating of the costs associated with the supply links. The second feature is adaptivity. The supply chain can converge to an equilibrium state when costs are changed. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the practicality and flexibility of the proposed method algorithm.A supply chain is a system which moves products from a supplier to customers, which plays a very important role in all economic activities. This paper proposes a novel algorithm for a supply chain network design inspired by biological principles of nutrients＇ distribution in protoplasmic networks of slime mould Physarum polycephalum. The algorithm handles supply networks where capacity investments and product flows are decision variables, and the networks are required to satisfy product demands. Two features of the slime mould are adopted in our algorithm. The first is the continuity of flux during the iterative process, which is used in real-time updating of the costs associated with the supply links. The second feature is adaptivity. The supply chain can converge to an equilibrium state when costs are changed. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the practicality and flexibility of the proposed method algorithm.

关 键 词：supply chain design PHYSARUM capacity investments network optimization adaptivity 

分 类 号：F274[经济管理—企业管理] TP273[经济管理—国民经济]