IND 371 RECHERCHE OPERATIONELLE

Week 11 Network models

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak

• Network definition: A network consists of a set of nodes linked by
arcs (or branches).
• The notation for describing a network is (N, A), where N is the set of
nodes, and A is the set of arcs.
• Example 1
• N = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
• A = { (1,2), (1,3), (2,3), (2,5), (3,4), (3,5), (4,2), (4,5) }

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak

• Ex 1

• This figure shows an example for

a connected (N,A) network.
• A network is said to be
connected if every two distinct
nodes are linked by at least one
path.

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak

Example for a tree and spanning tree
A tree is a cycle-free connected network comprised of a subset of all the nodes, and
a spanning tree links all the nodes of the network.

Minimum spanning tree algorithm

The minimum spanning tree links the nodes of a network using the smallest total
length of connecting branches. A typical application occurs in the pavement of
roads linking towns, either directly or passing through other towns. The
minimum spanning tree solution provides the most economical design of the
road system.

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak

Minimum spanning tree algorithm
1. Select any node arbitrarly and then connect it to the nearest
unconnected node.
2. Identify the unconnected node that is closest to a connected node
and connect these two nodes. Repeat these steps until all nodes are
connected.
3. Ties in step 1 and 2 may be broken arbitrarly. However such ties
may be signal that there are multiple optimal solutions.

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak

Ex: Determine the roads underwhich telephone lines should be
installed to connect all cities with a minimum total length of
lines. In other words, determine the minimum spanning tree of
the network.
7 5
A D T
2 4
5
0 1
B
3 7
4 1

C 4 E

OA=2 OB=5 OB=5 AD=7 AD=7 ET=7

OB=5 OC=4 AD=7 CE=4 BD=4 DT=5
OC=4 AD=7 CB=1 BD=4 ED=1
CE=4 BE=3 ET=7

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak

Ex: Midwest TV Cable Company is providing cable service to five new housing
developments. Figure 1 depicts possible TV connections to the five areas, with cable
miles affixed on each arc. The goal is to determine the most economical cable
network.

3 miles
2 5
1 6 4
9
1 Min total distance=
5 3 10
1+3+4+3+5= 16 miles

7 5 8
4 6
3

IND 371 Prof. Dr. E. Ertugrul Karsak