Movement routing tasks focused on engineering applications are being investigated which leads to formulations involving constraints and complicated cost functions. It is assumed that the entire set of tasks is divided into a sum of clusters, the maintenance of which is ordered; when visiting each cluster, the task of optimizing the order of tasks and (in a situation with multiple movements) trajectories that are implemented in accordance with the selected sequence should be solved (each time). For partial tasks, precedence constraints and cost functions that depend on the job list are possible, which is typical for many applications. In practice, it is necessary to find "good"solutions to the overall problem in an acceptable amount of time. In this paper, decomposition that is consistent with job clusters and separate dynamic programming are used to achieve this goal. As a result, the optimization of composite solutions is achieved with acceptable performance. An optimal algorithm has been implemented on a multi-core PC, and an extensive computational experiment has been conducted. Possible applications include the control of tool with using of regions when sheet cutting in CNC machines.
Keywords: decomposition, dynamic programming, route, precedence conditions
Received April 01, 2026
Revised April 20, 2026
Accepted April 27, 2026
Alexander Georgievich Chentsov, Dr. Phys.-Math. Sci, RAS Corresponding Member, Prof., Krasovskii Institute of Mathematics and Mechanics of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Yekaterinburg, 620077 Russia; Ural Federal University, Yekaterinburg, 620000 Russia, e-mail: chentsov@imm.uran.ru
Pavel Alexandrovich Chentsov, Cand. Sci. (Phys.-Math.) Krasovskii Institute of Mathematics and Mechanics of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Yekaterinburg, 620077 Russia; Ural Federal University, Yekaterinburg, 620000 Russia, e-mail: chentsov.p@mail.ru
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Cite this article as: A.G. Chentsov, P.A. Chentsov. Dynamic programming and decomposition in multi-stage routing problems. Trudy Instituta Matematiki i Mekhaniki UrO RAN, 2026, vol. 32, no. 3, pp. 281–300.