Optimization of Container Load Sequencing by a Hybrid of Ant Colony Optimization and Tabu Search

Many algorithms that solve optimization problems are being developed and used. However, large and complex optimization problems still exist, and it is often difficult to obtain the desired results with one of these algorithms alone. This paper applies tabu search and ant colony optimization method to the container load sequencing problem. We also propose a hybrid algorithm, which can combine the merits of these two algorithms by running them alternately. Experiments have shown that the proposed hybrid algorithm is superior to both tabu search and ant colony optimization individually.