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Abstract
Allocation for earthquake emergency shelters is a complicated geographic optimization problem because it involves multiple sites, strict constraints, and discrete feasible domain. Huge solution space makes the problem computationally intractable. Traditional brute-force methods can obtain exact optimal solutions. However, it is not sophisticated enough to solve the complex optimization problem with reasonable time especially in high-dimensional solution space. Artificial intelligent algorithms hold the promise of improving the effectiveness of location search. This article proposes a modified particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm to deal with the allocation problem of earthquake emergency shelter. A new discrete PSO and the feasibility-based rule are incorporated according to the discrete solution space and strict constraints. In addition, for enhancing search capability, simulated annealing (SA) algorithm is employed to escape from local optima. The modified algorithm has been applied to the allocation of earthquake emergency shelters in the Zhuguang Block of Guangzhou City, China. The experiments have shown that the algorithm can identify the number and locations of emergency shelters. The modified PSO algorithm shows a better performance than other hybrid algorithms presented in the article, and is an effective approach for the allocation problem of earthquake emergency shelters.
Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program) (Grant No. 2011CB707103), Programme of Introducing Talents of Discipline to Universities (Grant No. B08008), the International (Regional) Exchange Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 40821140354), Key Projects in the National Science & Technology Pillar Program in the Eleventh Five-year Plan Period (Grant No. 2008BAK50B07), and the Key National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40830532). The authors also thank anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments on this article.
Notes
1. BBC. 2011. Japan tsunami: toll tops 10,000 two weeks after quake [online]. Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12857544 [Accessed 25 March 2011].
2. Wikipedia. 2011. Earthquake Early Warning [online]. Japan. Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthquake_Early_Warning_(Japan) [Accessed 25 April 2011].