Defining tabu list size and aspiration criterion within tabu search methods

Abstract

An investigation to explicitly define two key elements in tabu search methods is attempted. In this study a functional representation of the tabu list size is presented and a softer aspiration criterion is put forward. Experiments are conducted on a set of p-median problems. Scope and purpose Tabu search is a metaheuristic that proved successful in finding good solutions to difficult combinatorial problems that were hard to find otherwise. In this study, we attempt to help the user in the choice of some of the parameters used in this type of heuristics. We based our analysis on the tabu list size and on an implementation on how to define the aspiration criterion. This added information can be valuable to those users who apply these methods in a near systematic manner without relying heavily on experimentations. As an example we used a simple location problem to test the usefulness of these ideas.