Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP)

Overview

The Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) solver helps you find the most efficient routes for your delivery vehicles. It considers factors like vehicle capacity, time windows, pickup and delivery locations, and cost optimization to create optimal routing solutions that minimize total distance and cost while meeting all delivery constraints.

How to Access

1. Navigate to your project
2. Click on the "VRP" tab in the project navigation
3. The VRP interface will load with your existing scenarios
4. Click "Start New VRP" to create a new routing scenario

Creating a New VRP Scenario

Required Datasets

Before creating a VRP scenario, you need three types of datasets:

• Shipment Dataset: Contains pickup and delivery locations with time windows
• Vehicle Dataset: Contains vehicle specifications including capacity and costs
• Facility Dataset: Contains depot/warehouse locations (optional)

Scenario Configuration

Configure your VRP scenario parameters:

Parameter Explanations

• Model Type: Choose between Standard or Pair routing models
• Group Size: Number of stops to group together for optimization (1-10)
• Solve Time: Maximum time in minutes for the optimization algorithm to run
• Number of Vehicles: Maximum number of vehicles to use (0 = unlimited)

Running the VRP

1. Select your shipment dataset (pickup/delivery locations)
2. Select your facility dataset (depot locations)
3. Select your vehicle dataset (fleet specifications)
4. Configure scenario parameters (group size, solve time, etc.)
5. Enter a descriptive scenario name
6. Click "Start VRP" to begin optimization
7. Monitor the processing status until completion

Understanding Results

Scenario Status

VRP scenarios have different status states:

• Processing: The optimization algorithm is currently running
• Completed: Optimization finished successfully with results available
• Failed: Optimization encountered an error and could not complete

Results Structure

VRP results are organized in a hierarchical structure:

• Scenarios: Top-level container for your VRP configuration
• Results: Individual optimization runs within a scenario
• Routes: Individual vehicle routes within a result
• Stops: Individual pickup/delivery locations within a route

Drilling Down Through Results

Navigation Workflow

The VRP interface uses a hierarchical drill-down approach to explore your results:

1. Scenarios View: Start here to see all your VRP scenarios
2. Results View: Click on a scenario to see its results (organized by depot)
3. Routes View: Click on a result to see individual routes for that depot
4. Stops View: Click on a route to see detailed stop-by-stop information

Additional Views

Beyond the drill-down workflow, you can also access:

• Map View: Visual representation of routes on a map (accessible from main interface)
• Analytics View: Comprehensive performance analytics (separate tab)

What You See at Each Level

Scenarios View

The scenarios view shows all your VRP scenarios with:

• Scenario Name: Displayed in primary color as the main heading
• Creation Date: Shown below the scenario name in gray text
• Status Badge: Status indicators showing completed, processing, or failed states
• Dataset Information: Three-column grid showing Shipment File, Vehicle File, and Facility File names
• Action Buttons: Download icon (for completed scenarios) and trash icon (delete) on the right side

Results View

When you click on a scenario, you see results organized by depot:

• Depot ID: Displayed as the main heading for each result
• Route Count Badge: Badge showing "X routes" (e.g., "5 routes")
• Creation Date: Shown below the depot ID in gray text
• Download Map Button: Download icon to export route maps as HTML files
• Navigation Arrow: Right-pointing arrow to click and drill down to routes

Routes View

When you click on a result, you see individual routes with:

• Route Number: Displayed as "Route: X" in the main heading
• Route Metrics: Four-column layout showing Cost, Distance, Stops, and Vehicle information
• Vehicle Details: Vehicle description and capacity (e.g., "Delivery Truck, 1000")
• Centroid Coordinates: Small gray box showing Lat/Lon coordinates for the route center
• Navigation Arrow: Right-pointing arrow to click and drill down to stops

Stops View

When you click on a route, you see detailed stop information in a table format:

• Sequence Column: Stop order number in the route
• Description Column: Stop description with "Depot" badge for depot stops
• Location Column: Exact coordinates (lat, lon) with 6 decimal precision
• Time Window Column: Start and end times with "Missed" badge if time window was missed
• Load Column: Three-line display showing Picked, Dropped, and Current load values
• Status Column: "Finished: X" showing the completion time
• Row Highlighting: Depot rows have background highlighting

Navigation Features

Throughout the drill-down process, you have several navigation options:

• Back Buttons: "Back" buttons with left arrow icons at the top of each view
• Header Navigation: Each view shows the current context (e.g., "Results for: [Scenario Name]")
• Click-to-Navigate: Click on any scenario, result, or route to drill down to the next level
• Export Options: Download icon (MdFileDownload) for scenarios and download arrow for route maps
• Delete Options: Trash icon (LuTrash2) with confirmation prompts for scenario deletion
• Loading States: Spinning icons and loading indicators during data fetching

Key Metrics

Throughout the drill-down process, you'll see important performance metrics:

• Total Distance: Sum of all route distances
• Total Cost: Combined cost of all routes including fixed and variable costs
• Route Count: Number of vehicles/routes used
• Stop Count: Total number of pickup/delivery stops
• Load Utilization: How efficiently vehicle capacity is used
• Time Window Compliance: Percentage of stops meeting time constraints

Best Practices

Data Preparation

• Ensure all datasets have accurate geographic coordinates
• Verify time windows are realistic and achievable
• Check that vehicle capacities match your load requirements
• Validate that depot locations are accessible to vehicles

Parameter Tuning

• Start with shorter solve times (30-60 minutes) for initial testing
• Use group size 3-5 for most delivery scenarios
• Set vehicle limits based on your actual fleet size
• Experiment with different parameters to find optimal solutions

Result Analysis

• Compare multiple scenarios to find the best solution
• Use analytics to identify optimization opportunities
• Check time window compliance to ensure customer satisfaction
• Analyze load utilization to optimize vehicle usage

Use Cases

• Last-Mile Delivery: Optimize delivery routes for e-commerce and retail
• Field Service: Plan technician routes for maintenance and repairs
• Supply Chain: Optimize pickup and delivery operations
• Waste Collection: Plan efficient garbage and recycling collection routes
• Sales Territories: Optimize sales representative coverage areas
• Emergency Services: Plan response routes for emergency vehicles
• Food Delivery: Optimize restaurant and grocery delivery routes
• Healthcare: Plan home healthcare and medical supply delivery routes