A search problem on a bipartite network

Vic Baston and Kensaku Kikuta

European Journal of Operational Research, 2019, vol. 277, issue 1, 227-237

Abstract: A searcher starting from a given node in a connected network can move along the edges and, when at a node can (but does not have to) search that node; moving on an edge involves a travelling cost and searching a node involves a search cost. The searcher wants to find an immobile object located at one of the nodes other than the searcher’s starting node and, for each node, knows the probability that it is located there. The object is found if and only if the searcher is at the node where the object is hidden and searches there. How can the searcher find the object at minimum cost? We analyze this problem when the network is complete bipartite, where the set of nodes is partitioned to two.

Keywords: Applied probability; Optimal search strategy; Minimum expected search cost; Existence probability; Moving and search costs (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ejores:v:277:y:2019:i:1:p:227-237

DOI: 10.1016/j.ejor.2019.02.029

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