[CentralOH] Python Puzzler: Room scheduling

[Eric Floehr]

Yes. A room may be occupied or not in any given period.
 On May 28, 2015 9:20 PM, <melvyniandrag at gmail.com> wrote:

> Could I just ask for clarification? By 'can be used... Or not...' You
> don't mean that a room must be used all 7 or not at all, right? Its that a
> room can be occupied by any one class or not at all at any time. Just
> making sure.
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> > On May 28, 2015, at 8:54 AM, Eric Floehr <eric at intellovations.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > How would you go about figuring out the best room schedule in Python?
> This is a real optimization problem my wife's high school department has.
> >
> > You have three classrooms: R1, R2, R3
> >
> > The day is segmented into 7 periods. Each classroom can be used all 7
> periods, or not.
> >
> > There are 4 teachers. Each teacher needs to teach class for 5 periods,
> but they can be any of the 7 periods of the day. Each teacher has one
> period where they can't teach (listed), and one period where they won't
> have to teach that can be any period of the day:
> >
> > Ms. Anderson, can't teach period 6
> > Mr. Boxleitner, can't teach period 2
> > Ms. Chastain, can't teach period 7
> > Mr. Duchovny, can't teach period 3
> >
> > Additionally, Ms. Chastain must teach in the same room for all 5 of her
> class periods. The other three teachers can move rooms as necessary.
> >
> > What is the "optimal" arrangement of teachers in rooms to meet these
> constraints? "Optimal" means:
> >
> > 1. Fewest room changes, where a room change is defined as a teacher
> moving from one room to another.  For example, if Ms. A seven period
> schedule is: period 6 and 7 off, and period 1 in room 1, period 2 in room
> 2, period 3 in room 2, period 4 in room 1 and period 5 in room 2, that is
> three total room changes.
> >
> > 2. Lowest average room changes per teacher. I.e. 3 teachers moving once
> is preferable to 1 teacher moving 3 times.
> >
> > 3. A room change with a break in between is preferable to an immediate
> room change. A "break" is either the teacher's free period or their "can't
> teach" period. For example, if Ms. A teaches in room 1 every period except
> period 7 where she teaches in room 2, that's preferable to teaching period
> 1 in room 2 and then period 2 (and other periods) in room 1.
> >
> > Beyond that, there is no "right" answer.
> >
> > How do you go about providing "good" solutions in Python?
> >
> >
> >
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