Navigation:  Untis Standard Package > Optimisation > Timetable optimisation

 

 

The following chapter describes the timetable optimisation function and the diagnosis tools used before and after an optimisation run.

 

The optimisation tool of the Untis timetabling software manages the entire automated process of constructing a timetable. It consists of two main elements – the placement run and the swap run .

 

The programme starts with an empty time grid and proceeds to fill the grid with periods. Since this alone would not necessarily produce the best results, the constructed timetable then undergoes a series of specific period swaps to improve the final outcome. In the end, the weighting settings you have specified will determine the actual quality of the timetable.

 

An apt comparison is the board game Nine Men’s Morris where two players place individual pieces on an empty board before attempting to improve their positions by strategically moving the pieces across the board.

 

Of course, the placements and swaps initiated by the programme are not done at random. Each violation of one of the specifications you have entered (e.g. the maximum number of periods per day) incurs a penalty point. With the help of the weighting settings, the software proceeds to re-evaluate the penalty points until it arrives at a value for the entire timetable. This value gives you an indication of how good the timetable really is. The lower the value, the higher the level of compliance with the given settings and the better the overall quality of the completed timetable.