The stepping-stone method requires that one or more artificially occupied cells with a flow of zero be created in the transportation tableau when the number of occupied cells is fewer than
A)m + n − 2.
B)m + n − 1.
C)m + n.
D)m + n + 1.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The stepping-stone method requires that the number of occupied cells be equal to the number of rows plus the number of columns minus one (m+n-1). This is because each row and column must have exactly one basic variable. Therefore, in order to create artificial cells with zero flow, we need to have at least one unoccupied cell. So the minimum number of occupied cells required is m+n-1. Therefore, the answer is B, m+n-1.

The Stepping-Stone Method Requires That One or More Artificially Occupied