A Constraint Programming-based Automated Course Timetabling System

Abstract

The course timetabling problem is a kind of very complex combinatorial optimization problems, which is known as an NP-complete problem. Sometimes a given course timetabling problem can be accompanied by many constraints. At this time, even if only one constraint is violated, it can be an infeasible timetable. Therefore, it is very difficult to make an automated course timetabling system for a complex real-world course timetabling problem. This paper introduces an automated course timetabling system using constraint programming. The target problem has 26 constraints in total, and they are expressed as 24 constraints and an objective function in constraint programming. Currently, we are making a timetable through this system and applying the result to the actual class. Members’ satisfaction is also much higher than manual results. We expect this paper can be a guide for making an automated course timetabling system.