Patent Document ID: 8170962
Application ID: 12097254
Patent Flag: 1

Claim One:
1. A method of configuring one or more procedural components of a search algorithm for solving at least one combinatorial-optimization problem, the method employing for each procedural component a corresponding data structure representing ways of configuring the procedural component, the data structure comprising a plurality of nodes associated together in a tree structure, the plurality of nodes representing respective choices which are to be made to configure the procedural component, the method comprising: configuring the procedural component by traversing the tree structure by a traversal algorithm, wherein the plurality of nodes are labeled successively as a current node; upon the current node representing a choice which is to be made to configure the procedural component, receiving input making the choice represented by the current node; wherein the tree structure includes one or more property subtrees, each property subtree being associated with one or more choices which are required by an aspect of the procedural component; wherein each property subtree includes (i) a property node indicative of the existence of one or more choices which are adapted to configure an aspect of the component and (ii) one or more nodes stemming from the property nodes and representing the respective choices; the traversal algorithm, upon the current node being a property node, causing all of the nodes stemming from the property node to be labeled successively as the current node, and upon one of those nodes becoming the current node receiving input making the corresponding choice; and wherein upon the current node being a node from which both a variation node and a procedural node stem, firstly the variation node is selected as the current node, and subsequently the property node is selected as the current node.