Development of a block layout optimization model

Block pavements involve the placement of rectangular blocks in an area with a certain pattern. However, blocks will need to be cut to fit the area which will yield additional costs and waste. This study presents a model to minimize cutting loss in block pavements for any shape, improving previous studies that only considered rectangular bounding areas and disregarded block placement patterns. The model mathematically incorporates constraints such as amount, geometric boundary, overlap, and pattern; and uses the harmony search algorithm to optimize block layouts for stack bond, stretcher, and herringbone patterns. Results demonstrated improved layouts compared to existing pavements. Sensitivity analysis showed that while the pattern does not affect the results, cutting loss decreases with smaller block sizes, larger pavement areas, or zero convexity boundaries. It also showed that optimizing the block layout was able to follow construction guidelines of allowing additional blocks to 8% of the estimated quantity.