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Scheduling for Trinity School at Meadow View

User’s Manual

Prepared By: James DeBolt

Valiant Tsang Mary Barthelson Marissa Brienza Zachary Nuzzo

May 8, 2017

Sponsor: Tim Maloney Chair of Math and Science Trinity School at Meadow View

George Mason University SEOR Department

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Table of Contents 1. General Information ............................................................................................................................... 2

1.1 System Overview ............................................................................................................................. 2

1.2 Organization of Manual .................................................................................................................. 2

2. Getting Started........................................................................................................................................ 3

3. The TSS User Interface ............................................................................................................................ 4

4. The Trinity Scheduling Integer Program ................................................................................................ 17

5. The Output Interface ............................................................................................................................ 18

5.1 Create a New Schedule ................................................................................................................. 18

6. Toggling Constraints for Schedule Generation ..................................................................................... 20

7. Trouble Shooting ................................................................................................................................... 23

8. MS Access Quick Guide .......................................................................................................................... 24


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1. General Information

This section will introduce the user to the Trinity School Scheduler 2.0 (TSS) User Interface

(UI), the Trinity Scheduling Integer Program (IP), and the Output Interface.

1.1 System Overview Trinity School at Meadow View currently creates semester schedules manually with paper and

pencil; this is a time intensive process that can take them days or even weeks to complete. The

Trinity School Scheduling Tool was created to ease the scheduling process for Trinity. The tool

finds feasible schedules for future school semesters given a variety of input parameters and creates

a cohesive semester schedule. The tool is supported by Windows OS. The tool uses Microsoft

Access, Microsoft Excel, and lp_solve 5.5.2.5, a free code library used for solving numerical

optimization problems.

1.2 Organization of Manual The User’s Manual consists of seven sections: Getting Started, The TSS UI, The Trinity

Scheduling Integer Program, The Output Interface, Toggling Constraints for Schedule

Generation, Troubleshooting, MS Access Quick Guide

Getting Started explains how to set-up and open the Trinity School Scheduling Tool.

The TSS UI section gives directions on how to use the UI and describes all its features.

The Trinity Scheduling Integer Program section gives a high level of the IP used to solve the

scheduling problem.

The Output Interface section provides instruction on how to import the solution file and how to

get the master schedule output.

Toggling Constraints for Schedule Generation provides instruction regarding modifying the

VBA code that generates the LP file, so that individual constraints can be toggled on and off.

The Troubleshooting section offers advice to avoid infeasibility and guidance with navigating

through MS Access to modify the TSS UI.

MS Access Quick Guide navigates a user through MS Access to inspect forms and tables in

different Views.


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2. Getting Started

The user has been provided a link to the Trinity School Scheduling Tool and all relevant

documentation. The contents of the tool are found in Table 1.

The TSS User Interface TSS v02.accdb

The Output Interface TSS_Output.xlsm

TSS Java Solver Tss_java.jar

User’s Manual UsersManual.pdf

Trinity Scheduling Final Report TS_FinalReport.pdf

Trinity Scheduling Final Presentation TS_FinalPres.pdf Table 1: TSS Application Contents

Download all contents from the link and save it all in a single folder. Ensure that no folder name

in the installation path has any spaces. Read through the entirety of the User’s Manual before

attempting to use the Trinity Scheduling Tool. Read through the Final Report to understand the

motivation behind the tool and the reasoning for the selected solution method.

After unzipping the file, identify whether the computer you are installing on has a 32- or 64-bit

version of windows. Follow this link if you need assistance in identifying which version you use.

After you have determined the version, copy the three files (lp_solve.exe, lpsolve55.dll,

lpsolve55j.dll) from the appropriately named folder from the install directory (32B-FILES or 64B-

FILES) into your C:\Windows\System32 directory. Finally, install Java Runtime Environment

version 8. Instructions for that installation can be found here. Note: for 32-bit Windows, download

the version named “Windows x86 Offline”. For 64-bit Windows, download the version named

“Windows x64 Offline”.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/827218/how-to-determine-whether-a-computer-is-running-a-32-bit-version-or-64-bit-version-of-the-windows-operating-system

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/jre8-downloads-2133155.html


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3. The TSS User Interface

The TSS User Interface will be the first step in creating a master semester schedule. Begin by

gathering all required data:

Teacher names

Teacher assignments for all sections

Teacher availability for the 6 periods

Teacher full/part-time status

Section sizes for current student body

Classroom names

Classroom capacity

Classroom content

Classroom availability

Open the TSS User Interface in Microsoft Access (make sure to enable content). Figure 1 is the

homepage:

Figure 1. TSS UI Homepage


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Complete the following steps to ensure all data is entered:

1. Select the semester that needs to be scheduled by using the drop-down menu. See

Figure 2.

2. Select the Enter Section Information button to enter/edit the number of students.

See Figure 3.

Figure 2 Selecting the Semester

Figure 3 Selecting the Enter Section Information Button


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3. Enter Section size information by clicking the respective text box and entering

data into the table. Click Save. Click Close to return to the TSS UI Homepage.

4. From the TSS UI Homepage, select the Enter Room Constraints button

Figure 4 Section Size Form

Figure 5 Selecting the Enter Room Constraints Button


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5. To edit the room capacity, enter the number the text box. Click the Close button to

return to the TSS UI Homepage. See Figure 6.

Figure 6 Rooms Form


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Click on the Edit Content button for a room to go to the Edit_Room_Content form

to select associated courses that can be held in that particular room. If a room can

hold all types of courses, select all classes in the list. Click on the Save button to

save selections. Click on the Close button to return to the Rooms Form. See

Figure 7.

Figure 7 Edit_Room_Content Form


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6. From the TSS UI Homepage, select the Teacher Roster Availability Course Pairing

button to modify information about the teacher. The Teacher_Semester Form will

appear. See Figure 8 and Figure 9.

Figure 9 Teacher_Semester Form

Figure 8 Selecting the Teacher Roster Availability Course Pairing Button


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7. To add a new teacher, select the Add New Teacher button. See Figure 10. The

New_Teacher form will appear. Enter the first and last name in respective text boxes.

Click the Save button; a message box will appear confirming addition of the new

teacher. Click the Close button to return to the Teacher_Semester form. See Figure

11.

Figure 11 New_Teacher Form

Figure 10 Selecting Add New Teacher Button


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8. To modify the teacher’s availability, select the Edit Availability button next to the

teacher’s name that requires modification. See Figure 12. The

Teacher_Schedule_Edit form will appear. Select respective period availability for that

teacher. If the teacher will be teaching more than two sections for the semester, check

the checkbox next to the question regarding whether the teacher is a full-time faculty

member to designate them as such. Select the Done button to return to the

Teacher_Semester form. See Figure 13.

Figure 12 Selecting Edit Availability Button

Figure 13 Selecting Checkboxes Regarding Teacher Availability and Faculty Member Status


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9. To modify the teacher/course pairing, select the Edit Sections button next to the

teacher’s name that requires modification. See Figure 14.

Figure 14 Selecting the Edit Sections Button


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10. After selecting the Edit Sections button, the Teacher_Subject_Edit form will appear.

For the semester being scheduled, select the courses to be paired with the respective

teacher. Hold the ctrl key while clicking to make multiple selections. Select the Save

button. Select the Close button to return to the Teacher_Semester form. See Figure 15.

Figure 15 Teacher_Subject_Edit Form


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Figure 16 Selecting the Delete Button

11. To remove a teacher from the roster, select the Delete button on the Teacher_Semester

form. See Figure 16. A message box will appear for confirmation of deletion. Select

Yes to continue with deletion; select No to cancel deletion. See Figure 17.

Figure 17 Message Box to confirm deletion


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Figure 18 Selecting the Status Report Buttons

12. To generate status reports, from the Teacher_Semester form, select the Teacher

Availability Report and Section/Teacher Pairing Report buttons. See Figure 18.


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User will be prompted to identify a location/folder to save the Excel file.

Select location/folder and click OK. See Figure 19. The report will be

automatically opened in MS Excel.

Figure 19 Dialogue Box prompting user to save file to a location on the computer

George Mason University 17 SEOR Department

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4. The Trinity Scheduling Integer Program

Once the user has entered all required data, the IP is ready to be created. On the TSS UI

homepage, schedule generation can be kicked-off:

1. On the TSS UI homepage, press Solve! to create a LP file containing the IP formulation

with the user-entered data.

2. NOTE: The Microsoft Access application may appear unresponsive for up to five

minutes during the creation of the LP file. This is expected. Please do not close the

application or do anything else with the computer until the generation has

completed. (You will know this is done when the excel pops open).

3. This will create a file called “TSS .lp” in the same folder as the TSS UI.

4. The Java application will automatically be launched. This application will create four

more versions of the LP file to generate up to five feasible schedules. The solution

files for all five will be stored in the same folder as the TSS UI as well.

5. NOTE: If the java task on the screen at the bottom of your bar does not close

after ~2-3 minutes, the schedule is infeasible. Please kill that Java process and

begin again after modifying data or constraint activation. If the Java process

closes itself, the algorithm was able to successfully create solutions. Please

continue.

6. The IP has successfully solved, proceed to The Output Interface section.


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5. The Output Interface

These are the final steps of the Trinity Scheduling Tool. Begin by opening the TSS_Output.xlsm

by double-clicking the application in the folder, or by using the window automatically opened by

Access. Once the file is launched, enable editing and enable content. This is the Homepage:

Figure 20 TSS_Output UI Homepage

5.1 Create a New Schedule 1. The Output Interface now requires minimal set-up. Simply ensure that the Excel file is

located in the same folder as the Microsoft Access file.

2. If changes have been made to inputs in the Access database update the section, teacher,

and classroom lists in excel by clicking Update All Tables.

a. To review lists individually click the corresponding Edit button. Update the list

automatically by clicking the update button. If no changes are needed, return to

the homepage by clicking Go to User Overview.

b. If you get a path not found error, go to “Troubleshooting” below.

3. Next, click Clear Schedule to ensure there is a blank slate to work with.

4. Click Update File Path and pick the solution file which you generated in Section 4. These

solution files will be located in the same directory as the Excel and Access files.

5. Click Create Master Schedule. It may take a few minutes to complete.

6. Once the Create Master Schedule macros finish executing, click Go To Master Schedule

to view the semester schedule that was created. A few additional options will become

available on the right of the Master Schedule. See Figure 21.

a. The user has the option to export the schedule into another Excel workbook by

clicking the Output to New Excel WB button.

i. This is where you can schedule alternating classes, Transfer Latin, and

make any final changes to the master schedule.


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b. The user has the option to create a teacher schedule with the Create Teacher

Schedule button, which will appear on a new tab.

c. The basic master schedule can be output to a PDF using the Output PDF button.

7. The Trinity Scheduling Tool has been used to completion. Proceed to the Section 7

for troubleshooting tips.

Figure 21 Master Schedule Sheet


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6. Toggling Constraints for Schedule Generation

The following are steps that a user can take in order to toggle whether each of the constraints

will be considered when generating a schedule.

1. Open the Trinity School Scheduler Microsoft Access file, click the “Create” tab, and

then the “Visual Basic” button. See Figure 22.

Figure 22 Navigating to Visual Basic


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2. On the left side of the “Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications” window that is

popped-up, open the list of modules, and double-click LPSolveFileGeneration. See

Figure 23.

3. Use “Ctrl+F” to search this module for your constraint. For instance, search for

“Constraint 3” to find where Constraint 3 is located. See Figure 24.

Figure 23 Accessing LPSolveFileGeneration

Figure 24 Finding Constraint


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4. In Figure 25, Constraint 3 is being called. To turn off the constraint, comment out the

call to the relevant code directly below the line indicating the constraint. To comment

out a line, simply place a single-quote character at the beginning of the line, as seen in

Figure 26. To turn on a constraint, make sure that the call is not commented out, and

thus does not have a single quote at the beginning of the line.

5. Save your changes, and close the “Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications” window.

Figure 25 Constraint 3 Being Called

Figure 26 Constraint 3 Commented Out


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7. Troubleshooting

Here are some tips and tricks to avoid errors:

1. Make sure every class has only one teacher assignment.

2. Make sure sections sizes are correct, it is easy to hit extra numbers.

3. Make sure that at a maximum four classes are assigned to full-time teachers and a

maximum of two classes are assigned to part-time teachers.

4. All teachers should be assigned at least one class.

5. If the Master Schedule has unexpected assignments (Mismatching class/teacher), check

Access to ensure corresponding input data is correct.

6. If the Update Lists button creates an error, ensure that the excel file is located in the

same folder as the Access file.

7. The Microsoft Access application may appear unresponsive for up to five minutes

during the creation of the LP file. This is expected. Please do not close the application or

do anything else with the computer until the generation has completed. (You will know

this is done when the excel pops open).

8. If the java task on the screen at the bottom of your bar does not close after ~2-3 minutes,

the schedule is infeasible. Please kill that Java process and begin again after modifying

data or constraint activation.

9. If you still have trouble generating feasible schedules after checking your data, please

consult Section 6 to attempt to disable a subset of the constraints in order to determine

where the issue lies.

10. Please ensure that the TSS UI is the only MS Access application running on your

computer when using the tool. If other Access files are open, conflicts may arise.

Infeasibility issues will typically be caused by incorrect data or a lack of classroom or teacher

availability. Use the tips and tricks above to make sure there are no data issues. If there are none,

go back to the TSS UI and edit the data by increasing the availability of teachers and relaxing

classroom content restrictions until a feasible solution is produced.


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8. MS Access Quick Guide

The following are steps to walk through the various views and objects in MS Access.

1. Open the Trinity School Scheduler Microsoft Access file. From the “Home” menu, click

on “View” and select “Design View” as shown in Figure 27. In Figure 28, the Navigation

Pane now appears and access to all MS Access Objects (tables, forms, reports, query,

macros, and modules) is available. The TSS 2.0 Homepage is now also in the design view;

in this view, the user is able to design and change the use of the form.

Figure 27 Changing to Design View


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2. Click on the “Design” menu and then click “View Code” to navigate to the VBA code

associated with the TSS 2.0 Homepage form. See Figure 29.

Figure 28 Design View of Homepage and Navigation Pane

Figure 29 Navigating to see the VBA code for the form


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3. Scroll up and down the Navigation Pane to see the other objects. Click on any object to

open a new tab of that object. In Figure 30, tbl_Teacher is selected. This tbl_Teacher is

currently in the Datasheet View.

4. tbl_Teacher can also be viewed in the Design View. See Figure 31.

Figure 30 tbl_Teacher in Datasheet View

Figure 31 tbl_Teacher in Design View

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