Timefold Solver supports both basic and list planning variables... and you can mix them! Learn all three patterns and when each one makes sense.

Timefold

Timefold Solver supports mixing basic (@PlanningVariable) and list (@PlanningListVariable) planning variables in the same solution. Three patterns are covered: (1) both variable types on a single entity (e.g., a production line with an assigned operator and a job queue), (2) multiple separate entities each with their own variable type for decisions with different lifecycles, and (3) child entities inside a list variable that carry their own basic variables, enabling problems like vehicle routing with per-stop decisions. Each pattern addresses a distinct class of real-world scheduling and optimization problems that a single variable type cannot cleanly express.

Mixed Models in Timefold Solver: Combining Planning…

# Pattern 1: Both variables on the same entity

# Pattern 2: Multiple entities, each with their own variable

# Pattern 3: A child entity with its own variable