Flow network

In graph theory, a flow network (also known as a transportation network) is a directed graph where each edge has a capacity and each edge receives a flow. The amount of flow on an edge cannot exceed the capacity of the edge. Often in operations research, a directed graph is called a network. The vertices are called nodes and the edges are called arcs. A flow must satisfy the restriction that the amount of flow into a node equals the amount of flow out of it, unless it is a source, which has only outgoing flow, or sink, which has only incoming flow. A network can be used to model traffic in a road system, circulation with demands, fluids in pipes, currents in an electrical circuit, or anything similar in which something travels through a network of nodes.

Definition

Let be a finite directed graph in which every edge has a non-negative, real-valued capacity . If , we assume that . We distinguish two vertices: a source s and a sink t. A flow in a flow network is a real function with the following three properties for all nodes u and v: