Generalized Coverage Models and Public Facility Location

Many public facility location models have been developed using maximum service distance criteria. Most of these models can be classified as covering models. This paper expands on the notion of service coverage where the value of coverage is not a constant as in previous models. This varying coverage value when coupled with the Maximal Covering Location Problem yields a set of new models which are more complex but still tractable. These new models provide an approach that is sensitive to many of the issues found in public facility location. Both convex and nonconvex coverage functions are discussed along with their potential use in locating noxious activities.