✈️ Flight Router: Shortest Path Finder for Airports

Project Overview

Flight Router is an application that enables users to find the shortest flight path (measured in miles) between two airports. This application leverages Dijkstra's shortest path algorithm and represents airports as nodes and flights as edges within a graph data structure. Users can load data from a local file and use the application to discover optimal routes, view dataset statistics, and interact with a command-line interface for seamless navigation.

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📑 Key Features

1. Shortest Route Search: Finds the shortest sequence of flights between two specified airports, displaying each flight segment with its distance in miles.
2. Dataset Statistics: Provides a summary of the dataset, including the number of airports, flights, and the cumulative mileage of all flights.
3. Interactive CLI: Allows users to load datasets, perform route searches, view statistics, and exit the application in an interactive, user-friendly way.

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🎯 Representative Tasks

• Route Search: Identify the shortest route from a starting airport (e.g., ATL) to a destination airport (e.g., SFO), displaying each flight and its distance.
• Dataset Summary: Display the total number of airports, flights, and the cumulative mileage for all available routes in the dataset.

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🛠 Project Structure and Roles

Backend Developer Role (My Role)

The Backend Developer is responsible for implementing the core functionalities of the application, specifically related to data handling, graph construction, and shortest path computations.

Responsibilities

1. Graph Data Handling: Reads airport and flight data from a user-specified DOT file and constructs a graph representation using GraphADT.
2. Shortest Path Computation: Utilizes Dijkstra's algorithm to determine the shortest path in miles between two airports.
3. Result Storage: Implements a class (ShortestPathResult) that stores the shortest path results, including:
   • The route as a list of airports.
   • The distance for each segment along the route.
   • The total distance for the route.
4. Statistics Retrieval: Provides methods to retrieve dataset statistics, such as the number of airports, flights, and the total mileage.

Core Backend Files

• Backend.java: Implements backend functionalities for reading data, calculating shortest paths, and retrieving dataset statistics.
• BackendInterface.java: Defines the interface for backend operations, specifying methods for data loading, route finding, and statistics retrieval.
• DijkstraGraph.java: Implements Dijkstra's algorithm for finding the shortest path between nodes (airports) in the graph.
• ShortestPathResult.java: Stores the results of a shortest path search, providing access to the route, segment distances, and total route distance.
• ShortestPathResultInterface.java: Interface defining methods for retrieving details from ShortestPathResult.
• GraphADT.java: Abstract Data Type defining the structure and operations of the graph, representing airports and flights.
• BaseGraph.java: Base implementation of the graph structure, providing foundational methods for node and edge management.
• City.java: Represents an individual airport node within the graph, storing information about each airport.
• Flight.java: Represents individual flights, including details like distance and connecting airports.

Presentation Responsibilities

After integration, the backend developer demonstrates the shortest route calculation between airports, displaying each segment and the total distance.

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Frontend Developer Role

The Frontend Developer builds the interactive user interface, which facilitates command-based interactions between the user and the backend.

Responsibilities

1. Command Loop: Prompts the user to select actions and collects required inputs for each command.
2. Command Implementations:
   • Load Data File: Allows the user to load a DOT file containing airport and flight data.
   • Show Dataset Statistics: Displays the number of airports, flights, and cumulative mileage.
   • Shortest Route Search: Collects start and destination airports from the user and displays the shortest route with segment distances.
   • Exit: Exits the application.

Core Frontend Files

• Frontend.java: Manages the command-line interface and coordinates with the backend to display results to the user.
• FrontendInterface.java: Defines the interface for frontend operations, specifying methods for each command.
• TextUITester.java: Contains tests for the text-based user interface.
• FrontendDeveloperTests.java: Contains test cases to verify frontend functionality.

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🚀 Running the Application

1. Compile the Code:

   javac *.java
   

2. Run the Application:

   java Main
   

3. Commands:

   • Load Data: Specify a DOT file to load airport and flight data.
   • View Dataset Statistics: Display the number of airports, flights, and total mileage.
   • Find Shortest Route: Enter a start and destination airport to view the shortest route and segment distances.
   • Exit: Close the application.

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📝 Example Usage

• Load a Data File:
  Input: flights.dot

• View Dataset Statistics:
  Output: Airports: 50, Flights: 200, Total Miles: 25,000

• Find Shortest Route:
  Input: Start: ATL, Destination: SFO

  Output:

  Route: ATL -> DFW -> PHX -> SFO
  Distances: 760 miles, 870 miles, 650 miles
  Total Distance: 2,280 miles
  

• Exit the Application

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🔧 Technologies Used

• Dijkstra's Algorithm: Core algorithm for finding shortest paths.
• Graph Data Structure: Represents airports and flights within the application.

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🏆 Key Contributions

As the Backend Developer, my contributions include:

• Implementing data parsing and graph loading functionalities.
• Designing and implementing shortest path algorithms for route finding.
• Creating interfaces and classes to store and retrieve shortest path results.
• Integrating backend functionality with the frontend for seamless user interactions.