Priority Queues

COMP 352: Data Structures and Algorithms

Diego Elias Costa

Chapter 9

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Priority
Queues

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Why do we need Priority Queues?
• FIFO is not enough for all queue-like applications
• In many applications, objects are not treated equally.
• ”All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others…”

• Deal with processing objects under different priorities

• Triaging in a medical care center
• Air-traffic control
• Auction house

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Priority Queue ADT
• A priority queue stores a collection • Additional methods
of entries • min()
returns, but does not remove, an entry
• Each entry is a pair with smallest key, or null if the the
(key, value) priority queue is empty
• Main methods of the Priority Queue • size(), isEmpty()
ADT
• insert(k, v) • Applications:
inserts an entry with key k and value v • Standby flyers
• removeMin() • Auctions
removes and returns the entry with
smallest key, or null if the the priority • Stock market
queue is empty

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 5

Priority Queue Interface

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 6

Example Key

• A sequence of priority queue methods: Value

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser 7 Priority Queues

Total Order Relations
• Keys in a priority queue can be arbitrary objects on which an order is
defined
• Two distinct entries in a priority queue can have the same key
• Mathematical concept of total order relation 
• Comparability property: either x  y or y  x
• Antisymmetric property: x  y and y  x  x = y
• Transitive property: x  y and y  z  x  z

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 8

Entry ADT
• An entry in a priority queue is • As a Java interface:
simply a key-value pair
• Priority queues store entries to
allow for efficient insertion and
removal based on keys
• Methods:
◼ getKey: returns the key for this entry
◼ getValue: returns the value associated
with this entry

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 9

Comparator ADT
• A comparator encapsulates the • The primary method of the
action of comparing two objects Comparator ADT
according to a given total order • compare(x, y): returns an
relation integer i such that
• A generic priority queue uses an • i < 0 if a < b,
auxiliary comparator • i = 0 if a = b
• The comparator is external to the • i > 0 if a > b
keys being compared • An error occurs if a and b cannot
be compared.
• When the priority queue needs to
compare two keys, it uses its
comparator

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 10

String Length Comparator
The Comparator ADT compare(x, y) returns an integer i such that
i < 0 if a < b,
i = 0 if a = b
i > 0 if a > b
An error occurs if a and b cannot be compared. How to make
it simpler?

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String Length Comparator
The Comparator ADT compare(x, y) returns an integer i such that
i < 0 if a < b,
i = 0 if a = b
i > 0 if a > b
An error occurs if a and b cannot be compared.

public class StringLengthComparator implements Comparator<String> {

/** Compared two strings according to their length **/
public int compare(String a, String b){
return a.length() – b.length();
}
}

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String Length Comparator
The Comparator ADT compare(x, y) returns an integer i such that
i < 0 if a < b,
i = 0 if a = b
i > 0 if a > b
An error occurs if a and b cannot be compared.

public class StringLengthComparator implements Comparator<String> {

/** Compared two strings according to their length **/
public int compare(String a, String b){
return a.length() – b.length();
}
}

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String Length Comparator
The Comparator ADT compare(x, y) returns an integer i such that
i < 0 if a < b,
i = 0 if a = b
i > 0 if a > b
An error occurs if a and b cannot be compared.

public class StringLengthComparator implements Comparator<String> {

/** Compared two strings according to their length */
public int compare(String a, String b){
return a.length() – b.length();
}
}

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Lexicographic Comparator
/** Comparator for 2D points under the standard /** A point in the plane with integer
lexicographic order. */ coordinates */
public class Lexicographic implements public class Point2D {
Comparator {
protected int xc, yc; // coordinates
int xa, ya, xb, yb;
public Point2D(int x, int y) {
public int compare(Object a, Object b)
throws ClassCastException { xc = x;
xa = ((Point2D) a).getX(); yc = y;
ya = ((Point2D) a).getY(); }

xb = ((Point2D) b).getX();
public int getX() {
return xc;
yb = ((Point2D) b).getY();
}
if (xa != xb)
public int getY() {
return (xb - xa);
else
return yc;
return (yb - ya); }
} }
} © 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 15
Quiz: Implementing Comparators?
• How do we compare string alphabetically?

• How to implement a comparator of soccer team rankings in a

championship?

• Could we implement a generic Object comparator?

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Sequence-based Priority Queue
• Implementation with an unsorted • Implementation with a sorted list
list
4 5 2 3 1 1 2 3 4 5

• Performance: • Performance:
• insert takes O(1) time since we can
• insert takes O(n) time since we have to
insert the item at the beginning or find the place where to insert the item
end of the sequence
• removeMin and min take O(1) time, since
• removeMin and min take O(n) time
the smallest key is at the beginning
since we have to traverse the entire
sequence to find the smallest key

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues 17

Implementing
Priority Queues

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Abstract Priority Queue class

Our Entry nested object

How to compare elements is defined at

the creation of the priority queue

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Unsorted List Implementation
Using Linked-based
implementation makes it flexible to
remove elements from the middle

Search for element

with the smallest key

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Unsorted List Implementation (part 2)

Adding at an
arbitrary position
(first or last)

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser 21 Priority Queues

Sorted List Implementation

Search for a smaller key to

insert the new element after.

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser 22 Priority Queues

Sorted List Implementation (part 2)

Given the list is sorted, the first element is

guaranteed to have the smallest key.

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser 23 Priority Queues

Using Priority
Queues for Sorting

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Priority Queue Sorting
• We can use a priority queue to sort a list Algorithm PQ-Sort(S, C)
of comparable elements Input list S, comparator C for the
1. Insert the elements one by one with a elements of S
series of insert operations Output list S sorted in increasing
2. Remove the elements in sorted order order according to C
with a series of removeMin operations
P  priority queue with
comparator C
• The running time of this sorting method while S.isEmpty ()
depends on the priority queue
e  S.remove(S.first ())
implementation
P.insert (e, )
while P.isEmpty()
e  P.removeMin().getKey()
S.addLast(e)

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser

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Selection-Sort
• Selection-sort is the variation of PQ-sort where the priority queue is
implemented with an unsorted sequence
• Running time of Selection-sort:
1. Inserting the elements into the priority queue with n insert operations takes O(n) time
2. Removing the elements in sorted order from the priority queue with n removeMin
operations takes time proportional to
1 + 2 + …+ n
• Selection-sort runs in O(n2) time

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues

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Selection-Sort Example
Sequence S Priority Queue P
Input: (7,4,8,2,5,3,9) ()

Phase 1
(a) (4,8,2,5,3,9) (7)
(b) (8,2,5,3,9) (7,4)
.. .. ..
(g) () (7,4,8,2,5,3,9)

Phase 2
(a) (2) (7,4,8,5,3,9)
(b) (2,3) (7,4,8,5,9)
(c) (2,3,4) (7,8,5,9)
(d) (2,3,4,5) (7,8,9)
(e) (2,3,4,5,7) (8,9)
(f) (2,3,4,5,7,8) (9)
(g) (2,3,4,5,7,8,9) ()

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser 27 Priority Queues

Insertion-Sort
• Insertion-sort is the variation of PQ-sort where the priority queue
is implemented with a sorted sequence
• Running time of Insertion-sort:
1. Inserting the elements into the priority queue with n insert operations
takes time proportional to
1 + 2 + …+ n
2. Removing the elements in sorted order from the priority queue with a
series of n removeMin operations takes O(n) time
• Insertion-sort runs in O(n2) time

© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser 28 Priority Queues

Insertion-Sort Example
Sequence S Priority queue P
Input: (7,4,8,2,5,3,9) ()

Phase 1
(a) (4,8,2,5,3,9) (7)
(b) (8,2,5,3,9) (4,7)
(c) (2,5,3,9) (4,7,8)
(d) (5,3,9) (2,4,7,8)
(e) (3,9) (2,4,5,7,8)
(f) (9) (2,3,4,5,7,8)
(g) () (2,3,4,5,7,8,9)

Phase 2
(a) (2) (3,4,5,7,8,9)
(b) (2,3) (4,5,7,8,9)
.. .. ..
(g) (2,3,4,5,7,8,9) ()
© 2014 Goodrich, Tamassia, Goldwasser Priority Queues
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In-place Insertion-Sort
• Instead of using an external data structure, 5 4 2 3 1
we can implement selection-sort and
insertion-sort in-place 5 4 2 3 1
• A portion of the input sequence itself serves
as the priority queue 4 5 2 3 1
• For in-place insertion-sort
• We keep sorted the initial portion of the 2 4 5 3 1
sequence
• We can use swaps instead of modifying the 2 3 4 5 1
sequence

1 2 3 4 5

1 2 3 4 5
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