Problem 44376. The sliding puzzle: 3D

Created by HH

Solve Later

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<div style = "text-align: start; line-height: 20.44px; min-height: 0px; white-space: normal; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Menlo, Monaco, Consolas, monospace; font-style: normal; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none solid rgb(0, 0, 0); white-space: normal; "><div style="block-size: 348.75px; display: block; min-width: 0px; padding-block-start: 0px; padding-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 407px 174.375px; transform-origin: 407px 174.375px; vertical-align: baseline; "><div style="block-size: 63px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 2px; perspective-origin: 384px 31.5px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 31.5px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">This is an extension of</span></span><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style=""> </span></span><a target='_blank' href = "https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/cody/problems/42842"><span style=""><span style="">problem 42842</span></span></a><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">. In this case, the puzzle is three-dimensional and is of size 3x3x3. Of the 27 positions in the puzzle, 26 are occupied by cubes numbered 1 thru 26, while the remaining position is empty. You can slide an adjacent cube into the empty position, similarly to sliding an adjacent tile into the empty position in the 15 puzzle.</span></span></div><div style="block-size: 42px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 2px; perspective-origin: 384px 21px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 21px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">In this case, for simplicity, the puzzle is represented by a vectorized form of the puzzle, such that the 3D form of the puzzle can be obtained by</span></span><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style=""> </span></span><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="font-style: italic; ">reshape(p,[3 3 3])</span></span><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">. Therefore, a solved cube shall look like this:</span></span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(247, 247, 247); block-size: 20.4375px; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-end-end-radius: 4px; border-end-start-radius: 4px; border-start-end-radius: 4px; border-start-start-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; margin-block-end: 10px; margin-block-start: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-inline-end: 3px; margin-inline-start: 3px; margin-left: 3px; margin-right: 3px; margin-top: 10px; perspective-origin: 404px 10.2188px; transform-origin: 404px 10.2188px; margin-left: 3px; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-right: 3px; "><div style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); border-bottom-left-radius: 0px; border-bottom-right-radius: 0px; border-end-end-radius: 0px; border-end-start-radius: 0px; border-inline-end-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-end-style: solid; border-inline-end-width: 1px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-start-style: solid; border-inline-start-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-start-end-radius: 0px; border-start-start-radius: 0px; border-top-left-radius: 0px; border-top-right-radius: 0px; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; min-block-size: 18px; min-height: 18px; padding-inline-start: 4px; padding-left: 4px; white-space: nowrap; "><span style="block-size: auto; border-inline-end-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-end-style: none; border-inline-end-width: 0px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-start-style: none; border-inline-start-width: 0px; border-left-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-left-style: none; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-right-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; margin-inline-end: 45px; margin-right: 45px; min-block-size: 0px; min-height: 0px; padding-inline-start: 0px; padding-left: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; tab-size: 4; transform-origin: 0px 0px; white-space: pre; margin-right: 45px; "><span style="margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; "> p = [1;2;3;4;5;6;7;8;9;10;11;12;13;14;15;16;17;18;19;20;21;22;23;24;25;26;0]</span></span></div></div><div style="block-size: 42px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 10px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 10px; perspective-origin: 384px 21px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 21px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">Given the initial state vector, p, return a vector, m, comprising a sequence of integers, representing the linear indices of the cubes you wish to slide, in turn, into the empty position, in order to solve the puzzle.</span></span></div><div style="block-size: 42px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 2px; perspective-origin: 384px 21px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 21px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">As before, the solution does not have to be efficient. It must simply result in a correctly solved puzzle. Illegal moves, such as trying to slide a tile that is not adjacent to the open slot, will be ignored.</span></span></div><div style="block-size: 21px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 2px; perspective-origin: 384px 10.5px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 10.5px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; transform-origin: 0px 0px; "><span style="">Example:</span></span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(247, 247, 247); block-size: 61.3125px; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-end-end-radius: 4px; border-end-start-radius: 4px; border-start-end-radius: 4px; border-start-start-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; margin-block-end: 10px; margin-block-start: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-inline-end: 3px; margin-inline-start: 3px; margin-left: 3px; margin-right: 3px; margin-top: 10px; perspective-origin: 404px 30.6562px; transform-origin: 404px 30.6562px; margin-left: 3px; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-right: 3px; "><div style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); block-size: 20.4375px; border-bottom-left-radius: 0px; border-bottom-right-radius: 0px; border-end-end-radius: 0px; border-end-start-radius: 0px; border-inline-end-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-end-style: solid; border-inline-end-width: 1px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-start-style: solid; border-inline-start-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-start-end-radius: 0px; border-start-start-radius: 0px; border-top-left-radius: 0px; border-top-right-radius: 0px; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; min-block-size: 18px; min-height: 18px; padding-inline-start: 4px; padding-left: 4px; perspective-origin: 404px 10.2188px; transform-origin: 404px 10.2188px; white-space: nowrap; "><span style="block-size: auto; border-inline-end-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-end-style: none; border-inline-end-width: 0px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-start-style: none; border-inline-start-width: 0px; border-left-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-left-style: none; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-right-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; margin-inline-end: 45px; margin-right: 45px; min-block-size: 0px; min-height: 0px; padding-inline-start: 0px; padding-left: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; tab-size: 4; transform-origin: 0px 0px; white-space: pre; margin-right: 45px; "><span style="margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; "> p = [0;2;3;1;5;6;4;7;9;10;11;12;13;17;14;16;8;18;19;20;21;22;23;15;25;26;24]</span></span></div><div style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); block-size: 20.4375px; border-bottom-left-radius: 0px; border-bottom-right-radius: 0px; border-end-end-radius: 0px; border-end-start-radius: 0px; border-inline-end-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-end-style: solid; border-inline-end-width: 1px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-start-style: solid; border-inline-start-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-start-end-radius: 0px; border-start-start-radius: 0px; border-top-left-radius: 0px; border-top-right-radius: 0px; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; min-block-size: 18px; min-height: 18px; padding-inline-start: 4px; padding-left: 4px; perspective-origin: 404px 10.2188px; transform-origin: 404px 10.2188px; white-space: nowrap; "><span style="block-size: auto; border-inline-end-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-end-style: none; border-inline-end-width: 0px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-start-style: none; border-inline-start-width: 0px; border-left-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-left-style: none; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-right-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; margin-inline-end: 45px; margin-right: 45px; min-block-size: 0px; min-height: 0px; padding-inline-start: 0px; padding-left: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; tab-size: 4; transform-origin: 0px 0px; white-space: pre; margin-right: 45px; "><span style="margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; "></span></span></div><div style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); block-size: 20.4375px; border-bottom-left-radius: 0px; border-bottom-right-radius: 0px; border-end-end-radius: 0px; border-end-start-radius: 0px; border-inline-end-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-end-style: solid; border-inline-end-width: 1px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-start-style: solid; border-inline-start-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-start-end-radius: 0px; border-start-start-radius: 0px; border-top-left-radius: 0px; border-top-right-radius: 0px; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; min-block-size: 18px; min-height: 18px; padding-inline-start: 4px; padding-left: 4px; perspective-origin: 404px 10.2188px; transform-origin: 404px 10.2188px; white-space: nowrap; "><span style="block-size: auto; border-inline-end-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-end-style: none; border-inline-end-width: 0px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-start-style: none; border-inline-start-width: 0px; border-left-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-left-style: none; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-right-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; margin-inline-end: 45px; margin-right: 45px; min-block-size: 0px; min-height: 0px; padding-inline-start: 0px; padding-left: 0px; perspective-origin: 0px 0px; tab-size: 4; transform-origin: 0px 0px; white-space: pre; margin-right: 45px; "><span style="margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; "> m = [4 7 8 17 14 15 24 27]</span></span></div></div></div></div>

This is an extension of problem 42842. In this case, the puzzle is three-dimensional and is of size 3x3x3. Of the 27 positions in the puzzle, 26 are occupied by cubes numbered 1 thru 26, while the remaining position is empty. You can slide an adjacent cube into the empty position, similarly to sliding an adjacent tile into the empty position in the 15 puzzle.
In this case, for simplicity, the puzzle is represented by a vectorized form of the puzzle, such that the 3D form of the puzzle can be obtained by reshape(p,[3 3 3]). Therefore, a solved cube shall look like this:
 p = [1;2;3;4;5;6;7;8;9;10;11;12;13;14;15;16;17;18;19;20;21;22;23;24;25;26;0]
Given the initial state vector, p, return a vector, m, comprising a sequence of integers, representing the linear indices of the cubes you wish to slide, in turn, into the empty position, in order to solve the puzzle.
As before, the solution does not have to be efficient. It must simply result in a correctly solved puzzle. Illegal moves, such as trying to slide a tile that is not adjacent to the open slot, will be ignored.
Example:
 p = [0;2;3;1;5;6;4;7;9;10;11;12;13;17;14;16;8;18;19;20;21;22;23;15;25;26;24]

m = [4 7 8 17 14 15 24 27]

Solve

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Last Solution submitted on Dec 01, 2022

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Alfonso Nieto-Castanon on 21 Oct 2017

there is a bug in the evaluation function, I believe "abs(a1 + b1 + c1 - a0 - b0 - c0) == 1" should be changed to "abs(a1-a0) + abs(b1-b0) + abs(c1-c0) == 1". In any way, this was a very cool problem, unless I am misremembering this would be the very first one that forced me to implement some version of A* in Cody :)

HH on 21 Oct 2017

Alfonso, it is an honor and a pleasure to have read your comment. I'm glad you enjoyed the problem. Thank you for spotting the bug. I will update accordingly.

HH on 21 Oct 2017

Alfonso, I've fixed the bug. As a result, I've actually located a tiny typo, one single character in my own solution that was, in fact, the difference between a correct and an incorrect solution based on your correction. Fixed that too, of course. Thanks again!

Meng Xiao on 2 Nov 2017

It takes 9 seconds to solve the four inputs on my laptop, but the system rejected my code with the error of long run time. What's the acceptable time for the four inputs?

Thomas Steffen on 31 Dec 2017

This one kept my busy, and I think my solution is a bit of a tour de force. It is recipe based, rather than optimal, but there are just too many corner cases to program around. I should have made better use of invariant sets, I guess.

Jean-Marie Sainthillier on 27 Feb 2019

Difficult problem

Rafael S.T. Vieira on 10 Jul 2020

Good problem. Tip: use the L1-norm or manhattan distance using the 3 indexes as a cost function.

Johanna Richter on 17 Oct 2020

I am actually giving up :(
tried a lot......

Solution Comments

Solution 1391296

1 Comment

1 Comment

Ziheng Hu on 23 Dec 2017

Cheater!

Solution 1363417

1 Comment

1 Comment

Ziheng Hu on 22 Dec 2017

Can someone remove this cheating solution?

Solution 1354397

4 Comments

4 Comments

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Alfonso Nieto-Castanon on 23 Nov 2017

wow, I love everything about this solution, the equivalence with a 3x9 board, the BubbleSort strategy, even the 190-size :)

Tim on 27 Nov 2017

Thank you.

Kangqi Yu on 12 Apr 2022

I fail at BubbleSort. It always leaves a cube in the corner at the vertice of the big cube. Can someone help me? ;)

Kangqi Yu on 16 Apr 2022

I solved it. Bubble sort is a handy way. Thanks.

Solution 1310071

1 Comment

1 Comment

Stefan Abendroth on 19 Jul 2022

Thank you, Alfonso!
This is a great lesson on how to code in MATLAB.

Solution 1308504

5 Comments

5 Comments

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Daniel Turizo on 22 Oct 2017

This problem was so difficult for me to solve, would you mind explaining what search algorithm did you implement? Thanks.

Alfonso Nieto-Castanon on 23 Oct 2017

It is a best-first search using a heuristic based on the sum of manhattan distances to target for each of the 26 tiles; solution 1310071 is slightly commented in case that helps

Alfonso Nieto-Castanon on 23 Oct 2017

@daniel and by the way congrats on finishing all cody5-hard problems, that is quite an accomplishment! (I had it easier, having created a couple of problems in that same group, so mine does not count :)

Daniel Turizo on 23 Oct 2017

I tried a similiar search but it did not end on time, and I don't know why.
PD: You're being too modest! I've been pulling all nighters all the week to finish them all, I'm sure it didn't take you all that time to solve them all.
PD2: I've made a problem (44390) in honour to all the suffering and latter satisfaction these 5th anniversay problems brought to me, you should check it out :)

Michael on 27 Nov 2017

I have tried something similar to this "best-first search" algorithm (if I understand the term correctly), but as I get closer to the final solution, I keep running into situations where all of the available moves move a tile out of its correct position, so my heuristic judges all of them equally, and the algorithm just starts making pseudo-random moves. Are you looking at all possibilities of some small number of moves, and picking one set of moves to move on from?

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Problem 44376. The sliding puzzle: 3D

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Problem 44376. The sliding puzzle: 3D

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